
Nurses, janitors, educators and other essential workers spelled out exactly what they want from state lawmakers during a rally in downtown Minneapolis.
The voice of Saint Paul's working families since 1897

Nurses, janitors, educators and other essential workers spelled out exactly what they want from state lawmakers during a rally in downtown Minneapolis.

The district has shown little interest, workers said, in addressing their concerns about wages, workloads and turnover.

“We can’t adequately serve others until we are adequately taken care of,” said Andrew Vanden Broeke, a day treatment therapist who works with children 12 to 17 years old.

“The U is interested in image,” Local 3800 President Cherrene Horazuk said during a rally last month. “U of M AFSCME is interested in substantive change.”

“I don’t think they’ve considered how these changes might push families further away,” Galtier science teacher Peter Ratzloff said.

Workers accuse politicians of holding up the process in an attempt to pit frontline workers against each other.

“We aren’t asking for a handout,” Minnesota Nurses Association President Mary Turner said. “What we are asking for is justice.”

The fate of a newly opened state agency dedicated to keeping public-sector labor disputes out of court hangs in the balance as Minnesota lawmakers negotiate a new, two-year budget.