News

In AFT President Randi Weingarten’s latest New York Times  column, she describes what it is exactly that unions do. Though unions are the most popular they have been in decades, anti-union sentiment still thrives in red states and across the nation. “Several years ago, The Atlantic ran a story whose headline made even me, a labor leader, scratch my head: ‘Union Membership: Very Sexy,’” Weingarten writes in the column. “The gist was that higher wages, health benefits and job security—all associated with union membership—boost one’s chances of getting married. Belonging to a union doesn’t actually guarantee happily ever after, but it does help working people have a better life in the here and now.” Click through to read the full column.

To kick off the inauguration week on January 7th, Governor Kelly's campaign is partnering with local charities across the state and is encouraging Kansans to become involved with these charities and participate in the #KSDayofService. The Day of Service kicks off the inauguration festivities for the week and illustrates unity and the difference we all can make in our communities that makes our state great. These small acts of kindness help to foster a sense of service across Kansas while showcasing the strength of our state at large.

You can find a full list of volunteer opportunities at our

Congratulations to the faculty and academic staff at KU who today have officially announced the organizing campaign to create the United Academics of the University of Kansas (UAKU)!

UAKU would represent over 1,500 full-time and part-time tenured and nontenure-track faculty; teaching, research, clinical and online professors; lecturers; curators; librarians; scientists who conduct grant-funded research; and other categories of faculty and academic staff. The union would be affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers and the American Association of University Professors.

To read more

We are pleased to announce our candidate endorsements for the 2022 General Election in Kansas on Tuesday, 8 November.

We will continue to update this page as we complete our evaluations of candidates in the upcoming election.

The last day to register to vote in Kansas is 18 October.

You can register online here and you can check to see if you are registered by looking here.

Statewide Offices

Name	Office	Party
Laura Kelly	Governor	D
David Toland	Lieutenant Governor	D
Chris Mann	Attorney General	D
Jeanna Repass	Secretary of State	D
Lynn Rogers	Treasurer	D

District Races

As a result of redistricting following the 2020

This summer, delegates to the American Association of University Professors Biennial Association Meeting voted to affiliate with the AFT. On July 15th at the AFT Convention, AFT President Randi Weingarten and AAUP President Irene Mulvey signed the historic affiliation agreement, which went into effect on August 1, 2022. If you weren't able to make the Convention to see it in person, you can watch the recording of the livestream here:

In a joint statement this week, Presidents Mulvey and Weingarten outlined why this is such a big deal:

Now, together, we represent more higher education workers

What:	Gubernatorial Debate between Laura Kelly (D), Derek Schmidt (R), and Dennis Pyle (I)
When:	Saturday, September 10, 10:30am – 12:00pm
Where:	Peoples Bank and Trust Arena, Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson, KS

Buy your ticket to the Kansas State Fair at your local Dillon’s or at kansasstatefair.com

For more information, you can check out the event page for the Debate here.

Want to make sure you're registered to vote in the General Election this November? Check your voter registration status at VoterView from the Kansas Secretary of State.

On Wednesday, 3 November, a corrections officer was assaulted by an inmate at Lansing Correctional Facility. Yesterday, KOSE was contacted by multiple media outlets for a statement. We want to provide that statement here in full as well as links to those stories. We wish Ms. Bindel a full and speedy recovery.

As our statement outlines, this horrible event is a direct result of the inability for KDOC, the state administration, and the Kansas legislature to adequately safeguard state employees and staff these facilities. We know that these issues are longstanding and severe, and that many state