New York Transit Museum workers win voice on the job through AFSCME

NEW YORK – Employees of the New York Transit Museum now have a voice on the job.  

Workers at the Brooklyn-based museum voted unanimously this month in favor of forming a union through AFSCME District Council 37. They join thousands of DC 37 members across New York City’s cultural institutions who have fought for and won union recognition to secure better wages and workplace protections for themselves and their colleagues, and improve their communities.  
 
Management at the New York Transit Museum denied the workers’ request for voluntary union recognition earlier this year. On Feb. 4, the organizing committee announced its unionization campaign as the Transit Museum Collective with DC 37. The petition for an election was filed with the National Labor Relations Board on March 10.  
 
“It’s clear these workers are passionate about carrying out the museum’s mission, and they have done an incredible job fighting for their right to unionize,” said Henry Garrido, executive director of District Council 37 and an AFSCME vice president. “We’re proud to welcome the New York Transit Museum Collective to the DC 37 family and look forward to continuing the momentum as we bargain a first contract for fair wages and dignity in the workplace.” 
 
The 30 new union members work in full- and part-time jobs in museum education and visitor experience. The New York Transit Museum, founded in 1976, tells the story of urban public transportation systems in the New York metropolitan region through extensive collections, exhibits, research and educational programs. The museum also has a collection of vintage rail cars that visitors can explore.  
 
DC 37 is New York City’s largest public employee union, representing 150,000 workers and 50,000 retirees. As the city’s preeminent union for museum workers, DC 37 represents members at iconic cultural institutions like the American Museum of Natural History, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Brooklyn Museum and Brooklyn Children’s Museum. 

More than 50,000 workers at museums, libraries, zoos and other cultural institutions across the United States have gained a voice on the job through the AFSCME Cultural Workers United campaign — the largest of its kind in the nation.