SHARE dues will increase in January:

The regular dues rate for 2014 is $8.24/week. (The 2013 rate was $8.12.)
For employees budgeted for 20 hours/week, the 2014 rate is $6.18/week (the 2013 rate was $6.10)

Below are some Frequently Asked Questions about dues:

Why are the dues going up now?

The dues increase is set by our national union, AFSCME. If there's a rate change it's in January.

How much do the dues increase each year?

The dues increase is calculated by AFSCME (our parent union) based on the average raise that all 1.5 million members across the country got in the previous year. Many AFSCME members have had small, or no, raises over the past few years, and some have had pay cuts or unpaid furloughs. This has resulted in small, or nonexistent dues increases over the past few years, even though SHARE members at UMass Memorial were getting raises.

dues rates stayed the same from 2010 to 2012

Where do the dues go?

Most of the dues go to pay for the SHARE staff, the office rent, office supplies, mailings, etc. The money supports the work of the union here at the UMass Memorial (and in our sister unions at UMass Medical School, Harvard University, and the Cambridge Health Alliance) helping members with issues at work, building connections across the campuses, supporting people who have been laid off, distributing information about issues of importance to SHARE members, negotiating contracts, etc.

A portion of the dues goes to the national union in Washington -- they spend that money on advocating for AFSCME members as a whole, including research and lobbying about issues. (Support for political candidates comes from AFSCME's Political Action Committee, not from dues money.)