Through hard and work and dedication to its members, AFSCME District Council 1707 has changed the lives of thousands of working people in New York City, Long Island and Westchester and Rockland Counties by negotiating fair and equitable contracts to raise the standard of living.

This Union fights hard to organize workers in fields that have been traditionally abused by “soft” industry employers. The public believes that these employers provide the same care and concern to their employees that these employee-members demonstrate daily to the families, clients and consumers they serve.

Unorganized non-profit social service employees do not, on average, receive the same wages and benefits that our members receive. It is our job to improve the standards in the industries where our members work. These include home care, child care, foster care, Head Start, social service, direct care, fund-raising, educational services and the new nonprofit agencies that will arise in the 21st Century.

The members of District Council 1707 are active in their communities, their places of worship and in the labor movement. Working people must remain cognizant and practical about the political forces that influence their contacts and affect their way of life at work and at home. Using this website is one way in which we will continue to fight for the membership and seek a society that is fair and just for all social service employees.

Raglan George, Jr., has been active in the labor movement for more than forty years. Rags, as he is affectionately called, is a product of New York City. Born to a father and mother who emigrated from the Caribbean islands of St. Lucia and St. Kitts respectively, Rags was raised in Harlem. It was there that he learned that the greatest contribution anyone can make to society is to fight for the labor rights, peace and justice. Armed with these convictions, he embarked on a journey of political, social and labor activism to eradicate the ills of our society.

After graduating from high school, Rags enlisted and served in the U.S. Marine Corps and was honorably discharged in 1957. Following in his father’s footsteps, he began a career in the fur industry. He established himself at the Crown Monarch Fur Dressing Corporation, in Newark, New Jersey where he held numerous positions in the Fur Leather and Machine (FLM) Workers Union (now the United Food and Commercial Workers) including Chair of the Executive Board FLM Joint Board, Chair of Union Community Services Program, the Blood Bank, and the Political Action Committee. Following these activities, Rags was elected vice-president of the Fur Leather Machine Workers Union Joint Board.

Due to the seasonal work of the fur industry, Raglan also worked simultaneously and in the evenings as a Narcotics Officer for the New York State Narcotics Addiction Control Commission. Subsequently, he served as a Correction Officer with the New York State Department of Correctional Services.

Beginning in 1988, Rags became Director of Day Care/Head Start at AFSCME District Council 1707. As the Director of Day Care/Head Start at D.C. 1707, Rags was a leading voice in the fight to improve and expand child care in New York State.

In 2002, Raglan was elected Executive Director of the Council and International Vice President of AFSCME, one of 32 in the country. In 2004 and 2005, he was re-elected to both positions.

Rags thought it was imperative to be a well rounded and educated labor leader. Throughout the years, he simultaneously worked and attended college earning an AA degree in Corrective Rehabilitation (CUNY/John Jay College of Criminal Justice) and AA and BA degrees in Labor Studies (SUNY/Empire State College). Additionally, he has attended seminars and conferences throughout the country and many times made presentations on labor and child care topics.

Rags is a member of CBTU, CLUW and the Rainbow Coalition. He is a trustee for the Day Care, Home Care, and Head Start Welfare and Pension Funds. Rags serves as a member of the New York City Mayor’s Oversight Committee on Child Care Funding, New York City Administration for Children Services Advisory Board - Child Care Committee and the New York Governor’s Advisory Committee to the Permanent Inter-Agency Committee on Early Childhood Education Programs. He is a member of the Advisory Board of the Guyanese-American Workers United and vice chair of the Coalition of Labor Union in Education.