Long-Time AFSCME President Lee Saunders to Retire in August

Lee Saunders, the president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, will retire this summer after fourteen years leading the nation’s largest public-sector union.

AFSCME announced Wednesday that Saunders will stay on until the union’s international convention takes place in August, where delegates will select a new president.

Saunders was elected as the first Black AFSCME president in 2012 after spending two years as the union’s secretary treasurer. He initially joined AFSCME in 1978 as a labor economist.

During his tenure as president, Saunders defended collective bargaining rights for public-sector employees and signed onto lawsuits seeking to ...