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Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump says he wants to bring jobs back home to America. Apparently the billionaire businessman also wants to give those jobs away to temporary guest workers.
Trump is currently looking to staff two of his Florida properties — the Mar-A-Largo resort in Palm Springs and the Trump National Jupiter golf course in Jupiter, FL — with workers who have come to the U.S. on seasonal H-2B work visas. Trump says he can’t find enough workers here at home to fill the positions, a claim that has been questioned:

An official at Palm Beach’s career services service told Buzzfeed last year that the agency had “hundreds of people in our database that would qualify for a lot of those hospitality jobs.” The agency now has 1,237 residents of Palm Beach Country interested in server, cook or chef positions, according to Buzzfeed.

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Democrat Ken Woods was elected in May to a Council seat in Delaware’s New Castle County after the death of former Councilman Joe Reda. Woods defeated his Republican challenger with an overwhelming 70 percent of the vote and will serve the remainder of Reda’s four-year term, which ends in 2018.
Woods is a Business Representative for Philadelphia-based Sheet Metal Local 19, which also covers the entire state of Delaware. Reda, who he replaced, was a retired member of Local 19. Woods’ campaign focused on economic development to spur new high paying jobs for working families in his district.
In a statement on the victory, Woods noted that “special elections require a lot out of candidates, volunteers, and voters. With the help of my brothers and sisters in the labor movement, especially Local 19, we were able to secure a victory.”
Long active in political life, Brother Woods served as Chairman of the Democratic Committee in his district for nearly a decade and has also been an elected member of the Red Clay School Board since 2008.
Public and union offices run in the family; his father, J. Robert Woods, also held the positions of New Castle County Councilman and Sheet Metal Local 19 Business Representative. This is the first time in New Castle history that both a father and son have held the same position in government.

Dating back to 1863, Benson Science Hall was one of the first buildings constructed on the campus of Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Like any well-aged structure, renovations are required from time to time.
The current work was begun by members of SMART SM Local 177 (Nashville) working for Roofing Services and Solutions (RSS). The company fabricates and installs architectural sheet metal in Nashville, middle Tennessee and surrounding areas.
As is appropriate for a project on a stately 150-year-old structure, the members who work for this contractor are highly skilled craftsmen that produce products that are not only aesthetically pleasing but exhibit a quality of craftsmanship that can only be achieved through intensive training and years of experience.
With a long history of its own, RSS began in St. Louis, MO in 1895 and opened the Nashville location in 1937. Carlton McGrew who is Chairman of MHS Legacy oversees the operations; his son Matt McGrew is the Vice-President and Manager of the Nashville office. Their projects are highly specialized and do intricate work with copper, brass and other non-ferrous metals.
Jason Phy, the onsite foreman, said that due to the sensitive conditions surrounding the project, he and the field crew of Dustin Latham, Carson Ullreich and Tyler Williams had to use ropes and hand tongs to lift and lower just about everything that was used onsite. This includes the original pieces of the structure that had to be duplicated.
As the job progressed, they found out that parts of the underlying 100-year-old wood was rotted to the point of being not much more than powder. This started the process of replacing some of the existing structure.
The metal work fell to the shop crew led by shop foreman Jim Forester and journeyman/shop steward Marc Freudenthal with assistance from David Morgan, Chris Sullivan and Nick Monteleagre.
The demanding task of duplicating the existing metalwork was done by hand without the use of any plasmas, lasers or waterjets. The existing work was painted galvanized; this renovation replaced it with copper.

By the time you get this Members’ Journal, the U.S. Presidential election will be just three months away. That’s 90 days to gather  the facts, make choices-and pitch in some time for candidates who support and respect American Labor.
The choice before the American people in this election is clear-for the Senate, the House, and, certainly, the White House.
On one side is a party in chaos, with its vision of a fearful America drive n by an unpredictable candidate. America would be less stable and less secure from the first day he took power.
On the other side is the vision  of a strong, confident America,  a forward-thinking and well respected nation with a responsible president who respects American workers and will lead us while keeping our country safe and our economy growing.
Americans-and most SMART members, according to our own survey-are looking for a president who has clear goals and can deliver results. They want someone who will take office with the experience, skills and broad knowledge to make a real difference in their lives.
In the campaign home stretch and in voting, each of us can make a difference, too. We can elect true friends to the Senate, House, and Governorships.
And for President? At this moment, we have only one choice.
Labor stands united for  a President on our side
Hillary Clinton is a tough, proven leader who has battled her opponents and delivered results, time and time again. Above all else, she has a long and clearly stated respect for organized labor and a strong middle class.
That’s why, after the primaries, the AFL-CIO overwhelmingly endorsed her.
“American workers don’t quit, and I won’t quit on them,” Clinton said at the 2016 Building Trades Legislative Conference. “If I become your president, I will be your champion in the White House-and you will have a seat at the table.”
“Unions helped build the greatest middle class in the history of the world,” she told the AFL-CIO this spring. “When unions are strong, wages go up for both union and non-union families. The middle class expands and the entire economy is more dynamic for everyone.”
And union-busting right-to work laws? “Republican governors and legislatures are waging a relentless assault,” she said. “Right to work is wrong for workers and wrong for America.”
Clear plans, more jobs for all of SMART’s membership
Clinton is more than talk. She is ready with clear, coherent policies that will support collective bargaining, protect union rights-and build many more union jobs. As president, Clinton will help SMART members across all of our crafts.
Her energy-efficiency program will mean jobs across the whole Sheet Metal industry. For the Transportation Division, her infrastructure plan has new rail and mass transit-and she pledged to research ways we can keep coal in the energy mix.
Hillary Clinton will create jobs and opportunities for working families to move back up the ladder.
Trump will hurt workers and make America… unstable
The alternative is Donald Trump. To start, he is anti-worker, anti union and even has run good union contractors out of business.
Trump plainly lacks the knowledge and stability to be Commander in Chief. His off-the-cuff tweets and ever-changing “statements” are deeply troubling and likely to harm our security and our economy.
He praises anti-American dictators like Vladimir Putin. He picks fights with friends like the British Prime Minister and the Pope. For some reason he believes America is weak. He called our military a disaster. He has said America is a “third-world country.”
Most important, his economic view hinges on the firm Republican belief that American workers are overpaid. Since 2010, he has tried to hire 500 “foreign guest workers” at his Florida estate while hiring just 17 U.S. residents over the same period. As a billionaire, developer and Republican business tycoon, none of this is surprising.
Trump wants what all ruthless billionaires want. He and the Republican party want workers to fight each other over sinking wages while the wealthiest get even wealthier.
In contrast, Hillary Clinton praises unions. She wants wages to rise. She, like all Democrats-most visibly Bernie Sanders-have cemented the fact that this election is about “the 90%” getting their fair share. That’s you, our members, our Union.
His bankruptcy and lawsuits are a dodge-not expertise
The fact is that Trump is a manipulative profiteer who has suckered people time and again to make himself the “richest person in bankruptcy.” He boasts about making hundreds of millions of dollars by putting his failed casinos into bankruptcy-which he did four times.
Even worse are the victims of that greed. USA Today reported that in the last 30 years, Trump was involved in more than  3,500 lawsuits, many with small businesses and individuals-ordinary Americans like plumbers, painters, waiters and bartenders. They have testified how Trump companies simply refused to pay them and tied them up in court to overpower and outlast them.
Time to elect a friend-for jobs, fair wages, and respect
The biggest issues in this election are economic: who will ensure that  all Americans can earn a decent day’s pay for a decent day’s work? After all the debates and the speeches, that answer is clear, and the time to give our collective effort, our support and our votes is at hand.
As union members, we must use our energy and our ballots to elect a president who will increase jobs and wages, not press for pay cuts and layoffs. We must make every effort to win back a friendly Senate majority and vital Congressional seats.
In Hillary Clinton’s own words, Unions can have a champion in  the White House and a seat at the table. That is what our support will mean-as long as we deliver.
So now it is time to focus on what counts and to provide that support. It is time to elect a president who believes in organized Labor.
As union members, it is time to restore our rightful place, in the economy and in our society.
Fraternally,
Joseph Sellers, Jr.
General President

SMART (Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers), one of America’s most dynamic and diverse unions representing 208,000 members,and BYD Coach and Bus, a division of BYD, the world’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer,are proud to announce the signing of a neutrality agreement that will form the framework of future efforts to organize BYD Coach and Bus employees at the company’s factory in the City of Lancaster. This agreement sets into motion the opportunity for BYD Coach and Bus employees to vote on becoming unionized.“We at SMART strongly feel that it is in the best interest of the workers to choose for themselves whether they want to organize, and we were pleased that BYD feels the same way,” said James White, SMART’s Director of Organizing. “All too often, companies fight even the idea of unionization. BYD has demonstrated to SMART its willingness to be a good-faith partner,dedicated to providing Californians with good working conditions and jobs with quality pay,benefits, and career advancement opportunities.”

“We want all of our Lancaster employees to feel that this is more than a job; that it’s a career, with long-term benefits, competitive wages, and real opportunities for growth,” said Stella Li,President of BYD. “Signing a neutrality agreement with our partner SMART demonstrates that BYD is committed to providing our workers with a great workplace environment and that we support their opportunity to choose if they want to unionize.”

Not only was SMART one of the first unions to manufacture and install solar panels,” White continued, “but SMART sheet metal workers have helped companies save energy costs on their facilities through our energy commissioning programs going as far back as the 1940s. Now, with the development of efficient green energy technology, SMART and BYD are working
to actively bring manufacturing jobs back from overseas, to here in California. That’s something no one could have predicted 20 years ago.”Li concluded, “Good jobs making a quality, environmentally friendly vehicle are part of the 21st Century American Dream, and we plan to be making electric vehicles here in California for along time. I look forward to continuing to work with SMART in the years ahead.”

Eleven unions filed petitions in a local W.Va. court arguing that the state’s new “Right-to-work” law amounts to an illegal seizure of their property and resources. The bill was vetoed by Governor Earl Ray Tomblin, however, his veto was overrode by a Republican majority in the House of Delegates.
The legislation allows workers to opt out of paying union dues and instead serve as free riders – meaning take advantage of the benefits that come from a collectively bargained contract. The lawsuit contends that amounts to an illegal taking of unions’ property and resources, since state and federal labor laws require unions to negotiate contracts and provide representation to the non-union employees at “considerable cost” to union members.
The lawsuit also Brown v. Board of Education as well as the 1st and 14th Amendments:
It compares the right-to-work law with laws passed in Southern states in the 1950s as part of the massive resistance to the U.S. Supreme Court’s desegregation orders in Brown v. Board of Education, with legislation intended to discourage membership in the NAACP — laws that were ultimately overturned in court for violating 1st and 14th Amendment rights of free expression and association.
In April, a Wisconsin circuit court judge overturned that state’s right-to-work law in a case that made similar arguments. That ruling has been stayed, pending an appeal to the Wisconsin state Supreme Court.

In May, 2015, Kerrie Orozco, an Omaha, Nebraska, police officer one day away from maternity leave, was shot and killed by a fleeing suspect she had been attempting to serve with a warrant.
Orozco had married in 2012 and gave birth to her first natural child on February 17, 2015. The infant, born prematurely, had been scheduled to be released from the hospital the day after her mother was been shot.
Orozco not only left behind her infant daughter, but also her husband, two stepchildren and a devastated community within which she was lovingly known as Coach K after having spent time coaching young men and women as a baseball coach since 2009. She also served as a Girl Scout leader and Special Olympics volunteer.
Moved to make a memorial
Jefferson Davis, member of SM Local 3 in Omaha, NE, was so moved by the tragedy that the next day, he was inspired to create a metal badge to honor her memory. Within 24 hours he had collected all the needed material with help from his SM Local 3 Brothers and Sisters as well as from the Waldinger Corporation, a SM Local 3 signatory mechanical contractor. The efforts included locating the stainless steel, finding a place to perform the plasma cutting, and securing the equipment he needed to start the work.
Brother Davis worked on the badge straight through the weekend from noon on Friday until 1 a.m. in the morning Sunday. The badge was well received by Officer Orozco’s family and members of the Omaha police force.
Davis recounts in an article in The Missouri Valley Times a visit from a retired police officer: “One afternoon while working in my garage, I was approached by a retired police chief from nearby,” said Davis. “He stopped by out of the blue and told me that he had been to the Grand Canyon, the Lincoln Memorial, and Mount Rushmore and had seen everything in this country that one was supposed to. However, as a retired police officer, that badge had moved him more than anything he had ever seen.”
A sheet metal worker for 21 years, Davis has only recently expanded his scope of work to include metal artwork. He has also built metal artwork that has been included in the local public gardens and park.
Davis and his wife, Nikki, recently opened up their own retail business in Woodbine, Nebraska called Heavy Metal Renaissance.

For years, the NFL and San Diego Chargers engaged the City of San Diego in talks about building a new football stadium. Recently, the Chargers approached the San Diego Building Trades to assist in overcoming some of the obstacles that had arisen in those talks.
Other NFL teams from the Patriots to the Cowboys have benefited from the highly skilled Building Trades, especially SMART sheet metal members, and the Chargers committed to a Project Labor Agreement (PLA) for a new stadium.
Sheet Metal Local 206 (San Diego) and the area Building Trades are helping to collect 67,000 signatures to put the project on the November ballot, with a $1.8 billion stadium and a convention center annex that would host major conventions and special events.
Union members joined a “Signature Kick-Off” event, held adjacent to San Diego’s downtown baseball park on April 23. SM Local 206 Business Manager Doug Tracy was on stage to kick off the petition drive along with other labor leaders; Chargers personnel including former running back LaDainian Tomlinson, quarterback Phillip Rivers, President and CEO Dean Spanos, and Head Coach Mike McCoy; NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell; and Congressmen Scott Peters (D), Juan Vargus (D), and Darrell Issa (R).
As Tracy put it, “partnering with the Chargers will provide a clear path to building a world-class, multi-use facility that will not only retain our football team, but ensure we keep major events such as Comic-Con and college bowl games that bring revenue back to our city while keeping members employed.”
“The hours this will provide SMART members while ensuring the city has a facility that serves as an economic driver for years to come will be a win-win for everyone involved,” Tracy added.

Top Notch of Indiana recognized Sheet Metal Workers Local No. 20 with the Training Excellence Award during its seventh annual Standards of Excellence Awards program luncheon on May 19 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The event honored select organizations that earned the highest level of distinction over the previous year in Indiana’s union construction industry.
Judged by an assembly of industry leaders, corporate executives and building owners, the Training Excellence Award is presented to the apprenticeship program that exhibited excellence and innovation during the past year. Local No. 20 earned the award because the jury felt the program clearly set a high level of expectation for the apprentices. One jury member said Local No. 20 had “the best training facility I have ever seen,” while other jury members noted the apprenticeship programs’ deliberate attention to value for their project owners with “a clear shift in attitude from just completing a job to creating value for the client.”
Tim Myres, Local No. 20 training coordinator, attributed the local’s recognition to the cumulative effort of the many talented professionals on staff, and the hard work they put forth to be considered, and then honored, with the award. This is the first time Local No. 20’s Apprenticeship and Training Program has been recognized by Top Notch of Indiana.
During the last five years, instructors and staff have worked to upgrade and improve the apprenticeship and training program at Local No. 20. From reworking the curriculum, to preparing apprentices for the next 20, 30, or 40 years of their careers in the real world, it’s been a challenge, but one worth the undertaking, Myres said.
“We all have seen the positive outcome of their efforts, and this award makes it apparent that industry leaders across the state have observed all of their hard work and success as well,” he added.
Awards were presented in four categories, including Training Excellence, Union of the Year, Contractor of the Year and Labor/Management Foundation.
For additional information on the Top Notch Standards of Excellence Awards, visit www.topnotch.org.
This article originally appeared at Eye On Sheet Metal

For members across the United States, the Fourth of July is a time for a barbecue.
This list is from the AFL-CIO and comes courtesy of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor’s website Labor 411; Union Plus; the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers (BCTGM); and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW).
Beer

Budweiser
Coors
Miller
Pabst
Sam Adams

See more beers from Union Plus.
Coolers

Rubbermaid

Flags

Artflag

Games

Battleship
Candy Land
Clue
Connect Four
Monopoly
Twister
Yahtzee

Grills

Weber (Genesis, Summit, Q Series)

Hot Dogs

Ball Park
Butterball
Hebrew National
Hormel
Oscar Mayer

Ice Cream

Breyers
Good Humor
Prairie Farms
Tillamook

Snacks

Flipz pretzels
Frito-Lay chips
Triscuit crackers
Wheat Thins crackers

Sunscreen

Bain de Soleil
Coppertone