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military_guestsThe Union Sportsmen’s Alliance’s (USA) 3rd Annual SMART New Jersey Sporting Clays Shoot held on May 2 at Red Wing Sporting Clays in Port Republic, NJ, shattered the previous year’s gross earnings by $10,000, raising $75,000 to support the USA’s conservation mission.  It also broke its previous participation record with 125 shooters and guests, including five youth and 14 active duty and retired service members.  Event sponsors donated an additional 34 shooter positions to service members for USA shoots throughout the year.
As title sponsor, SMART Played a significant role in the event’s continued growth by securing additional sponsors and encouraging them to donate shooting spots to wounded veterans or active duty military men and women.  SMART General President Joseph Sellers, Jr. and former General President Nigro gave speeches and recognized the sacrifice of the military service men and women in attendance.
“The New Jersey Shoot brought together the young and old, men and women, novice and experienced shooters, active service members and veterans, members of all different union trades and union partners, through a shared passion for the outdoors and the shooting sports,” said General President Sellers.  “Thanks to those who participated, USA and our sponsors for another great event, all in support of this worthy cause.”
The Union Sportsmen’s Alliance is a union-dedicated, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose members hunt, fish, shoot and volunteer their skills for conservation. The USA is uniting the union community through conservation to preserve North America’s outdoor heritage.
 

111th_US_Senate_class_photoThe U.S. Senate will vote on whether to override President Barack Obama’s March veto of a Congressional resolution blocking the NLRB’s new rule to speed up union elections. The resolution, expected to be voted on this afternoon on May 4, needs 67 votes to override.  This is highly unlikely, given that the original vote only garnered 53 votes. Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski joined Democrats in voting against the resolution while no Democrat voted for it.
Lawsuits filed by the Associated Builders and Contractors and other anti-worker groups have been filed in federal courtrooms in Texas and Washington, DC.  The Associated Builders and Contractors is a high profile anti-worker group that claims to represent construction employers though only a small percentage of its membership actually is based in the industry.

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Charles Holt has been named Administrator for the National Energy Management Institute Committee (NEMIC). Holt, who took over the top spot at NEMIC when James Page left to head the International Training Institute, had been the director of research for NEMIC.
A former instructor for the journeymen-apprentice training fund in Pittsburgh, PA, Holt is a graduate of Ohio State’s adult education program and also holds a Letters, Arts and Science degree from Pennsylvania State University. He previously held positions at Sheet Metal Local 12 in Pittsburgh as Business Agent and Business Manager/Financial Secretary-Treasurer.
Holt has served as a Technical Committee member for the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standards 90 A&B, 80, and 105.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAFor several years, the SMART subsidized organizer in Eastern Massachusetts has been in contact with Phil Frappier at Phil’s HVAC in Braintree, MA, about signing a contract with Sheet Metal Local 17 in Boston. After seeing the real world training and experience of SMART members and learning about the ability for contractors to grow with SMART, Frappier signed an agreement for his manpower and training needs.
This agreement with Phil’s HVAC is unique because it focuses on the residential and light commercial market that is typically outside the geographic core of the majority of union building trades agreements. This is evidenced almost anywhere in the country, where a union member can walk outside the city limits of any major metropolitan area and find that the farther out he or she travels, the lower the union density.
According to Local 17 Business Manager Robert Butler, “We are not content with standing still in the geographic areas we are already strong in. We are going to continue using every tool in our playbook to find more job opportunities for members.”
Concentrated in the Boston suburbs, Phil’s HVAC performs service calls for residential and commercial customers of all sizes. HVAC service work in the light commercial and residential markets is expected to be one of the fastest growing occupational fields in coming years, with millions of units installed during the economic boom years coming up for extensive service and repair.

According to Politico, The National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) newest focus might be on limiting the right-to-work movement’s pitch of required representation of non-union workers. In a call for briefs yesterday, the agency said it may allow a union to collect a fee from a non-member in a right-to-work state if that member is not a dues paying member. Under current NLRB rules and regulations, unions are prohibited from collecting any fees from non-members in right-to-work states, regardless of whether those members actually use that union’s resources in a conflict with their employer. That’s what the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act, which created and regulates the circulation of right-to-work laws in the U.S., has always been understood to mean.
Legal analysts say the NLNational_Labor_Relations_Board_logo_-_colorRB should deem it legal for unions to collect fees from non-members using grievance procedures even in right-to-work states. In a blog post last night, Harvard Law Professor Ben Sachs wrote: “There is no seeming rationale for this inequity, and nothing in the federal labor law nor in state right-to-work laws requires it. If unions are prohibited from collecting fair share fees, they should at a minimum be permitted to charge workers for the costs of individual grievance representation.”
Anti-labor groups believe the board will make the change. “When this board is asking for an amicus brief on the reconsideration of a rule, the majority’s already decided that it wants to change the rule,” said Michael Lotito, a management-side attorney at Littler Mendelson. “This is a signal from this board that [says]: ‘we’re going to push back against the expansion of these right-to-work actions.’
Currently, labor unions are the only institutions in the United States that are required to represent non-contributing members.  Anti-Labor groups have used this to mislead non-union workers with the promise of free representation without the requirement of paying dues.

CCe5T9MUkAASabsConstruction workers were joined on Monday, April 13th by construction contractors and community groups at the Indiana Statehouse in their opposition to GOP attempts to eliminate that state’s Common Construction Wage.  Workers across the state are making their voices heard and are taking to the airwaves to ensure that every Indiana citizen is able to hear their message.
Labor is not alone in its opposition to this proposed law.  More than 30 Indiana mayors have come out against the law, including the mayors of Evansville, Boonville, Mt. Vernon, and Rockford. In Bloomington, where a mayoral election is underway, Democratic challenger Darryl Neher has voiced strong support for the CCW, calling repeal “a short-sighted and foolhardy attack on the working men and women of Indiana.” Neher has proposed that the city council take action and draft legislation that allows Bloomington to maintain its ability to pay fair wages on publicly funded construction projects.
South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg called on his city council to make a similar move earlier this year. As he noted at the time:
“We can hold ourselves to a higher standard, and as the Economic Policy Institute suggests, in the process we can ensure worker safety, maintain the highest standards of construction quality, keep construction costs competitive and pay fair and livable wages.”
The bill, first passed in the Indiana House, is labelled HB 1019.  It passed the Senate Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee by an 8-5 margin last week, meaning the Governor and conservative Republicans are one step closer to repealing that state’s Common Construction Wage which has worked for over 70 years. All committee Republicans voted in favor of the bill except for one, Senator Ed Charbonneau, who joined Democrats in voting against the wage-limiting bill.
Indiana’s Common Construction Wage is similar to the prevailing wage which sets wages and standards on publicly financed projects.  Unlike the prevailing wage, the Common Construction Wage is determined by local boards composed of employers, Union representatives and two members of the local community.

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Local 105 member and long time resident Steve Gerdes addressing the Long Beach City Council in support of the Project Labor Agreement.

On April 8, the Long Beach (CA) city council unanimously approved a historic 5 year Project Labor Agreement. For the next five years, projects being built under city of Long Beach contracts that are worth more than $500,000 must be built under the PLA, along with requirements that the contractors prioritize their hiring towards local workers.
The agreement was negotiated with the Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and Construction Trades Council, representing SMART and other union crafts. Two departments with large construction projects — the Harbor Department and the Water Department — are not subject to the agreement because they are governed separately under the City Charter.
The city will use an outside PLA Administrator to work with contractors, and there will be a joint administrative committee with members from the city and the trades council to oversee the agreement.  The minimum number of workers residing in Long Beach is set at 40 percent with those residing in Long Beach ZIP codes as a first tier, then those living in nearby cities and finally those in Los Angeles and Orange counties. A special focus is placed on dispatching disadvantaged and veteran workers.
Among those who spoke in favor of the agreement was Local 105 member Steve Gerdes who spoke on behalf of the PLA as a 22 year resident and homeowner in Long Beach.  The Long Beach PLA came about with the assistance of former Long Beach City Councilman Patrick O’Donnell who recently became a CA State Assembly Member. Assemblyman O’Donnell is the son-in-law of retired SMART Local 105 Business Representative Brad Rooker.
The agreement’s $500,000 threshold is lower by half than those previously negotiated in Berkeley and Contra Costa, CA.
Sheet Metal Local 105 Business Manager Luther Medina noted that this agreement is “a step in the right direction that will further prove the value our skills bring to local taxpayers and the opportunities we can provide local residents with a solid career in our trade.”

2111363826_a36833c8de_oCertified welders are always in demand, and SMART is expanding training opportunities to give members skills with a long-term payoff while helping our contractors win more work. But there are jobs open for qualified members right now.
Four new nuclear reactors are currently being constructed at two existing power plants: Plant Vogtle in Georgia (Sheet Metal Local 85) and VC Summer in South Carolina (Sheet Metal Local 399). Certified welders are needed for both of these projects. These jobs will have long term employment potential.
The qualifications for this work are very specific. The gate tests for the Plant Vogtle project are: ½” 7018 horizontal, vertical, and overhead; 1″ vertical and overhead; after hire in, same tests as 7018 but with flux core. In addition, 22 gauge to ½” MIG weld with bevel and tee joints will be tested.
Similar tests will be administered at the VC Summer site. Testing at the sites is performed with a hardhat welding hood.  It is suggested that prior to contacting the job site locals or SMART International staff, welders should contact their home-area training center to arrange a review of their welding skills and an evaluation from the area certified welding instructor.
In addition to welding certifications, the jobs require a five-year employment history, drug test, and OSHA 10. A seven-year federal background check will also be performed.
If you already have these skills— or know of someone who does— get more information from SMART International Organizer Andrew Maute at (843) 513-9215, or by email at: amaute@smart-union.org. And contact your training center to find out how to add skills and become a in-demand certified welder.

Westbound_Southwest_Chief_-_ColoradoFunding to save the Southwest Chief did not make it into the budget proposed by the Colorado legislature this week, Colorado State Legislative Director Carl Smith reports.  “We must now seek support from Gov. Hickenlooper and the Joint Budget Committee, which will review appropriation requests beyond the current proposed budget,” Smith said. “We need to get their attention and approval as soon as possible. Please call the governor and the following legislators and ask them to fund the Southwest Chief Commission.
“This train is essential to Colorado’s transportation system,” Smith said. “You might also remind Gov. Hickenlooper that he committed to finding funding for the train at the bill signing last year.”
Hickenlooper’s office phone number is (303) 866-2471.
For funding to pass, the bill needs the support of the following members from the state’s Joint Budget Committee: