Several Sheet Metal Local 91 members volunteered on Saturday, February 7, installing duct work and a furnace for a Bethany for Children and Families home. Bethany has provided voluntary, not-for-profit services to children and families in western Illinois and eastern Iowa since 1899, when it was founded and incorporated as the Union Mission. During its early years, Bethany was predominantly a custodial facility that concentrated on the needs of children who were homeless or whose parents could not or would not raise them. Since then, Bethany has grown to offer foster care and child welfare services, while developing and fostering ties with communities in the Quad Cities area. More recently, Bethany has moved beyond the provision of child welfare and adoption services to preemptively addressing problems and situations that impact children, youth, and families.
Those representing Local 91 were: Steve Eggers, Mike Douglas, Justin Burbridge, Mark Woodruff, Tony Phares, Jr., Greg Douglas, and Ken Diericx.
Author: paul
Illinois attorney general Lisa Madigan has weighed in on right to work “for less” legislation that is being pushed by Governor Bruce Rauner allowing local governments to create “Right-to-Work” zones wile banning prevailing wages for residents working in those “zones.”
In her opinion on the “right-to-work issue,” Madigan argues that proposed “empowerment zones” violate federal labor law and could only be accomplished on a state rather than municipal level.
In her other opinion, Madigan notes that the Illinois Supreme Court has ruled that even for home rule local governments the prevailing wage must be obeyed on a state level.
When Rauner attempted to stop the collection of automatic dues through executive order he simultaneously launched a lawsuit, asking that the dues be placed in escrow until legal proceedings were complete. That plan hit a major stumbling block Madigan found that the Governor’s scheme was illegal. Even the GOP comptroller, Leslie Munger (a Rauner appointee) sided with the Attorney General’s office. Showing his utter disdain for the system of checks and balances that keep him from operating like a dictator, Rauner attempted to direct the agencies himself to stop collecting the fees.
Much of Illinois’ 2014 election was focused on getting the state into better fiscal shape. The multibillionaire Rauner used his business background as a hedge fund manager to promote himself as the person for the job. So far, he has only focused on demonizing unions and working families instead.
Both chambers of the legislature are controlled by Democrats and most elected Republicans in Illinois have aligned with labor in the past.
Sheet Metal Local 31 members Chris Favale and Chris Hernandez worked on Metro-North Engine # 207, which was in a collision that happened in the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s (MTA) new state of the art Harmon Yard.
Metro-North Managers John Militano and Dan Miller made the decision not to outsource this heavy repair work and approached Local 31 President Kevin Wansor about having repairs done in house at the facility.
The nose was provided by Amtrak. Our two members cut out the affected section and repaired the underlying damage. They then cut the new nose to fit it directly into place. They then repaired and replaced the damaged parts of the cow catcher as needed and prepared the engine for delivery to Metro-North’s White Plains facility to be painted. All of this work, including the painting, was completed within three weeks.
General Chairman John McCloskey stated “the pride our members have in their work is second to none, this kind of work isn’t the exception but the rule when it comes to Local 31 members, they step up every day and prevent the outsourcing of work”.
As an organization, we are known for digging deep into our pockets and reaching out to those less fortunate and in need when a tragedy strikes.
Michigan State Legislative Director Jerry L. Gibson and his family have been dealing with a tough issue of their own and Assistant State Legislative Director Don Silseth is asking SMART members to consider participating in the first Kelsey Gibson Benefit golf outing, dinner and auction.
Gibson’s daughter, Kelsey, was involved in a horrific car accident in January 2013. She was 21 at the time. Her life hung in the balance for weeks, but she endured.
Kelsey remains in a wheelchair and receives near daily therapy. She is totally dependent on others, yet Silseth says she is 100 percent cognizant.
There has been encouraging research in treatments that could be of great benefit to Kelsey, however, the estimated $160,000 to $220,000 cost is not covered by insurance.
A group of union brothers and sisters from within this organization and others have formed a committee to assist the Gibson family, Silseth said.
The committee is seeking golf participants as well as sponsors, and donations are appreciated. For complete details, visit www.FBOKelseyGibson.com. There are participant registration forms and sponsorship information.
The Kelsey Gibson Benefit will be held Saturday, June 20, at The Pines Gold Course in Wyoming, Mich.
“It is my hope that we can line the fairways with SMART union signs from across the United States and Canada. With strong fraternal support, we can begin to move this treatment from hopes and dreams to reality,” Silseth said.
“I am proud and fortunate to have Jerry Gibson as a fellow member of SMART Transportation Division Local 313 (Grand Rapids, Mich.). He is all union, all the time, and he never gives up on our issues. If you ever asked Jerry for help, I’m sure you received it. He won’t ask this of you, but I will. Please help if you can.”
The House is expected to pass a resolution today on March 19th that would block the National Labor Relations Board from implementing its new rule speeding up the union election process. The legislation, S.J. Res. 8, passed the Senate on a near-party-line vote and President Barack Obama has already indicated that he will veto it. The bill is one of several means by which anti-union business groups and conservative Republicans are hoping to block implementation of the new rules.
Noteworthy changes contained in the NLRB’s rule include:
The new 21st century practice of allowing election petitions to be filed electronically with the NLRB;
Holding the pre-election hearing eight days after the notice of hearing is served on the employer;
Requiring employers to provide a detailed statement that identifies all of the issues the employer wishes to litigat
e before the election at least one day before the pre-election hearing;
Prohibiting the regional director from hearing issues that the employer did not include in its initial position statement;
Eliminating the parties’ right to submit a written briefing before or after the pre-election hearing without the regional director’s prior permission;
Allowing NLRB representation elections to proceed immediately after the regional director sets the election date;
Ensuring employers provide the union with electronic lists of complete employee contact information (including email addresses and phone numbers) within two business days of when the election is set;
Congress is unlikely to override a presidential veto, but business groups like the Chamber of Commerce and Associated Builders and Contractors have filed suit in several federal courts. Decisions in those cases are pending in Washington, D.C. and in front of a Texas judge. The new NLRB rules are set to go into effect in April. Under these new rules, a union election can occur as quickly as 11 days after an election petition is filed.
On Tuesday March 10, 2015 at 9:45 p.m., the employees working for Bombardier (Tri Rail Facilities) in Miami and West Palm Beach, FL overwhelmingly had their voices heard with a 26-4 vote to accept union representation through a NLRB election. The organizations observer during the election process, Richard Arroyo, showed support for all of his co-workers and SMART by wearing his Union by Choice shirt for all to see as they walked in the voting room. His co-workers responded in solidarity with an outcome that gave pride to everyone that was involved in the campaign.
This campaign, headed up by General Chairman, Joe Fraley proves that working together, SMART will be successful, even in right to work (for less) states. Multiple departments within SMART provided assistance to the Railroad, Mechanical and Engineering Department during this fruitful campaign and deserve acknowledgement and recognition stated Joe Fraley:
Local Union 32: Ernesto Navarrete, Organizer and Danny Villarruel, Business Manager
SMART Transportation Division: Andres Trujillo, State Legislative Director (FL) and Andy D’Egidio, Local Chairman
IA staff: International Rep, Charlie Fraley and SMART Director of Organizing, James White
Others: Bargaining Committee member from Sun Rail (Orlando) Nelson Benitez and observers, Richard Arroyo and Jean Flambert.
“Seeing this campaign through from beginning to end, with so much positive support from the employees, members and departments, makes me proud to be part of SMART. Special thanks to LU-32 Organizer, Ernesto Navarrete, he was with us every time we hand billed, held informational meetings and performed house calls.”
The very next day, General Chairman, John McCloskey had another NLRB election where once again, SMART was victorious (25-4) on the River Line in New Jersey with employees that also work for Bombardier. This campaign was also assisted by Danny O’Connell, SMART Transportation Division State Legislative Director (NJ), proving once again that working together will yield success.
John McCloskey and Joe Fraley made a commitment to their members during the General Convention last August that they would focus on Organizing and growing the membership. Since that time, the department has added over 85 new members in Miami, Orlando, West Palm, FL, New Castle, DE and Camden, NJ as well as having several active campaigns in progress.
The right to work “for less” garbage proposed in New Mexico was voted down and trashed by the pro-worker majority on the state’s Senate Public Affairs Committee, a major victory for working families across the state who spoke out against the controversial proposal in public hearings, rallies and town hall meetings held across the state.
By blocking the measure, the committee took a giant step toward ensuring a positive future for New Mexico families.
The bill was defeated just a day after Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signed a right to work for less bill into law in his state. New Mexico legislators saw the bill for what it really is—an attack on the middle class. After hearing more than two hours of public testimony from concerned citizens this week, the eight-member committee voted to table the bill by an overwhelming party line vote of 5 to 3.
On March 6th, Sheet Metal Local 71 in Buffalo won a representation election at Renzenberger, Inc. This came by way of a unanimous vote by the company’s drivers for SMART representation. The election was a three way race between SMART, an independent union called the National Production Workers Union and a vote for no representation.
Fifty three new members comprise the unit which comes in addition to election victories in Binghamton and Rochester, NY. Local 71 organizer Joe DeCarlo was heavily involved in this victory through his work in keeping the workers together during the campaign.
Renzenberger has over 200 locations across 31 states and provinces with a fleet of over 1,700 vehicles and drivers. The company provides crew transportation services for North America’s largest railroads by shuttling employees in between destinations. In addition to the railroad industry, the company also shuttles oil and gas crews to their work sites.
The campaign started when a SMART TD Local 1566 Chairman, Brian Sharky contacted Local 71 about organizing these drivers since they were in direct contact with his members on the railroad. The campaign progressed from there and will continue to grow as SMART starts engaging with more Renzenberger drivers throughout North America.
Under the banner of the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance (USA) Work Boots on the Ground program, members of the Columbus Metal Trades Council (CMTC) volunteered their time and skills on Saturday, Feb. 21, to inspect six boat docks and 66 boat slips at Florence Marina State Park for electrical hazards and make needed repairs, saving the park $1,500 to $2,000.
James Carr, Curtis Culpepper and Mike Culpepper, members of Electrical Workers Local 613, along with project leader Dave Hall, a member of Sheet Metal Workers Local 85, and Trish Carr looked for exposed wiring, broken receptacle covers, bad ground fault circuit interrupters and other hazards that could put boat slip tenants and park visitors at risk.
Launched in 2010, Work Boots on the Ground brings together union members willing to volunteer their time and expertise to projects that conserve wildlife habitat, educate future generations of sportsmen and women, improve public access to the outdoors or restore America’s parks. Sitting at the northern end of 45,000-acre Lake Walter F. George in Omaha, GA, Florence Marina State Park is popular among a variety of outdoor enthusiasts, especially anglers and boaters. As with most state parks, it is managed with a tight budget.
“If there were any exposed wires or other electrical issues, and a renter or guest slipped into the water, it could cause serious bodily injury. The inspection helps prevent hazards and minimize risks,” said Tracy Yearta, park manager of Florence Marina State Park and Providence Canyon State Park. “Lots of these projects have to be funded by the department and, with funding the way it is, it’s very critical to bring in outside resources. Their [CMTC volunteers] skills and leadership ability is exactly what we need.”
Yearta first saw their skills and leadership in action in 2014 when CMTC volunteers cleared a 7-mile hiking trail and restored scenic views at nearby Providence Canyon State Park—Georgia’s Little Grand Canyon.
According to Hall, “Everybody was happy doing it…there was a sense of pride in knowing that we helped out the local community. The very next month at our meeting, everybody was exciting, smiling, happy. Some of the same volunteers wanted to do another project.”
This summer and fall, the volunteers will renovate Florence Marina State Park’s waste water treatment facility and install additional campsites at the park.
On February 24, 2015, Glenn Steele, an engineer in Los Angeles, CA was involved in a horrible train accident that was no fault of his own. After departing Metrolink station in Oxnard, his train hit a truck that was left parked on the tracks. The conductor and his student engineer both sustained injuries but were released that day after receiving treatment. Brother Steele, on the other hand, was not so lucky and left us on March 3rd.
His friends, family and brothers and sisters at the BLET created a gofundme account to help his family in this terrible time of need.