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With the assistance of SMART Transportation Division Ohio State Legislative Director Stu Gardner, Transportation Division Local 378 at Cleveland held a “call to action” labor rally Oct. 20 at Sheet Metal Division Local 33’s union hall and training center in Parma, Ohio.
With a turnout of approximately 45 members and Transportation Division office staff, Gardner opened the rally by reminding all that the upcoming election was about “voting their paychecks.”
“Ordinary Americans need to stand up and say enough! Enough against the excessive, great moneyed interests and power-brokers that currently wield enormous power in our country with the help of the politicians in government that big money supports,” Gardner said. “It is time that we take that stand and start getting out the vote by encouraging your families, co-workers and friends to vote, vote early, vote absentee or vote on election day.”
Gardner also cautioned those in attendance that right-to-work legislation is not dead in Ohio, despite S.B. 5 having been voted down by Ohioans by a 62-38 percent margin in 2012.
“Remember that S.B. 5 was just a few short years ago, and that labor and a vast majority of Ohio’s citizens rallied to defeat that bill in a referendum vote,” Gardner said. “Don’t be fooled into thinking that right-to-work is a dead issue in this state. It is not. H.B. 151 and H.B. 152 are currently waiting for a committee hearing and the lame duck session of the legislature to move forward this year.”
H.B. 151 would “prohibit any requirement that employees of private employers join or pay dues to any employee organization and to establish civil and criminal penalties against employers who violate that prohibition.”
H.B. 152 would “remove any requirement under the Public Employees Collective Bargaining Law that public employees join or pay dues to any employee organization and to prohibit public employers from requiring public employees to join or pay dues to any employee organization.”
The rally featured a number of political candidates who introduced themselves to the membership and asked for their support and their votes on Election Day.
“Listen to our guest speakers and candidates telling you their reasons for running for office. What is important to them should be important to you and your families,” Gardner said.
The first candidate to speak was Ohio State Rep. Connie Pillich, who is seeking the office of state treasurer in a race against incumbent Josh Mandel. Mandel began establishing a U.S. Senate seat campaign just months after being elected in 2012, a campaign that fizzled quickly. Pillich pointed out that she has the experience and financial background to point Ohio in the right direction.
Other candidates at the rally included : Kenny Yuko, candidate for the 25^th District of the Ohio Senate; Cleveland Councilman Martin Sweeney, candidate for House of Representatives District 14; Cleveland Heights Councilwoman Janine Boyd, candidate for House of Representatives District 9; Sen. Michael Skindell, candidate for Senate District 23; State Rep. Nickie Antonio, candidate for House of Representatives District 13; Rep. Nicholas Celebrezze, candidate for House of Representatives District 15, and Rep. John Patrick Carney, candidate for Ohio state auditor.
“After the rally, do some research and educate yourself about these candidates, and see why the Ohio State Legislative Board endorses and supports them,” Gardner finished.

Ohio State Legislative Director Stu Gardner introduces State Rep. Connie Pillich, Democratic candidate for Ohio state treasurer. Cleveland City Councilman Martin Sweeney is seated at left.
 

Pictured, from left, are Carney, Celebrezze, Yuko, Antonio, Local 378 President Jeffrey Brandow, Gardner, Assistant State Legislative Director David Otten and Skindell.

Tags David Otten, Jeffrey Brandow, labor rally, Local 378, Pillich, Stu Gardner

SMART is now on Instagram. You can follow us at @SMARTUnionWorks. This adds to our social media presence on FaceBook, Twitter, Flickr and YouTube.

On June 24, the California Energy Commission determined that the Testing, Adjusting and Balancing Bureau (TABB—a function of NEMIC) met the requirements in Section 10-103-B(e) of the Standards to be conditionally approved as an authorized Interim Mechanical Acceptance Test Technician and Contractor Certification Provider. As a result, TABB is now a state-recognized provider and certifies contractors and technicians.

Acceptance tests are pass/fail tests for mechanical systems and equipment for newly constructed buildings, major renovations, and all newly installed replacement equipment.

Under interim approval, both ICB/TABB-certified technicians and their employers are required to attend training in eight of the 17 acceptance tests.

Acceptance tests ensure code compliance and promote optimization of efficiency and performance of qualified mechanical systems in commercial buildings. They serve to determine whether specific building components, equipment, systems and interfaces between systems conform to criteria set forth in the 2013 California Building Energy Efficiency Standards for nonresidential buildings only. This includes offices, retail stores, factories, warehouses, schools, churches, hotels, motels and other non-residential occupancy types. The tests are an effective tool to ensure proper installation of equipment and meeting the energy goals of owners, occupants and the community. The benefits of properly installed systems include energy savings, extended equipment life, health, comfort and safety.

In general, the acceptance tests apply to new equipment and systems installed in new construction, change-out or retrofit applications. If an acceptance test is required, the appropriate form along with each specific test must be submitted to the enforcement agency before a final occupancy permit can be granted.

ICB/TABB-Certified Acceptance Test Technicians (ATTs) are ideally positioned to provide this service. They are building mechanical specialists trained and certified by NEMIC Acceptance Test Technician Certification Providers (ATTCPs). ATTs conduct required tests, submit results and certificates to enforcement agencies and are employed by ICB/TABB-Certified ATT Contractors. These contractors are required to have specialized training by a NEMIC ATTCP.

“The new California legislation will dramatically increase market demand for mechanical acceptance testing in commercial buildings throughout the state,” said James Page, NEMIC administrator. “If technicians and contractors want to be part of this growing work opportunity, they must be certified.”

ALSTOM

On April 22, SMART won an election 5 – 1 to represent the fulltime material handlers at the New Castle, DE, facility for Alstom. These workers sort and deliver parts to our SMART members who work on the Acela Train for Amtrak in Wilmington and Bear, DE. Pictured here are both fulltime and part-time workers employed at this location.BOMBARDIER

On July 8, SMART won an election to represent the track technicians on the Riverline Division of New Jersey Transit (NJT) 8 – 1. These workers work for Bombardier, a railroad contractor who runs and maintains the Riverline through a subcontract with New Jersey Transit. This is the first of four units consisting of approximately fifty workers on the Riverline to join SMART. Pictured here are our new members from the Riverline location.

Pennsylvania State Legislative Director Paul Pokrowka is asking all SMART Transportation Division members from Pennsylvania to take action and contact the office of Gov. Tom Corbett, requesting he sign House Bill 2354 into law.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced the first ever regulation of carbon dioxide emissions for existing stationary sources (power plants). Under the preliminary EPA rule, Pennsylvania is given an emissions target to meet by 2030 and will be able to write its own implementation plan on how best to meet those reductions.

The legislation, which already has approval from both chambers of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, would require the state’s Department of Environmental Protection to receive approval from the General Assembly prior to submitting the plan to the EPA.
“This bill is important to our members because it helps to give us a voice in regulations concerning the coal industry,” Pokrowka said. “We need Corbett to sign this bill into law by Oct. 26 or the bill is dead in the water.”
Rep. Pam Snyder (D), who authored the bill said, “Pennsylvania deserves the opportunity to forge its energy future and protect electric ratepayers and jobs. The state legislature will be the final arbiter of how the commonwealth approaches greenhouse gas regulation. It is what we were elected to do, and leaving Pennsylvania’s energy destiny in the hands of unelected, unaccountable federal regulators would be irresponsible.”

Tags EPA, House Bill 2354, Paul Pokrowka, Pennsylvania

Sheet Metal Local 435 members, along with national siding SMACNA contractor Crown Corr, Inc, completed work in August on the world’s largest video/scoreboards. Working in a very compressed 90-day schedule, all the metal siding, standing seam metal roof, associated flashing, coping, sub-structure, and associated side wall louvers were finished “on time and under budget,” reported Jacksonville Jaguars President, Mark Lamping.

Jacksonville, FL, city officials and the NFL team owner combined resources to give the publicly owned stadium major renovations, including the massive jumbotrons. The video boards measure 60 feet high by 362 feet wide and are in both end zones. They far exceed all other stadium jumbotron screens in size. The huge video boards are capable of showing any combination of live action, instant replays, vivid graphics, colorful animations, up-to-the-minute statistics, scoring information, and sponsor advertisements.

Approximately twenty Local 435 members and six of Crown Corr’s traveling SMART members completed the job in extremely taxing conditions over the summer. Business Manager John Parker reported that 29 days of the work schedule were in temperatures of 95 degrees or higher. SMART’s members worked seven days per week and showed why paying for the best was worth it. One of the local SMACNA signatories also benefited from design/build practices by fabricating reinforcement steel for Crown Corr.

“The job is a showcase of SMART diversity and union capability when time and performance are on the line. We will point to this job for years to come and be proud every time we enter or drive by the stadium. It is a real trophy for the members of Local 435. You really have to see the screens in person to appreciate the size and clarity,” said Parker.

The National Transportation Safety Board Sept. 24 issued a special investigation report on the recent increase in deaths of railroad and rail transit roadway workers on or near tracks and made recommendations to reduce the number of fatalities.
The Special Investigation Report on Railroad and Rail Transit Roadway Worker Protection provides details of 14 fatal accidents in 2013. Over the year, 15 roadway workers died. The number of deaths in 2013, the findings from investigations of those deaths and the increasing number of fatalities prompted the NTSB to look more closely at the issue of roadway worker safety and to recommend actions to address these issues.
Railroad and rail transit roadway workers are subject to on-the-job risks and hazards that are markedly different from those faced by other railroad employees. Of the fatalities in 2013, 11 resulted from 11 accidents on freight railroads and four were on commuter or transit railways. The average number of railroad worker fatalities has fluctuated but has remained about 6.4 per year from 1990 to 2013.
“Railroad roadway worker deaths have increased over the past three years,” said NTSB Acting Chairman Christopher A. Hart. “This trend is unacceptable.”
Among the report’s findings are that comprehensive job briefings could help prevent accidents and that national inspection protocols for work activities are necessary to ensure the safety of roadway workers.
The NTSB issued recommendations to the Federal Railroad Administration, the Federal Transit Administration, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Fatality Analysis of Maintenance-of-Way Employees and Signalmen Committee. The recommendations call for additional training, harmonization of standards, a national inspection program and greater stakeholder participation in roadway worker fatalities, among other measures.
A summary of the special report is available at http://go.usa.gov/dZfj.

The Associated Builders and Contractors, a strongly anti-union, anti-worker contractor group, has lobbied against improvements in workplace standards and jobsite safety for years while keeping construction workers’ wages depressed. When its not lobbying against the hiring of veterans on construction sites, the group interferes in local construction decision making processes by filing frivolous lawsuits when its members lose out on bids.
The State Building and Construction Trades Council of California has recently produced an excellent and compelling video that pulls back the curtain from the slick public relations efforts of the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) and exposes the true nature of its destructive business model. From striving to keep wages low in the construction industry, to making virtually no investments in apprenticeship training and workforce development, the ABC has for generations been an anathema to preserving middle class standards for careers in the construction industry.
This hard hitting video lifts the veil around this group and exposes it for its’ hypocrisy.

Thanks to all of the delegates, members, guests and staff that made the First SMART General Convention a resounding success.
I have been involved in this union for 45 years. There has never been a more outspoken, honest, and hardworking General Executive Council than the one we have now. They do what is right for this membership. They make this union. It also helps having a great partner, a general secretary-treasurer who has your back and who makes you proud every day. Joe Sellers is a great leader.
We are now one union. I know that some differences of opinion among the membership remain as in any democratic organization that respects the right of each and every member to speak freely. I will always continue to encourage discussion, debate and your input on where we go in the future.
As I told the convention delegation, we are going to fight some, and we are going to bleed some. But in the end, we’ll all bleed the same blood.
We closed the convention on Aug. 15 as one union. We are not divided and we will not let anything divide us. A house divided will fall and we will never go that way. We have a combined legacy of 270 years. We must build on what previous generations have passed to us by furthering our mission to make this union even stronger in servicing our members.
I am telling you what I told the assembled delegates at the convention. All business managers, business agents, general chairpersons and local chairpersons must realize that service to the membership must come first. Whether they are representing airline, rail, transportation or sheet metal members, our leaders must continue their duty to represent the membership to the best of their ability.
This union’s leadership will not tolerate anyone who doesn’t represent their members. You don’t have to like Joe Nigro, but you do have to like and work for your membership.
Through education, strength and unity, we will fulfill our mission to make SMART the strongest union in North America.
As I noted in my column here last month, I was never as proud of our members as I was to see our sheet metal brothers and sisters standing shoulder to shoulder with our transportation membership at a rally held by employees on the Long Island Rail Road.
It was outstanding to see sheet metal workers and transportation workers getting together and fighting together on behalf of their brothers and sisters. When I walked into that parking lot with more than 3,000 people, I was so proud.
Our membership was successful in obtaining a fair agreement with the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority and I congratulate LIRR GO 505 General Chairperson Anthony Simon and his leadership team for that outstanding effort.
We departed our first SMART convention renewed, stronger and united. We will continue to forge a new future with the dignity, integrity and the honor that went into building this great union. To read and view coverage from the First SMART General Convention, visit your union’s website at smart-union.org.
It’s all about our union, our members and our strength. Together, we are all SMART.
Joseph J. Nigro
SMART General President

New job postings have been issues via the SMART Job Bank for sheet metal positions in Texas. Please visit the Sheet Metal Job Bank for more information.