The idea of putting a permanent roof on the youth archery range at the J.W Corbett Wildlife Management Area’s Everglades Youth Conservation Camp in West Palm Beach, Florida has come to fruition thanks to the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance (USA) and its Work Boots on the Ground program that mobilizes skilled union members for conservation.
Members of Sheet Metal Workers Local 32 and Electrical Workers Local 359 showcased the program in full force as they utilized their trade skills to cover the 84-foot archery range. Side by side, utilizing tools, plywood, metal tin, airguns and compressors, they worked throughout the weekend, May 3-4, to finish the job in record time and expert fashion.
According to Lynne Hawk, Regional Hunter Safety Coordinator with the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission, the archery range provides year-round hunter safety courses for children and adults, as well as school and community groups.
Hawk facilitated the project with the leadership of the Work Boots on the Ground volunteer project leader Rick Pazos, a training director and member of SMART Local 32. “Rick did an excellent job. This project wouldn’t have gotten done if it weren’t for him. The guys (all) worked really hard…I am so thankful for all of them.”
“The archery range is used by kids every day during the facility’s summer camp,” added Hawk, “…We now have a new roof on the archery range that should last for many, many years to come.”
Fred Myers, Executive Director and CEO of the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance, said the USA’s Work Boots on the Ground program was created to form collaborations all over the country on behalf of conservation, to drive projects faced with narrowing budgets, staffing and materials challenges.
“The people who volunteer with us to identify projects, raise money to support them and show up in numbers to provide the hands-on labor all have a commitment to conservation and their communities,” Myers said. “They want to give back and find that our Work Boots on the Ground collaborations provide a vehicle to get involved and make a difference for future generations.”
Author: paul
SMART Local 49 was the winner in yet another representation election. This time, workers at Automated Mechanical, an Ogden, UT based mechanical contractor, voted unanimously to join SMART. This follows an earlier victory this month when SMART’s Transportation Department added 40 new transit members in Albuquerque.
Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam May 20 announced the appointment of SMART Transportation Division Tennessee State Legislative Director Roger “Adren” Crawford to the Tennessee Council for Career and Technical Education.
The TCCTE serves as an independent advocate for quality career and technical education programs and functions as an independent oversight body. It consists of 13 members appointed by the governor to serve in an advisory capacity to the Tennessee Board of Education, Tennessee Board of Regents, the governor and the general assembly. Members of the council are appointed to serve six-year terms.
Seven individuals are representatives of the private sector in the state and constitute a majority of the membership. Six individuals are representatives of secondary and post-secondary education, career and technical institutions, career guidance and counseling organizations within the state, and/or individuals who have special knowledge and qualifications with respect to the educational and career development needs of special populations.
“I appreciate the commitment of these men and women and want to thank them for their willingness to serve the state,” Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam said. “Tennessee will be well represented on these boards and commissions.”
Crawford is a member of Local 339 at Jackson, Tenn., and serves as the local’s chairperson, legislative representative and delegate.
A dedicated group of volunteers from the Central Pennsylvania Building Trades Council and the Ned Smith Center for Nature & Art’s Lands and Trails Committee celebrated the opening of a new footbridge this week, thanks to the completion of a conservation project spearheaded by the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance’s (USA) ‘Work Boots on the Ground” program. The project involved the hands-on work of about 12 volunteers over two consecutive weekends in April, to tear out the existing, temporary, all-wood bridge and to reconstruct it as a permanent structure, complete with new hand rails and gravel.
The USA’s ‘Work Boots on the Ground’ program, a volunteer initiative that mobilizes skilled labor union volunteers for conservation projects, was tapped by long-time USA member and Ned Smith Board of Trustees Member Matt Roberts. When he learned about the Center’s need to replace its older footbridge in disrepair, Roberts brought the idea for a ‘Work Boots’ project to the attention of the Central Pennsylvania Building Trades Council, and they agreed it would be a great fit.
“I felt this was a perfect situation to bring it all together,” said Roberts, noting the weather was the only small challenge to the volunteer crews out on the job to complete the project. “We had rain from lunch on,” he said, “but the guys wouldn’t give in to Mother Nature’s fury.”
Dedicated crews made up of union sheet metal workers, steel workers and carpenters, along with
community volunteers from the Ned Smith Center for Nature & Art, worked to complete the bridge over a two-day period, despite the weather.
Fred Myers, Executive Director and CEO of the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance, said that speaks to the spirit of the outdoorsmen and women who enjoy membership in the USA, volunteering their time and talents to support conservation projects.
“There’s no group of people with more skills and know-how than union members to help take on today’s conservation challenges,” said Myers, who founded the non-profit organization seven years ago. “All over the country, we are forming committees, identifying needs, raising money and taking on projects to ensure future generations can enjoy the outdoor opportunities that we enjoy today.”
Ned Smith Center for Nature & Art is home to 12-miles of hiking trails and offers educational value for the thousands of students, families, hikers, anglers and hunters who visit the Center’s 500-plus acres each year. The Center’s Executive Director, Stephen Quigley, is grateful for the partnership between the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance and the Center, in particular, its joint commitment to educating youth.
“The union contractors and partners involved in this project have personal lives as sportsmen themselves, enjoying the outdoors…and know that the youth today are not as connected to the environment as a generation ago,” said Quigley. “While the team worked well together and had fun doing the project, they understand that there is a significant purpose in using these projects as a catalyst for educating our youth about the environment and conservation of our natural resources.”
For more information on the Ned Smith Center’s lands, galleries and education programming, please visit www.nedsmithcenter.org.
Currently, only four percent of the Canadian construction force is female. Journeyman, a national program that helps mentor, support and promote women working in construction, hopes to change that along with any lingering stereotypes.
Journeyman, which recently launched a Facebook page in order to bring workers together around this concept has released a video featuring participants in this new program.
Please take a moment to visit their new FaceBook page and also view the video featuring this exciting new program.
According to a report released today by the AFL-CIO, 4,628 workers were killed in the United States during 2012 due to workplace injuries. Additionally an estimated 50,000 died from occupational diseases, resulting in a loss of nearly 150 workers each day from preventable workplace conditions.
The report, entitled Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect, marks the 23rd year the AFL-CIO has produced its findings on the state of safety and health protections for workers within the United States. The report shows the highest workplace fatality rates were found in North Dakota, Wyoming, Alaska, West Virginia and Montana, while Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire (tied), and Washington (tied) had the lowest state fatality rates.
While national numbers remained steady from 2011, the most alarming statistics come from North Dakota, where the state’s job fatality rate of 17.7 per 100,000 workers is five times the national average, which is 3.4 per 100,000, and is among the highest state job fatality rates ever reported. Especially alarming is the high fatality rate in North Dakota for those in the mining and oil and gas extraction sector, where 104 out of every 100,000 workers died on the job, more than six times the national average in this industry.
The AFL-CIO’s report also highlights the number of Latino and immigrant workers killed on the job, with Latino workers facing a nine percent higher risk of a workplace death, 3.7 per 100,000 workers, than the national average. Of the 748 Latino workers killed on the job in 2012, 65% were immigrant workers, with the highest fatalities occurring in Texas, California, and Florida.
The report’s disturbing numbers come in the wake of further statistics showing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) remains underfunded, understaffed, and unable to levy penalties strong enough to deter workplace safety violations. At current levels, it would take federal and state OSHA inspectors an average of 105 years to inspect every workplace within the United States at least once, with South Dakota facing the largest backlog resulting in an estimated 521 years to inspect workplaces.
Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect was released after numerous Workers Memorial Day vigils, rallies, and actions were held across the country. An online copy can be found here.
After consulting with a number of the largest mechanical contractors in the United States, the ITI (International Training Institute) has enhanced its BIM courses to better meet the training needs expressed by those contractors. The result is a total immersion training experience called BIMmersion.
BIMmersion is separate from the ITI’s Benchmark training. It covers everything you need to know to become a working detailer in a very short amount of time. Courses are limited to 15 students and each is flexible, depending on individual training needs. They can be taken as a full training experience over six weeks, or each class can be taken on its own.
Two of the most popular classes are sure to be Revit and Navisworks, Autodesk’s flagship products for Building Information Modeling:
Revit Course Description Learn how to use Autodesk Revit software. Topics include learning the basics of Revit; creating views of the model; setting up levels and grids; creating walls, floors, ceilings, roofs, stairs, railings, ramps, etc.; adding components to the model; creating and printing sheets; adding annotations and a detailing sheet; creating HVAC systems; creating hydronic systems; creating plumbing systems; creating lighting and power plans.
Navisworks Course Description Learn how to use Autodesk Navisworks software. Topics include learning the main features and functionality of the Navisworks software; open and append 3D files of different formats and save in the Navisworks format; perform visual project model reviews using built-in review and reporting tools; perform interference detection tests between 3D files of different disciplines to check integrity of the design; obtain takeoff data from source models to create material estimates, measure areas, and count components.
The construction industry has changed and you can change with it. These courses are designed to improve your marketability and open the door to new opportunities. For more information or to sign up, visit www.sheetmetal-iti.org (DIRECT LINK HERE) or call Michael Keane at 703-678-7716.
CLICK HERE for complete Course Descriptions.
Local 36 members in St. Louis joined an army of more than 1500 volunteers as part of the Rebuilding Together St. Louis organization’s massive home rehab blitz Saturday. This was part of an effort to provide free home repair for low-income and elderly homeowners.
Joining Local 36 were Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 562, Glaziers Local 513 and IBEW Local 1.
They handled projects from fixing leaky faucets and replacing faulty electrical wiring and service panels to rebuilding outdoor decks and replacing doors, windows, and kitchen & bathroom fixtures and appliances. At the end of the day, Rebuilding Together St. Louis provided more than $677,000 worth of materials and labor at the 55 homes thanks to the army of volunteers.
Today is May Day, International Workers’ Day and the equivalent of Labor Day for the rest of the world. You can read more about its origins here.
Right now, President Obama is meeting with key leaders in Asia to finalize the ‘Trans Pacific Partnership’ (TPP) in complete secrecy. Leaked documents show that this secretive plan will censor the Internet and strip away our rights.
We’re going to use a high powered spotlight to project a StopTheSecrecy message on key buildings in Washington D.C. to ensure Obama, the media, and everyone else knows TPP secrecy must be stopped. Visit www.stopthesecrecy.net to take action, today!
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