News Archive
New Production Institute training helps local leaders better serve production workers
SMART Production Department leaders from across the United States and Canada met in Indianapolis at the end of August for the first-ever Production Institute training. The week-long class, part of a three-year program tailored to production locals, featured sessions on bargai [...]
FRA awards SMART-TD over $600,000 to fill void in rail carriers’ training programs
In September, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) awarded SMART-TD $602,227.35 to get members the training they need to safely perform their duties as railroad professionals. The award was granted through FRA’s Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (C [...]
Hughes and Modesitt appointed to SMART General Executive Council
Following the retirement of Bus Vice President Calvin Studivant and the passing of Transportation Division Vice President John Whitaker, Alvy Hughes and Jamie Modesitt have been appointed to the SMART General Executive Council as general vice presidents. Alvy Hughes was born [...]
Tom Wiant moves from International rep. to assistant to the general president
On October 1, 2023, Tom Wiant moved from his position as SMART Region 3 International representative to become assistant to the general president — the latest step in a 30-plus-year career in the unionized sheet metal industry. Wiant began his journey in the trade as a produc [...]
Richard Mangelsdorf joins SMART as International instructor
Richard Mangelsdorf began his new position as SMART International instructor on November 1, 2023, taking the next step in his union career. Mangelsdorf became a member of SMART Local 280 (Vancouver, B.C.) in 2001. He worked as a part-time instructor with the Sheet Metal Worke [...]
SMART Women’s Committee spotlights apprentices for National Apprenticeship Week
During National Apprenticeship Week — November 13–17, 2023 — the SMART Women’s Committee spotlighted apprentices from around the country. Kacey Grierson, third-year apprentice, Local 206 (San Diego, Calif.) “Joining the apprenticeship was life changing. It offered me a career [...]
Kingspan workers in California take action for safety, workplace protections
More than 125 people rallied and marched in support of workers at Santa Ana Kingspan Light + Air on October 20, occupying an intersection in downtown Santa Ana, California, and unfurling a giant parachute banner that read “¡Kingspan Escucha!” as they called on the multi-billi [...]
Ford megaproject drives massive union growth, organizing in Kentucky
The massive Ford Blue Oval battery plant in Glendale, Kentucky, is a case study in how megaprojects are driving growth and sparking new organizing in the unionized sheet metal industry. Local 110 (Louisville, Kentucky) has nearly doubled in size since January 2023, bringing h [...]