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July/August 2003 IBEW Journal
L.U. 568 (c,ees,em,i&o), MONTREAL, PQ, CANADAOur members greatly support all the IBEW members who have been called up to active duty and are now serving to protect IBEW members and their families from all over North America. Thank you so much for a job well done. God bless the IBEW and God bless the USA! Yves St.-Germain, B.M./F.S.
L.U. 569 (I, rts, spa, mt, mar, ees & es), San Diego, CAChristmas in April was again a success, as 100-plus IBEW family members volunteered to help repair the homes of needy residents. Thank you to all. Electric Stars generously donated a solar photovoltaic system, which members installed for one elderly homeowner. Local 569 would also like to thank the following contractors for the materials, labor, and/ or service trucks they provided: Dynalectric, Sapphire Electric, Triple S Electric, Par Electric, Sunburst Electric, Morrow Meadows, Chula Vista Electric, Price Electric, Robinson Electric, Baker Electric and Fuller Electric. Thanks go to members who have written letters and made phone calls to fight the Bush Administrations attacks on workers. Despite these assaults, we have had victories, signing three new contractors and continuing to organize. We are active in campaigns to expand health care coverage and promote a living wage to increase our communitys standard of living. Worksite delegates continue to bring critical information to our job sites on issues important to electricians. If you have not signed-up to take the state licensing exam, do so now. Please contact a worksite delegate or the union hall. Jennifer Badgley, P.S.
L.U. 577 (em&i), APPLETON, WIThe paper machine rebuild at Stora-Enso went into full swing in April, is finishing up early and some of the members are coming back to the hall. With help from some members from our sister locals and the many local members, this project will finish on time. The additional work that was added by the customer helped to employ more wiremen than was anticipated when this project first unfolded. Thanks to all that worked so tirelessly to meet the customers demands. The Organizers have been speaking to many of our non-union counterparts. The unorganized electricians are experiencing the same levels of unemployment that our members are. There has been increased bidding activity for March and April and hopefully our contractors will be successful in winning the work. The Education Committee has offered 50 classes since last September. Thank you for the endless work of the committee. Please take some time to thank the instuctors: Bill Gauerke, Terry Johnson, Pat Heindl, Steve Helmeid, Dean Ochowicz, Tyson Schneider, Weldon Sicard, John Sullivan, Corey Wiegel, Gene Wiese, and Scott Willison for their efforts. Watch for class offerings in each issue of the newsletter. In the last issue, I failed to acknowledge that Chad Anderson was also completing his day instruction in May and will be joining his fellow classmates in finishing their Apprenticeships. Congratulations to all the new Journeymen in your class. Greg Breaker, P.S.
L.U. 586 (em,i&o), OTTAWA,ON, CANADAThe accompanying picture shows the members who recently worked on a very unusual job. Neilson Dairy installed a multi-million dollar production line to centralize all their products. Because food was involved, the method of installing was quite different. Everything was stainless steel: cable tray, conduit, supports, boxes and panels. Also, as clean-up was important, everything was water-tight and laid out for proper draining for all objects. Black and McDonald and Earl Carr Electric were the two contractors on site. Also present were father and son, Douglas and Bruce Parsons, as stewards. Over the past few years the Provincial Government and the E.C.A. of Ontario have devised a new category of worker called a pre-apprentice. Basically they may work at a greatly reduced rate for a one-year period. As they are not registered, their work is limited electrically. If they are qualified and there is need, they could be brought into our system. The Ottawa Electrical Industry recognized the chaos that could result from having this procedure followed and, after several meetings, agreed to try an alternative system. We have created a method whereby our retired members will do this type of work. The contractors and Local 586 both agreed that the knowledge and experience of these members would be a major asset. A very good wage structure has been formatted and we hope by the time this is published, it is humming along efficiently. Doug Parson, Pres.
L.U. 595 (c,govt,i,o&st), DUBLIN, CAThe recent Supreme Court decision upholding the presidential Executive Order banning Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) should be a wake up call to all union members. PLAs have been an effective tool for guaranteeing conflict free union construction projects for more than 60 years and have long played an important role in securing prevailing wage work for the members of Local 595. Our local is currently involved in two federally funded projects with PLAs, employing hundreds of electricians. Union members should be thinking about how we are going to deal with laws making it more difficult for organized labor to have a voice. It is time for union members to rethink what "union" means to them. We need to learn the issues and take seriously the threat to our quality of life and our ability to work with dignity. We need to vote for candidates who will represent us. One ray of sunshine for union electricians in California is the new state certification requirement. Union representatives cannot stress enough how important it is for members to sign up for the team ASAP. Early registration will prevent a backup at the testing facility in the future. Marta Schultz, P.S.
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Local 568 members show strong support for
their American IBEW brothers and sisters who have been called into active
military duty.
Members of Local 586 installed the multi-million dollar
production line at Neilson Dairy.
Local 595s first two state-certified electricians are Mel
Switzer, left, and John Buhowsky.