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| January/February 2005 IBEW
Journal
L.U. 702 (as,c,catv,cs,em,es,et, govt,i,it,lctt,mo,mt,o,p,pet,ptc,rtb,rts,se,spa,st,t,u,uow&ws), WEST FRANKFORT, ILWe thank every member who took on the demanding job and personal sacrifice of helping the hurricane victims by restoring the utilities. We are proud of the way our union members represented Local 702 and the IBEW with professionalism and dedication in a difficult situation. Hats off to everyone! Due to the outcome of the November Presidential election, get ready for another four years of anti-labor political policy. We will continue to fight and manage damage control for our members. We have 100 journeyman wiremen and 35 apprentice wiremen currently laid off. Line Clearance work is good, as well as Outside Construction. However, Outside Telephone Construction remains slow. Marsha Steele, P.S.
L.U. 716 (em,i,rts&spa), HOUSTON, TXThe work picture in Houston is still slow, but job calls picked up recently. Local 716 appreciates local unions across the country that have helped put our traveling members to work. We are working to regain market share through organizing projects, and as a result we have signed up new contractors in our area. Local 716 adopted the "Code of Excellence" program, and the training of members for COE certification has met with great success. I encourage all members to get COE trained. With the adoption of the COE, we hope Local 716 can obtain more work, not only on the Houston Ship Channel but also throughout the jurisdiction. Politically, we must double our efforts to elect labor friendly candidates. If all our members registered to vote, helped in campaigns and turned out to vote, Houston, TX, would know the strength of the labor movement. To achieve this strength, we must be able to mobilize at a moments notice. Current addresses and phone numbers are necessary. The primary season will be here soon and thats when our next attempt at increasing political strength will be most important. Local 716 extends support to our brave troops fighting overseas. John E. Easton Jr., B.M./F.S.
L.U. 725 (i,rts&spa), TERRE HAUTE, INOur military forces are in our thoughts daily. The negotiations for two-year agreements are complete for the Inside, Residential and Sign agreements. We thank the negotiating committees for their hard work. For the most part, the agreements remain satisfactory. Although November 2004 elections are over, the next election will be here before we know it. It is critical that our members register to vote. Federal elections are important; yet local and state elections impact us directly. Information is available online at our new Web site www.ibew725.org, or contact Local 725 directly. Work in our area is slow. Approximately 10 percent of our members are on Book I and we do not anticipate referrals from Book II anytime soon. Congratulations to the 2004 graduated class of apprentices, pictured in the accompanying photo. A.J. English, P.S. L.U. 728 (em,i,rts&spa), FT. LAUDERDALE, FLThe members of our union are very active in service to our community and have donated 6,064 pints of blood since 1956. As chairman of the blood bank committee since then, Carl Wuest has donated over 20 gallons of blood. Bros. Jim Weldon and Ray Flach are trying to catch up, but have a bit to go at 13 gallons each. Many members are at the five-gallon mark. Your next opportunity to donate is Monday, Jan. 3, 2005. Congratulations to retired Bro. Garnett Kegley on 60 years of service to the IBEW. Bro. Kegley was initiated into Local 17 in Detroit, MI, in 1944. He transferred his ticket as a lineman to Local 323 in 1955 and retired from the trade in 1981. Local 323 merged with Local 728 in 1994. Hurricanes Frances and Jeanne and then November 2004 elections Thanks to all of you who assisted during the storms and volunteered during the election cycle. I end by sharing the following quote by columnist Bob Herbert of The New York Times: "Democracy is a breeze during good times. Its when the storms are raging that citizenship is put to the test. And theres a hell of a wind blowing right now." Stay engaged! Beverly J. Curphey, P.S.
L.U. 760 (i,lctt,o,rts,spa&u), KNOXVILLE, TNOur work picture is still fairly slow. We are pleased to announce that A.J. Pearson, retired director for the NJATC, has accepted the position as director for our local JATC. We are excited to see his expertise go to work to help bring our apprenticeship program to its full potential. At a Christmas party for disabled children, electronic toys modified by Local 760 volunteers for greater ease of accessibility were presented as gifts (see photo). Volunteers from Local 760 apprentice classesalong with volunteers from Tennessee Armature, the local union membership and office staff of Local 760worked on the toys project sponsored by the East Tennessee Technology Access Center. We had a lot of fun working on the project and plan to it again. So we are looking for even more volunteers to help with this great cause next time. We are saddened to have lost retired member "Ms. Ann" Bruce, age 93, in November 2004. She was the locals secretary from 1942-1983. Other members who will be sadly missed are: Howard Foley, Milus E. Mitchell, Jess W. Raper, Clarence Swanson, Bruce J. Taylor, Fred T. Mills and Roscoe Shipley. Please keep their families in your prayers. Will Muncy, P.S. |
