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May 2005 IBEW Journal L.U. 659 (c,catv,em,i,lcttt,o,st&u), MEDFORD, OR—Nominations for Local 659 officers and Executive Board members are in May 2005 with elections to be held in June 2005. Be an informed member and get out and vote. Ongoing negotiations with Consumers, Lane Electric, Osmose, Central Lincoln PUD, Hinkle & McCoy, and Coos Curry are keeping the business reps very busy. There is a wide range of issues with the negotiations, from a full contract rewrite with one unit to wages only with another. We have ongoing Labor Management meetings with PacifiCorp over benefits; PacifiCorp unit members will vote on a benefit trust package, which if it passes will go into effect in 2006. Sessions are also ongoing with the Inside Wiremen LMCC partnering program. Wiremen classes are available on Journeymen Upgrade and Code Change. Contact the local union hall or the Crater Lake JATC office for dates and times. NW Line JATC New Member Orientation was held in February at Camp Rilea for first period apprentices. The training went well and we were very impressed with the quality of the apprentices. Many thanks to former Int. Sec-Treas. Jerry J. O’Connor for his many years of service to the IBEW. We wish him a happy retirement. Kathy Joy, R.S.
L.U. 665 (i,rts&spa), LANSING, MI—A graduation dinner was held Feb. 22 to recognize recent apprenticeship graduates. Congratulations, graduates! It is a great accomplishment to complete an inside, residential or teledata program. Speakers for the event included Local 665 Pres. Scott Clark, NECA representative Mike Crawford, and John Beck, Michigan State University Labor Studies Program director. Lawrence Hidalgo, Jr., LEJATC training director, and Kay Norris organized and facilitated the graduation dinner. The Apprenticeship Committee chose Glenn Lutz as winner of the 2004-05 Outstanding Apprentice Award and the Don Surnbrock Award. Glen will attend the NTI training in Knoxville, TN, in August. Our area union contractors have partnered to form the Mid-Michigan Construction Alliance (MMCA). The MMCA has been an important tool for union contractors to utilize a partnership formed with other trades. The MMCA has been awarded many projects because of this strong relationship with various trade organizations, their reputation for quality work, and their commitment to safety training. For more information about the MMCA, call (517) 374-6622 or visit the web site at www.midmichiganconstruction.org. We are saddened to report the passing of Bros. Ernest Sandusky, a member since 1971; Stanley Dahlke, a member since 1942; and Jeffery Howard, a member since 1997. Our condolences to their families. Jeremy Hidalgo, P.S. L.U. 697 (i), GARY AND HAMMOND, IN— Local 697 holds annual blood drives and would like to ask all members and their families to consider donating a pint of blood for the benefit of everyone. The adequate supply of healthy blood is important to the communities we live in for the treatment of many health problems. The people who desperately need this blood are our neighbors, our families, our children, our co-workers, and even at times we ourselves individually. Sometimes the blood products are used to treat chronic disorders; at other times they are required because of severe injury and the need is an immediate life-or-death issue. Also, considering the issue of safety, in today’s extremely competitive work environment everyone is trying to do his or her job faster and with less than before. That makes for the possibility of more accidents and injuries. This spring as we go through our weekly safety meetings and as we consider how to accomplish our daily tasks, let’s remember to consider what could go wrong and guard against accidents to protect everything we hold dear. David A. Soderquist, P.S. L.U. 759 (u), FT. LAUDERDALE, FL—For the first time since the early 1990s, FPL started training programs once again by reinstating the Apprentice Lineman and Apprentice Cable Splicer programs. There are talks of Meterman and Substation apprentice programs starting soon. 2004 was one to remember with three hurricanes hitting our service area. Hurricane Charley hit Aug. 13 affecting over 874,000 customers. FPL restoration teams restored power in 13 days. Hurricane Frances hit three weeks later affecting 2.8 million customers. Once again our recovery was unprecedented, restoring power in 12 days. Three weeks later Hurricane Jeanne made landfall following almost the same path as Hurricane Frances. Service was restored to the affected 1.7 million customers in only eight days! Local 759 would like to thank the 16,700 workers from 43 utilities in 39 states and Canada who came in to help replace 13,500 poles, 11,200 transformers and 1,750 miles of damaged wire. As of this writing, we are wrapping up contract talks and are hopeful that by our next article we will be able to report on the results. Glen Plock, P.S. L.U. 915 (i&mt), TAMPA, FL—I would like to first acknowledge our members who work in the southern part of our jurisdiction from Sarasota to Fort Myers and points beyond. The work down there has been steady with jobs such as the Fort Myers Airport and Wal-Mart distribution center. Each one of you has upheld the high standards of Local 915 and I personally wish to say thanks and keep up the good work. Our retirees have been at work lately arranging to start up a Local 915 Retirees Club. The club is headed up by Howard Ritchie as president, Howard Fields as vice-president, and Charles Wade as recording secretary/treasurer. The group has been meeting the first Monday of each month at noon at the Local 915 meeting hall. Even though the club has only recently gotten underway, they already have been assisting members who need transportation to the doctor or pharmacy as well as to vote. A foursome will also be attending an upcoming golf tournament sponsored by a Teamsters’ local. Any inside wiremen from Local 915 or other locals retiring in this area who would like to share some brotherhood are welcome to join in the fellowship of this growing retirees group. Theresa King, P.S. |
