TOLL FREE NUMBER
Due to the vast jurisdiction that now comprises Local 26, I felt it was time to institute a toll free number at the Local Union headquarters in Washington, DC. The new number is 1-888-344-IBEW.
ORGANIZING CONFERENCE
I recently attended the Fourth District Organizing Conference, and the focus of discussion was about regaining market share. One of the topics was organizing the residential market, which is a market where many local unions have zero percent of that work. This is a concern not only for the 4th District President, but also for our International President. With the predicted growth in housing over the next 20 years, this will become a large part of the electrical work in our area. We also discussed some different ways to have jurisdictional campaigns. For example, when a contractor from Virginia goes to Ohio, or vice versa, we can orchestrate those local unions to put pressure on the out-of-town contractor who is in their area.
VIRGINIA STATE AFL-CIO CONFERENCE
On February 14 and 15, I attended the Virginia State AFL-CIO Legislative Conference in Richmond, Virginia. I went to the State House and met with some of our senators and delegates to discuss several bills that could have an impact on organized labor. These legislators were very receptive to labor’s views, and I feel it was a constructive two days meeting with the officials in Virginia. I’m pleased to inform you that, at the Convention, Tim Kaine was endorsed for Governor.
CONGRATULATIONS ORGANIZERS
I would like to congratulate the service contract organizers, Brother Randolph Scott and Sister Dianna Sponaugle, for organizing Chugach Services. This company has a 30-person unit at Bolling Air Force Base. Randolph and Dianna were successful in obtaining over 90% of the vote for Local 26 to represent them in collective bargaining. Brother Butch Ramos and I met with the bargaining unit last month and discussed upcoming negotiations.
Brother Barry Rose also recently organized a contractor in the Roanoke area--MEMAC Electric and Controls, Inc. This is probably the first contractor to be organized in the Roanoke area for several years.
NEW BUILDING
At the General Membership Meeting on March 11, the members approved the purchase of our new building in Lanham. This building is 62,000 square feet and is located off Martin Luther King Highway at the East Point office complex. Pictured above is the new building located at 4371 Parliament Place. Since the building’s interior does not meet the needs of our local union, it will have to be remodeled. Considering the time it will take to go through the permit process as well as the remodeling work, we should be in the building in 2006. The first floor of the building will house the JATC office and training facility, and the second floor will have the Local Union Business Office, Finance Office and Credit Union. I will keep you updated on the remodeling progress, but you may also keep abreast by visiting our web site. Local 26 will be searching for a place to have a satellite office in Washington, DC for our members, and I will keep everyone informed on the progress of finding this location.
I am extremely proud, as your Business Manager, to be a part of this historical and exciting endeavor! The new headquarters for Local 26 is one which our members will be proud to own, and will exhibit the prestige and success our Local Union deserves.
**The Following picture is simply a play on the Award Ceremonies that go on this time of year (ex: Grammy's, Oscar's, Emmy's, etc.). There were never limos infront of the local, nor a red carpet layed out to recieve service pins!**
Congratulations to those members who received their service pins at the March General Membership Meeting
Members pictured above from left to right: Buddy Sattterfield, Special Assistant to Int’l. Pres.; Chuck Graham, Bus. Mgr.; Martyn Montague, 30 Yrs; Charles Flagg, 30 Yrs; Donald Hemmer, 30 Yrs; Tony Callaway, 30 Yrs; Jerry Lozupone, 35 Yrs; Yasmin McCloud, 25 Yrs; Douglas Clow, 40 Yrs; Ron Stokes, 40 Yrs; Dennis Brown, 30 Yrs; Ronald McConkey, 40 Yrs; Stephen Zimmerman, 35 Yrs; Daniel Peake, 30 Yrs; Lawrence Kaplan, 35 Yrs; Calvin McCoy, 35 Yrs; John Lasley, 40 Yrs; Maurice Griffin, 35 Yrs; Vincent Newman, 20 Yrs; Garry Griffis, 35 Yrs; James Handley, 35 Yrs; James Landen, 35 Yrs; Leonard Sowards, 20 Yrs; Luke Moore, 35 Yrs; John Hungate, 30 Yrs
Stop Wal-Marting American Jobs
This may not be such a new story to you, but to the people who are still shopping at Wal-Mart, it obviously is. Those shoppers may think the superstore has the lowest prices around; however, these low prices come at a very high price! Americans are being greatly affected by Wal-Mart and do not even realize it. We are shopping our way straight to the unemployment line.
Simply by taking advantage of Wal-Mart’s “everyday low prices”, you are supporting the terrible ways they conduct business. For starters, their internal treatment for employees is very un-American. In the past four years, they have been brought up on several charges, including discrimination and violations against wage-and-hour laws.
Wal-Mart has repeatedly violated wage-and-hour laws which enforce minimum wage, methods of wage payment, and the laws concerning employment of children. One case involved a settlement in which Wal-Mart agreed to pay $135,540 for child labor law violations. This and other violations involved young workers under the age of 18 using dangerous equipment, operating heavy machinery, and working improper hours.
Another violation of the wage-and-hour law involves Wal-Mart employees who say the have been forced to work off the clock andwork overtime with no pay; in some cases, they were locked into the store and/or denied breaks. It is estimated there have been about 40 lawsuits which have been filed in reference to these allegations. One lawsuit against Wal-Mart allegedly stated managers required some 250,000 employees to finish their work before going home, which meant they would be working off the clock. They also stated that Wal-Mart understaffed stores to make off-the-clock work mandatory. Four hundred current and former employees brought a suit which concluded with the jury agreeing that Wal-Mart has a pattern of widespread violations of the basic U.S. wage-and-hour law.
There have also been at least 28 complaints brought on by the National Labor Relations Board, who supports the act of an employee’s right to organize. Wal-Mart has used illegal tactics including firing workers because they tried to form unions, which is their legal right.
The company underpays their workers so much that many of its employees are eligible for food stamps. The near poverty level wages are just one way the company has created barriers so its employees can’t qualify for health care benefits. Wal-Mart also hires many part-time workers or schedules full-time workers so they fall just short of the hours required to qualify for the health insurance plan. For those who do qualify for the health insurance, many of them cannot afford it, which is nearly two-thirds to half of Wal-Mart workers. Many Wal-Mart workers depend on publicly financed medical services for their health care needs. In fact, Wal-Mart encourages their workers to apply for public assistance.
Wal-Mart actually hurts more workers than it employs. Taxpayers, workers, and communities continually “pick up the tab” for these “always low prices”. Taxpayers’ money goes not only to Wal-Mart workers’ health care, but also to financing Wal-Mart’s development and expansion. In addition, it is hard for local or small businesses to compete with Wal-Mart’s prices, forcing them to close and leaving many people unemployed. Its sheer size and buying power give Wal-Mart the ability to influence wage rates of its competitors and suppliers, including manufacturing and construction companies. It then forces its suppliers to drop their costs, which in turn pushes manufacturing jobs out of the country and into low-wage areas, thereby lowering the standard of living.
This exporting of American jobs and importing of foreign goods has to stop! The products that were being produced here in the United States are now being imported on a large scale. Wal-Mart is the single largest importer of foreign-produced goods in the U.S., and the majority of its private-label clothing is manufactured in at least 48 other countries-- almost none being manufactured in the United States. Wal-Mart estimates it imports $15-30 billion of goods a year, and at least 70% of its products sold are made in China. According to a report by the U.S. – China Economic and Security Review Commission, about 1.5 million jobs that either moved overseas or were never created in the U.S. are due to production being shifted to China. Wal-Mart outsources its jobs not only overseas, but here in the United States as well. In 2003, stores in 21 states including Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia, were raided by the Department of Homeland Security’s Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, arresting over 300 illegal immigrants.
Wal-Mart’s executives are quick to point out they have always scoured the globe for low cost suppliers to benefit the American consumer. What about the American worker? There is a constant battle between the interest of Americans as workers and the desires of Americans as consumers. The consumer is in conflict because of the low wages brought on by Wal-Mart, and the higher prices of other retailers, which they cannot afford. We need to end this very un-American cycle--
Don’t Shop at Wal-Mart!!!
Buy Union made, Not Wal-Mart made! by Franny Olshefski
Works cited:
1. AFL-CIO, "Paying the Price at Wal-Mart.", http://www.aflcio.org/corporateamerica/walmart/index.cfm
2. Child, Bob. "Wal-Mart takes hits on worker treatment.", http://usatoday.com/money/workplace/2003-02-09-wal-mart-cov2_x.htm
3. http://www. ibew.org/stories/03journal/0304/page6.htm
4. Woolner, Ann. "Let Me Count the Ways People Don't Love Wal-Mart.", http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news
5. "Is Wal-Mart Good for America?", http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/etc/synopsis.html
-Do Not Repeal!
Bob Ehrlich, Republican Governor of Maryland, and his administration are at work to repeal the Maryland Prevailing Wage Law. According to the Division of Labor and Industry, “The Prevailing Wage Law regulates the hours of labor, rates of pay, conditions of employment, obligations of employers, and the powers and duties of certain public officials under contracts and subcontracts for public work in Maryland.” This is the only law that creates a level playing field for thousands of Marylanders who earn a living in the construction industry, and it is under attack in a back door manner.
Governor Ehrlich knew he would be in for a fight if his administration publicly came out with their intentions to repeal prevailing wages. Instead, they are trying to kill the law through the budget. He has conveniently left out funding that supports the state’s prevailing wage office. The people we need to enforce the law will be laid off! Now, it is an uphill battle for legislators who support Labor to get prevailing wages back into the state’s budget.
Some of the consequences the repeal of the prevailing wage law would have on workers need to be examined.
Less Health Care Coverage: Among construction workers, it would lead to uncompensated medical care picked up by taxpayers.
Less Training: In states where prevailing wage laws were absent or repealed, apprenticeship training declined by 53%.
Less Minority Participation: Minority participation in apprenticeship training dropped 50% in states without prevailing wage laws; Female apprenticeship participation rose almost three times faster in states with prevailing wage laws.
More Injuries: Injuries per worker were 26% higher in states where prevailing wage laws were absent or repealed than in states with prevailing laws.
Lower Wages: Lower wages in the construction industry drive down all wages in a geographic area.
Family Breakdowns: Loss of good jobs can translate into loss of families.
The Maryland Prevailing Wage Law mirrors the Federal Prevailing Wage Law, in that it insures workers on any jobsite (new, old, or under renovation), financed with federal or state tax dollars, receive a wage that is common or prevailing within a particular area. Prevailing wage laws apply to all workers. The only exception is for a person who is registered as an apprentice in an apprenticeship program that is recognized by the state. The insensitive attack on prevailing wages is an attack on all working people union or non-union.
It is time to contact your legislator to protect your standard of living. You can find your representative by logging on to www.mdelect.net. Download a copy of the sample letter from the Local 26 web site and send it to your legislator today.by Joe Dabbs
January 2005
Ronald P. Auth
#1390
Walter M. Barton
#1391
Charles E. Brown
#1392
Gaylord W. Cochran
#1393
John A. Cordone
#1394
William M. Haney
#1395
Erle W. Howard, Jr.
#1396
Stephen R. Lewis
#1397
Kenneth R. Owens
#1398
Russell F. Sanderson
#1399February 2005
Joseph N. Curtin, Jr.
#1400
John W. McElwain, Jr.
#1401
Joseph A. Ruiz
#1402
Robert L. Johnson
#1403
March 2005
Loel N. Jurvelin
#1404
John A. Noftsinger
#1405
Joseph L. Offutt
#1406
Gerald T. Donaldson
#1407
Stamel H. Redman
#1408Residential Upgrade
All Residential Wiremen who have three or more years of good standing in the IBEW may be eligible for the Residential Upgrade Program. Please contact Ms. Escolero at (202) 829-2900, extension 19, for an application. If the Examining Board has reviewed your application and placed you into the Upgrade Program, you will be notified by the JATC about attending school in September. The deadline for returning applications to the Examining Board is June 20, 2005.
No one will be reviewed after this date!
Legislative Conference
The Virginia State AFL-CIO’s annual Legislative Conference was held in Richmond on February 13-15. Local 26 representatives were among the 300 delegates from all parts of the Commonwealth. I was a part of this year’s delegation as well as our Business Manager, Chuck Graham, and Business Agents Butch Ramos, Jerry Lewis, Tom Miller, and Lorne Seay. Also in attendance, representing the Metropolitan Washington Building Trades Council, was Brother Jerry Lozupone. Governor Mark Warner and Lieutenant Governor Tim Kaine addressed the delegates at the opening plenary session on Sunday afternoon. We also heard from our Labor Commissioner and past President of the Virginia State Building Trades, C. Ray Davenport. Delegates were briefed on important issues before the legislature and spent Monday lobbying at the General Assembly. The State Committee on Political Education met to consider endorsements in this year’s Governor’s race. Republican candidate Jerry Kilgore declined to even seek the endorsement of the AFL-CIO, snubbing the union members of this Commonwealth. The Committee is unanimously endorsing Tim Kaine for Governor in the upcoming election on November 8. The Committee is taking no position in the Lieutenant Governor or Attorney General races until after the June 14th primary.
Remember...
Register and Vote, and Volunteer for COPE!by Bill Giusti
IBEW 26 FCU Sale...
IPI Car Sale
Auto Fest April 1-30, 2005
Rates as low as 3.9%
Make a move in the right direction. Purchase your car thru IPI and finance with IBEW 26 FCU. We offer up to 100% financing with approved credit. Rates are as follows: 3 years at 3.9%, 4 years at 4.9%, and 5 years at 5.9%. If you finance over $25,000, you can finance up to 6 years at 7.5%
Get pre-approved for your loans. A loan application can be faxed, mailed or picked up at the Credit Union office. Once your loan is submitted, it takes 24 hours to process. We can process the loan entirely through the mail or at the Credit Union office. Call now for your loan application (202-829-5404).
DC Credit Union League Student
Writing Competition for DC SeniorsIf you are a DC high school senior and planning to start college this fall, or are already in your freshman year at college, you are eligible to enter a friendly writing competition. The two winning entries will be awarded $1,000 each. Contact the office for an entry form that will explain the essay subject and competition rules. Entry deadline is May 2nd.
Office hours:
Monday, Thursday and Friday 9-12 & 1-3
Tuesday 9-12 & 1-4:30
Wednesday 9-12, 1-3 & 5-7Work Dues Statement
We are in the process of mailing out the work dues statements for the year 2004 to all members. These statements have your social security number and your card number on them. Please check your social security number to make sure it is correct. If it is not correct as shown on the statement, please contact the Finance Office.
This statement is broken down by month and shows, as reported by your employer, the hours reported worked, gross pay, work dues owed, and work dues paid. The last column is a balance column that may show a balance due or (over payment) if the proper amounts have not been paid. These columns are totaled at the bottom of the statement.
The hours, gross pay, and dues paid are all as reported by your employer on the monthly benefit reports. The work dues owed is the amount of work dues owed to Local 26, based on the percentage of gross pay for your classification. The balance column should be the difference between the amount of work dues owed and the amount of work dues paid. This column may show a balance due or an “over payment”.
Please look this statement over carefully and call the Finance Office if there are any discrepancies or if you have any questions.1ST QUARTER RETIREMENT ASSESSMENT DUE FOR JANUARY, FEBRUARY, AND MARCH-- $38.00.
SECOND QUARTER DUES WERE DUE APRIL 1ST.
by Mike Shoemaker
