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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (May 5, 2006)
L ABOR What’s Happening Letter Carriers Food Drive set for Saturday, May 13 The National Association of Let- ter Carriers Food Drive will take place Saturday, May 13. It is the largest single-day collection of food in the nation. It’s simple to participate. During the second week of May, watch your mailbox for a card announcing the Food Drive and a plastic bag do- nated by Fred Meyer and numerous local unions. Simply fill the bag with nonper- ishable food items such as tuna fish, peanut butter, soups, stews, chili, canned fruits, vegetables, beans, rice and pasta. Do not include glass items, homemade items or previ- ously opened containers. Place the filled bag by your mail- box in the morning on Saturday, May 13. Letter carriers will collect the food donations along their routes and take them to their local station. Trucks will pick up the food and de- liver it to the Oregon Food Bank. Last year, postal customers in Oregon and Clark County, Wash., donated more than 1.3 million pounds of food. For more information, call Briana Winterborn at 503-282-0555, exten- sion 244, or bwinterborn@oregon- foodbank.org. AND P OLITICAL NEWS FR OM AR OUND THE Tickets for the buffet dinner are $10 each. Raffle tickets also will be sold, with all proceeds going to the Emergency Fund of Labor’s Com- munity Service Agency. A highlight of the event is the recognition of outstanding men and women in the labor community. Award nominees can be an individ- ual union member, shop steward, staff member or someone from the community who has worked cooper- atively with labor. Nomination forms are available at the labor council or by calling 503- 235-9444. The deadline to submit nominations is Monday, May 22. Motorcycle event slated June 10 to benefit hospital Tickets are on sale to win a 2006 Harley-Davidson low-rider FXDLI, part of a fundraiser for the fourth an- nual “Unions For Kids” motorcycle poker run and chili cookoff. Only 3,000 tickets will be sold at a cost of $10 each. The winner will be drawn on the day of the poker run Sat- urday, June 10, at the IBEW Local 48 hall, 15937 NE Airport Way, Portland. Since its inception in 2003, the poker run has raised $16,000 for Do- ernbecher Children’s Hospital. This year the group hopes to raise more than $20,000. Motorcycle raffle tickets are on sale at union halls, credit unions and area businesses. The motorcycle is on dis- play at the Teamsters Credit Union in Northeast Portland. For more information, call Lee Duncan at 503-260-5905 or go to their Web site at unionsforkids.org . Painters get bonus checks for safety, job training Members of Painters and Drywall Finishers Locals 10 (Portland), 78 (Longview), 360 (Vancouver), 724 (Salem) and 1277 (Eugene) hold up bonus checks they received April 20 as part of a reward program for taking safety training and skill advancement classes and certification tests. A new provision in the union’s contract with the Signatory Painting Contractors Organization offers journey-level painters who complete six classes and/or certifications, plus an additional 24 hours of skill advancement training over a one-year period an opportunity to receive a bonus of as much as $400. The program is funded by employer contributions of 20 cents an hour into a special fund. Classes include first aid, CPR, fall protection, OSHA 10 and others. Classes are held in the evenings and on weekends at the union’s training center in Northeast Portland. “It’s a good program that offers workers skills and training they will use for a lifetime,” said Business Representative Tim Carrier. Approximately $12,000 was handed out to the union workers. The keynote speaker on Saturday, June 3, will be Elaine Bernard, exec- utive director of the Labor and Work- life Program at the Harvard Law School. That evening at 7 p.m. will be a banquet and awards ceremony. On Friday, June 2, conferees will tour Wobbly-related sites in Cen- tralia, where 90 years ago Wesley Everest was murdered after Wobblies shot and killed Legionnaires who at- tacked the union hall. Registration before May 15 is $50. After that the fee goes to $65. Cost for the banquet is $30. For more information, call Ross Rieder at 253-875-9498. Labor Appreciation NW labor history Night June 3 at group to convene Westmoreland in Olympia June 2-4 Fire Fighters rally The ninth annual Labor Apprecia- OLYMPIA, Wash. — “Labor tion and Recognition Night spon- around Pendleton Struggles on the Edge: Ports, Bor- sored by the Northwest Oregon La- ders and Workers in the Pacific local facing cuts bor Council will be held Saturday, Northwest” is the theme of the 38th June 3, at 6 p.m. at Westmoreland Union Manor, 6404 SE 23rd Ave., Portland. This year’s theme is “The 1950s.” annual Pacific Northwest Labor His- tory Conference June 2-4 at Ever- green State College here. Zachary Zabinsky • Social Security • SSI - Disability Claims Personal Attention To Every Case Working For Disability Rights Since 1983 PENDLETON — Union firefight- ers from around the state traveled to Pendleton April 18 to support fellow K firefighters. A 19-member unit at Pendleton Fire and Ambulance has had trouble getting an acceptable union contract for over a year. More than 50 fire fighters from Salem, Hillsboro, Tualatin Valley, and Gresham and Portland rode a charter bus from Portland, while other fire fighters drove from Hood River, Kla- math Falls, Albany, Hermiston, and Roseburg. Wearing the shirts of their union, International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), workers rallied at city hall, outside the convention center where an arbitration was un- derway, and in front of a fire station where the city has proposed to reduce hours of operation. John R Wooten — president of IAFF Local 2296 in Pendleton — says the city manager is proposing that the fire department absorb an un- reasonable share of an estimated $800,000 budget shortfall, while leav- ing a $2.5 million reserve untouched. Firefighter salaries range from $53,000 to $70,000, not counting overtime. Under the city’s proposal, firefighter compensation would be cut slightly by changing the definition of full time. Firefighters would be given a less generous health plan. And one of Pendleton’s two city-staffed fire stations would operate less than 24 hours a day. The city is also asking for various changes to contract language — which Wooten says would weaken the union’s ability to protect workers. The unit’s previous union contract expired June 30, 2005 without a new agreement in place. Because firefight- ers are not allowed to strike under Oregon’s Public Employee Collective Bargaining Act, when the two sides determine they can’t reach agreement, the contract is decided by a binding arbitrator. In this case, the arbitrator will hear final arguments from the two sides May 19, and is expected to make a de- cision at the beginning of June. ramers/metro mailing service 3201 N.W. YEON PORTLAND, OREGON 97210 (503) 274-1638 FAX (503) 227-1245 THE ONLY UNION MAILER NO FEE WITHOUT RECOVERY IN OREGON 621 SW Morrison, Portland Visit our Web site at www.kramersmailing.com 223-8517 PAGE 4 P A C I F I C N O R T H W E S T MEMBERS OF TEAMSTERS LOCAL 223 — Eric Brending, Owner — NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS MAY 5, 2006
