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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (July 21, 2006)
Oregon’s top wages in 2006 Among occupations with more than 20,000 workers in Oregon, general and operations managers had the highest av- erage hourly earnings in 2006 at $44.11. The highest-paying non-managerial occupation is registered nurse, with a $29.57 average hourly wage. Several of the most common occu- pations tend to provide seasonal or part- time employment, which cuts into their annual earning power. These occupations include retail salespersons, janitors and cleaners, waiters and waitresses, and combined food preparation and serving workers (including fast food). Of these occupations, retail sales persons had the highest average hourly wage at $12.25 — and it makes up the largest occupation in Oregon, with over 53,000 jobs. 2UHJRQ$YHUDJH+RXUO\(DUQLQJVLQ 2FFXSDWLRQV:LWK(PSOR\PHQWRI0RUH7KDQ General/Operations Mgrs *HQHUDODQG2SHUDWLRQV0DQDJHUV 5HJLVWHUHG1XUVHV Registered Nurses 7UXFN'ULYHUV+HDY\DQG7UDFWRU7UDLOHU Truck Drivers-Hvy. Tractor-Trailer %RRNNHHSLQJ$FFRXQWLQJDQG$XGLWLQJ&OHUNV Bookkeeping, Accountant, Auditing Customer Service &XVWRPHU6HUYLFH5HSUHVHQWDWLYHV Rep Office Clerks, General 2IILFH&OHUNV*HQHUDO 5HWDLO6DOHVSHUVRQV Retail Sales /DERUHUVDQG)UHLJKW6WRFNDQG0DWHULDO0RYHUV+DQG Laborers, Freight, Material Handler Janitors and Cleaners -DQLWRUVDQG&OHDQHUV &DVKLHUV Cashiers Waiters and Waitresses :DLWHUVDQG:DLWUHVVHV )DUPZRUNHUVDQG/DERUHUVIRU&URSV1XUVHULHVDQG*UHHQKRXVHV Farmworkers, Nurseries, Crops &RPELQHG)RRG3UHSDUDWLRQDQG6HUYLQJ:RUNHUV,QFOXGLQJ)DVW)RRG Food Preparation, Fast Food Source: Oregon Employment Department Carpenters Union conducts pre-apprenticeship training to prepare California inmates for jobs SACRAMENTO — Sixteen inmates at California State Prison in Sacramento graduated June 28 from a pre-appren- ticeship training program conducted by the Carpenters Union. After completion of the training — the first of its type in the nation — parol- ing inmates will be eligible for place- ment in the apprenticeship program of- fered through the Carpenters Training Committee for Northern California. The pre-apprenticeship program, which started last year, is operated by the California Department of Correc- tions in partnership with the Prison In- dustries Authority and the Northern Cal- K ifornia Carpenters Regional Council. The PIA is a state organization that pro- vides jobs for inmates. They make goods that are sold to other government entities, including flags, shoes, eyewear, license plates, clothing and furniture. PIA will pay the initial union dues and provide a full complement of tools to inmates who complete the program and enter Carpenters Union Local 46. In addition to classroom instruction, inmates are getting practical experience making modular buildings at Folsom State Prison and converting an old fire camp on the hill above it into a training and engineering center. “Inmates can learn various carpentry skill sets that are easily transferable to jobs on the outside,” said Charles Pat- tillo, PIA’s acting general manager. “I am enthused about this program because by preparing inmates prior to their re- lease, we can address the issues of un- employment among parolees.” Construction is the third-fastest growing industry in California, accord- ing to the State Employment Develop- ment Department. The number of jobs is projected to increase 30 percent in construction and carpentry by 2012 . “We’re hoping to get some good folks out of this,” Paul Cohen, a spokesman for Northern California Car- penters Regional Council, told the Scra- mento Business Journal. “We see a lot of work coming.” The council, based in Oakland, in- cludes Greater Sacramento and covers 29 locals with about 40,000 members from Visalia north to Oregon. “This is truly an investment in public safety, because employed parolees mean safer communities,” said PIA Secretary James Tilton. IBEW Local 659 ends 10-day strike at Eugene Water & Electric Board EUGENE — Workers at Eugene Water & Electric Board returned to work July 14 through 17 with a tentative agreement that ended a 10-day strike — the first ever at EWEB in its 95-year history, and only the second by members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 659. The unit of 156 workers unionized August 2003 and got its first union con- tract, a one-year deal, in January 2005. The union began negotiating the terms of a second contract in October 2005. The old deal expired Dec. 31, and when management unilaterally imposed the terms of its last offer May 28, union members decided to strike. They began their strike July 4. EWEB is Oregon’s largest public utility, providing water and electricity to Eugene and several communities further up the Willamette River. EWEB continued to provide water and electricity service during the strike, and the utility’s nonunion employees and a private contractor operated facilities. EWEB has three times as many employees in nonunion classifications as it does in union jobs. Meanwhile, Lenny Ellis, assistant business manager at Local 659, said the strike brought about an unprecedented feeling of unity among the members of the unit. “Very few people crossed the picket line, and members got to meet co-workers from different shifts and locations that they’d never met before,” Ellis said. Three issues were at stake in the strike, and all were resolved in the strike set- tlement. • EWEB had proposed annual out-of-pocket health care expense caps of $3,000 per individual and $6,000 per family, but agreed to limits of $2,000 and $4,000, respectively. • IBEW members wanted Veterans Day to be added as a paid holiday; EWEB relented. • IBEW members wanted the new contract’s pay raise to be retroactive to the expiration of the old contract. The union gave up that demand, instead changing the contract term. The new pact, which lasts three years, will expire mid-2009. Under the new contract, general laborers get three annual raises of 2.5 per- cent, while water and electric workers get raises of 4.4, 4, and 4 percent. De- pending on classification and experience, pay among EWEB’s union workers ranges from $16.80 to $39.61 an hour. Also, employees continue to receive employer-paid health insurance. EWEB pays 100 percent of the premium for individual coverage, and 75 percent for family coverage. Employees who opt-out of the employer-sponsored coverage get 50 percent of the premium “cash back.” Swanson, Thomas &Coon ATTORNEYS AT LAW Since 1981 James Coon Jacqueline Jacobson Cynthia F. Newton We represent people on all types of injury and disease related claims. mailing service n Personal Injury/Product Liability n Construction Injuries n Death Claims n Asbestos/Mesothelioma n Social Security Disability We provide straight answers at no cost on any of the above areas of law. 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