April 3, 2009:NWLP
3/31/09
9:46 AM
Page 7
Make Wall Street fix our pensions
To The Editor:
I received a letter from my trust of-
fice about how I am going to be facing a
reduction of pension benefits. I belong
to a union that has Taft-Hartley laws
that apply to it. My union has always
followed these laws, as well as the bur-
densome laws that former President
Bush applied to the union that make
them account for every penny they
spend.
I have wondered why it is that Wall
Street can follow Arthur Anderson ac-
counting rules, but my union has a com-
plete and different set of rules and laws
it must follow.
There is no doubt in my mind that
had Wall Street had the same laws ap-
plied to it as did my union, they would-
n’t be where they are today.
When you look at all the laws that
apply to my union’s pension plan and
the way that my union followed all
those laws, it will become clear that the
reason my pension plan lost its value is
not the union’s fault — it is Wall
Street’s fault.
I think the bail-out money Wall
Street received should be used to fix all
the damage to the pension and 401(k)
plans that Wall Street caused. The bail-
out money was not meant to be a billion
dollar vacation and bonus fund for those
that mismanaged our pension plans.
The money was meant as a way to fix
the things that Wall Street broke.
When a person drives down the road
and hits a car, and it is their fault, they
are required by law to fix it. The same
logic should apply to Wall Street. If
Wall Street breaks a pension plan, it
should be required to fix it. They
shouldn’t be allowed to take our tax dol-
lars and go on a vacation or give them-
selves bonuses that are far above the
wages of middle-class America.
I think Wall Street should be held to
the same standard that the rest of us are
held to, and that means they should fix
the things they break.
When my union meets with contrac-
...Oregon
Open Legislature
Forum
tors at the bargaining table, it should be
concerned with bargaining about things
that apply to a living wage and benefits
— not about how they are going to re-
pair the damage that Wall Street has
caused to our pension plan.
In the interest of fairness and the true
American way, I want Wall Street to fix
the damage they have caused. I know
they can because they have the bailout
money to do it with.
Jeff Lyles
Plumber and Fitters 290
Tualatin
Expert craftsmen needed to help repair kids club
To The Editor:
Roger Bullock’s idea to assist ill
children at the Doernbecher Children’s
Hospital is commendable.
Unlike Doernbecher Children’s Hos-
pital with a fundraiser on its payroll, the
Children’s Club does not.
A stellar non-profit child care pro-
gram, the Children’s Club will celebrate
its 40th anniversary this summer. It is
located in four daylight basement class-
rooms in the Sunnyside United
Methodist Church Community Annex,
3520 SE Yamhill, Portland.
Since your NW Labor Press article
seeking volunteer tradesmen and
women to assist with the Oregon state
license renewal punch list of projects
(July 6, 2007), volunteers painted class-
rooms, replaced broken windows, re-
placed missing 9-inch tiles, and pur-
chased 81 cartons of Armstrong 12-inch
tiles (now stored on site).
However, the church elders will not
consider our starting an asbestos tile
abatement project until enough cash is
in their building maintenance account.
We have an open-ended contract pend-
ing our success at raising $10,000.
The Children’s Club has raised
$2,000 toward the $10,000 needed to
abate the old tiles so that we can con-
struct a prep-kitchen. Because of the as-
bestos, this is a project that community
volunteers cannot do.
Is there a contractor out there who
might be willing to take this abatement
project on at a reduced cost?
Believe me, there are no capital im-
provement grants available to church-
owned buildings. Yet, the old building
has served our children well for 40
years.
The low-to-moderate income fami-
lies that the Children’s Club serves
could use a hand-up. The young chil-
dren of hotel maids, breakfast cooks,
dishwashers, gasoline attendants, care-
takers for the elderly — minimum wage
earners — rate the very best environ-
ment to learn in.
For additional information contact
the Children’s Club Executive Director
Joay Miles at 503 233-2246.
Mary Ann Schwab
PFTCE 111 (Retired)
Children’s Club Board Member
Portland
Apprenticeship
Opening
Masonry Trades Union
Tile, Terrazzo,
Brick & Tile Finisher
Must be at least 18 years old
at time of application.
Applications being taken
Tuesday, April 28,
Wednesday, April 29 and
Thursday, April 30
from 8 a.m. to noon and
1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at
12812 NE Marx St.
Portland, Ore. 97230
APRIL 3, 2009
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
(From Page 8)
fits. Also, the bill would let contracts go
to “responsible” bidders who met qual-
ity standards, instead of always taking
the low bidder even when that bidder
has a record of failed commitments and
broken rules. Keep tabs on the campaign
at oregongovernmentaccountabil-
ity.com.
R EPRESENTING T HEIR M EMBERS
Unions are also pushing legislation
of particular interest to their own mem-
bership.
The Oregon State Building and
Construction Trades Council (OS-
BCTC) is pushing HB 2429, which
would require companies taking advan-
tage of Enterprise Zone property tax
abatements to pay construction workers
the state’s prevailing wage on projects
over $5 million. Too often, says OS-
BCTC Executive Secretary Bob
Shiprack, these tax-subsidized projects
are built by workers earning substandard
wages and no benefits. OSBCTC is also
backing HB 2120, a bill to raise $1 bil-
lion per biennium to modernize Ore-
gon’s transportation system through a 2-
cent increase in the gas tax and an
increase in registration and title fees and
revenue bonds. Supporters estimate proj-
ects funded by this bill would create and
maintain 6,700 jobs a year for five years.
United Food and Commercial
Workers Local 555 is supporting a bill
to make the unintentional sale of alco-
hol to a minor a civil infraction punish-
able by a fine and mandatory training,
instead of the current set-up in which it
is a serious crime. The union says em-
ployers use the law as an excuse to ter-
minate members on a first offense.
In synch with “Buy American” pro-
visions of the recently-passed federal
stimulus package, the United Steel-
workers is pushing a “Buy Oregon”
proposal. When out-of-state companies
bid on Oregon state government con-
tracts, SB 872 would add 5 percent to
their bids, making in-state companies a
little more competitive.
AFT Healthcare Northwest, joined
by Service Employees International
Union Local 49, is backing SB 564,
which would mandate a minimum reg-
istered nurse-to-patient ratio in acute
care hospitals and require hospitals to
make their staffing levels public.
The International Association of
Fire Fighters is near to winning pas-
sage of HB 2420, which would recog-
nize as an occupational disease any of
12 cancers that it’s been shown their
work contributes to.
The Legislature has set deadlines for
bills to proceed. Bills (except those re-
lated to revenue and budget) have to be
approved by at least one House or Sen-
ate committee by April 17, and have to
be passed by either the House or Senate
by April 28. To become law, a bill must
pass both chambers and be signed by the
governor.
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