May 15, 2009:NWLP
5/12/09
10:09 AM
Page 7
Local Motion
April 2009
Union certifications and decertifications in Oregon and Southwest
Washington, as reported by the National Labor Relations Board and
the Oregon Employment Relations Board
Recognition elections
Results:
Name of employer
Date
Name of union
Location
Rogue Valley Medical
4/2
Oregon AFSCME
Medford
Mercy Flights ( DECERTIFICATION )
4/10
Teamsters Local 962
Medford
Albertsons
4/14
UFCW Local 555
West Linn
REpower USA
4/16
IBEW Local 125
Goldendale
Mercy Flights ( DECERTIFICATION )
4/21
Teamsters Local 962
Union Union
Yes No
Medford
60
138
0
3
3
0
2
0
31
19
Requests for recognition election
Name of employer
Name of union
Location
Number of employees
Alstom APCOMP Power
Laborers Local 320
Troutdale
3
Pioneer Memorial Hospital (RNs)
Oregon Nurses Association
Prineville
50
Newport
Lincoln County Transportation Service District
15
Lincoln Cnty Emp Assn vs Communications Workers of America
...Nursing home worker fired
(From Page 8)
tions. But more than that, she loved her
job, her co-workers and the nursing
home residents.
“There’s this misperception that peo-
ple who want to unionize are disgrun-
tled workers,” Lehr said. “I was organ-
izing because I love my job. I would
never have done it if I didn’t love this
place.”
The union campaign slowed dramat-
ically after Lehr was fired, organizers
say. A drop-in union meeting, which
had 27 workers the week before Lehr’s
firing, had three attendees the week af-
ter. Before the firing, 21 workers were
serving on the union organizing com-
mittee, each agreeing to communicate
with five to 10 co-workers and act as the
eyes and ears of the union drive. Two-
thirds of them dropped away after the
firing, and stopped returning what had
been almost daily calls from staff or-
ganizers.
At work, managers patrolled the
halls. Known union supporters were
watched, and called in to meetings with
managers.
The shift in atmosphere was really
noticeable, said certified nursing assis-
tant Andrea Glaser, an organizing com-
mittee member. Glaser said most work-
ers she approached said yes to signing
union authorization cards, before Lehr’s
termination. Now most were declining
to sign, and half of those told her it was
because they didn’t want to lose their
jobs. Local 503 organizer Guillermo
Galarreta said 77 Laurelhurst Village
workers have signed union cards, out of
about 150 workers; so the union is right
on the edge of majority support.
Union campaigners decided it was
time to shift the campaign’s focus from
getting new signatures to getting Lehr’s
job back. Supporters handed out a sort
of open letter to management with
names and pictures of pro-union work-
ers calling for Lehr’s reinstatement.
The union worked with Lehr and
others to file a series of “unfair labor
practice” charges with the National La-
bor Relations Board. The union is seek-
ing a court injunction ordering Laurel-
hurst Village to reinstate Lehr and cease
and desist from other violations of fed-
eral labor law.
The union turned for support to al-
lies like State Sen. Rosenbaum and
Story ignores
Fire Fighters
To The Editor:
I am writing in response to your arti-
cle “Retired Painter Named Firefighter
of theYear,” which was published in the
April 17, 2009 edition of the Northwest
Labor Press.
I appreciated the Labor Press taking
the time to recognize union members
and their contributions to the commu-
nities they live in. As a labor publica-
tion, I think that the article left out one
important piece of information: Esta-
cada Fire is a union shop organized by
the International Association of Fire
State Rep. Jules Bailey, whose legisla-
tive districts include Laurelhurst Vil-
lage. The two wrote letters to Laurel-
hurst Village calling on the company to
respect its workers’ right to unionize.
The company gets most of its revenue
from taxpayers, via Medicaid and
Medicare.
The union is also appealing to the
community for support, calling on trade
unionists and members of the public to
contact company CEO Hannah Austin
at 503-535-4861 or by e-mail at
haustin@laurelhurstvillage.com and
demand Lehr’s reinstatement.
SEIU is organizing a community fo-
rum to take place Tuesday, May 19, at
5:30 p.m. Columbia Heights Presbyte-
rian Church, 2828 SE Stephens St.
OpeN Forum
Fighters Local 1159. I would assume
that if the story were about a retired
union firefighter volunteering to show
up and paint for free on one of the
Painters Local 10’s jobs, the story
would have included that fact.
Some communities benefit from
having volunteer firefighters, but they
do not replace the highly skilled and
trained members of the International
Association of Fire Fighters.
Jason Hachmuth
Tualatin Valley Fire Fighters
Local 1660
Aurora
Newport
Lincoln County Road Department
15
Lincoln Cnty Emp Assn vs Communications Workers of America
City of Ontario
Ontario Police Assn vs SEIU Local 503
McMinnville Water & Light
Employees of McMinnville Water & Light
McDonald Wholesale Company
Teamsters Locals 206 and 962
UPS Freight ( DECERTIFICATION )
International Association of Machinists
Pacific Roofing ( DECERTIFICATION )
Roofers Local 49
Call for information on
short sales, foreclosure &
$8,000 FREE money Tax
Credit.
MAY 15, 2009
Ontario
23
McMinnville
9
Eugene
60
Portland
10
North Plains
9
Branch: (503) 233-8883
Direct: (503) 784-8326
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
PAGE 7