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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (May 21, 2010)
May 21,2010:NWLP 5/18/10 10:16 AM Open Forum Nesbitt to be governor’s chief of staff SALEM — Tim Nesbitt, a former president of the Oregon AFL-CIO and current deputy chief of staff to Gov. Ted Kulongoski, will be promoted to chief of staff ef- fective June 18. Nesbitt will suc- ceed Chip Ter- hune, who has accepted the po- sition of director of environmental and public affairs at Schnitzer Steel Industries, Inc. “Tim has suc- T IM N ESBITT cessfully devel- oped and managed many policy and legislative issues on which I place a high priority,” said Kulongoski, who is term limited in 2010. “His knowledge and passion for public policy are in- valuable and I am pleased he has ac- cepted this new role.” Nesbitt has served as the governor’s deputy chief of staff for health care, ed- ucation and workforce development, land use, revenue, and public safety since December 2006. Nesbitt was president of the Oregon AFL-CIO from 1999 to 2005. He left mid-term. Kulongoski hired him as an adviser to his re-election campaign in July 2006 and to his staff after winning re-election in November. Page 10 No surprise that big business celebrated comp reform To The Editor: I read with great interest your recent story on the 20 year anniversary of the Mahonia Hall task force (NW Labor Press, May 7, 2010) and our effort to reform the Oregon workers’ compen- sation system. I was the Teamster representative on the committee and one who, along with others unnamed in your article, op- posed the final product. Those of us who stood in opposition were right to do so. The so-called reform shifted a large measure of responsibility for workplace injuries from employers to workers. Gov. Ted Kulongoski touts the $17.5 billion saved by employers, but where did that savings come from? Could it have anything to do with the increase in challenged and denied claims, pressur- ing workers to return to work before they’ve recovered, making it more diffi- cult for attorney’s representing injured workers to practice, or perhaps putting the burden of proof on workers to prove their carpal tunnel injury was caused by years of scanning groceries and not their annual fly-fishing trip? State Rep. Brad Witt said it accu- rately: “workers got screwed.” It’s no surprise that big business still “celebrates” their victory 20 years later, but what about working people? I sus- pect there were just as many injured workers attending the “celebration” as were quoted for the article ... zero. Tom Leedham Teamsters Local 206 Portland Retirees must have voices heard To The Editor: The Alliance for Retired Americans had its annual convention last month in Las Vegas. The event usually takes place in Washington, D.C., and is a leg- islative conference, which allows us to spend some time with our elected offi- cials to talk about the issues near and dear to us. Health care for all, pension security, and Social Security remains at the top of our agenda. This year, most of our time was spent in workshops that provided us in- formation that we can use to move our agenda. One important item that was discussed was President Obama’s ex- ecutive order creating the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. The 18-person commis- sion is charged with finding ways to re- duce the national deficit. Several mem- bers of the commission are known foes of Social Security and Medicare, so we know those programs will be targets. Since most states have ARA chap- ters, it also was a time for us activist re- tirees (this year, 396 retirees attended) to share our stories about how we get our voices heard by other senior citi- zens, as well as by lawmakers. ARA is made up of mostly union re- tirees, as the organization is affiliated with the AFL-CIO. Our group is very aware that retirees make up the largest voting bloc in the United States. Our goal is to keep these retired union members informed of the issues that impact them, their children, and their grandchildren, and to make sure they get to the polls on Election Day. Verna Porter First Vice President Oregon Alliance for Retired Americans Laborers take BrucePac dispute to next stage Laborers Local 296 is getting ready to take its BrucePac campaign to the next stage. Nonunion BrucePac — a custom cooked meat processor with plants in Silverton and Woodburn — Oregon, fired 17 union supporters in a 42- worker mass layoff last June, just weeks after a union campaign had begun. In April, federal Administrative Law Judge Lana Parke found the evidence persuasive enough in three of the firings to conclude that BrucePac terminated the workers because they were union supporters, in violation of federal labor law. Parke ordered the three reinstated with backpay, but the company has not yet done so. BrucePac attorneys re- quested and received an extension to May 27 to prepare an appeal of the judge’s decision to the National Labor Relations Board in Washington, D.C. Now Local 296 is taking the cam- paign to BrucePac customers. BrucePac PAGE 10 Fired BrucePac employee Manuel Coria protests at the Silverton plant May 17. doesn’t sell directly to the public, but in- stead cooks and packages meat and poultry according to to the recipes and specifications of its customers. On May 6, Business Representative Jack Roy sent a letter to Figaro’s Pizza, Taco Del Mar, Taco Bell, Costco, and Winco asking them to reconsider using BrucePac products. The letter points out that the union campaign was initiated by the workers, “who came to the union and com- plained about oppressive working con- ditions, harassment by supervisors, low wages and lack of benefits.” Local 296 will begin publicizing its dispute with BrucePac, the letter warns. “The public will be advised of the il- legal conduct of BrucePac, and will be advised that your company is a cus- tomer of BrucePac and uses its prod- ucts.” Local 296 dispatcher Dagoberto Aranda said the union is not yet calling for a boycott of the BrucePac cus- tomers, but will encourage union sup- porters to contact the companies. As for BrucePac, the union is asking only that it obey the law, and comply with the judge’s order. NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS E E FR BARGAIN COUNTER Free classified ads to subscribers DEADLINE: Friday prior to publication Published 1st and 3rd Fridays Now accepting e-mails Send to: Michael492@comcast.net Mail to: NWLP, PO Box 13150, Portland OR 97213 (Please include union affiliation) • 15-20 words • No commercial or business ads • 1 ad per issue • All lower case (NO CAPITAL LETTERS, PLEASE) • Ads MUST include area code or they will not be published A UTOMOTIVE ‘99 CHEVY S10 BLAZER, 4x4,157k mi, auto, red, lifted, grey interior good cond, 32” mud tires. $3,500. 503-679-4945 ‘08 SUBARU TRIBECA B9, like new, 23,263 miles, loaded, $24,999. 503-630- 3877, 503-310-9417 ’01 BUICK LASABRE custom, auto, AC, AM/FM/CD, 132k miles, loaded, second owner, $3,275 OBO. 503-665-9297 ’91 FORD PROBE GL, 4 cylinder, auto, 46,000 miles, needs atn. + DEQ, $700. 503-939-7361 ’79 FORD F150, SWB Lariat, 4x4, 400 eng, 4 speed, 97,800 original miles, extras nice truck, $6,300. 503-387-4257 ’78 MERCURY COUGAR BROUGHAM, 351, V8, air, new tires, yellow w/brown vinyl top, 49,966 miles, $2,500, 503-693-7526 ’03 WINNEBAGO ADVENTURER, 33’, 30K miles, Triton V10, 2 slides, excellent condtion. 503-285-8691 ’87 CHEVROLET 1/2 ton pickup, 6 cyl, SWB, $1,250; ’92 Suburban V8 350, $2,750. 503-515-1437 CHEV ’56-57 WCFB 2-4 carb set up, all or part; ’56-57 Corvette body, fiberglass. 503 -590-4026 (Roger) 1941 FORD TRUCK, 350/350 9 inch on S-10 frame, $12,000 OBO. 503 799-5167 H OUSING ROCKAWAY ocean front, 503-777-5076 http://home.comcast.net/~rockaway.beach 5 bdrms, 2 bath, now booking summer! 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ALʼS SHOES 5811 SE 82nd, Portland 503-771-2130 Mon-Fri 10-7:30 Sat 10-5:30 Sun 12-6 OLD WOODWORKING tools, planes, lev- els, chisels, handsaws, slicks, adzes, wrenches, folding rulers, leather tools, tool chests. 503-659-0009 COLLECTOR PAYS cash for older toys, oil paintings, art pottery, taxco silver and unique items. 503 703-5952 JUNK CARS, Removal of unwanted cars and pickups. 503-314-8600 MOTORCYCLES running or not, guitars, amps, cash paid. 503-880-8183 S PORTING G OODS ‘86 Hydroswift Trihull, 55 LP Evanrude out- board needs electric harness replaced, new seats, steering, $1,200 OBO. 503- 953-6480 19’ BLUE WATER CUTTY, overnighter, V6, dual batteries, depth finder, full top, porta potty, trailer $7,000 .503-659 3297 ’82 GALAXIE TRI HULL BOAT, 16’- 6”, w/trailer, 120 hp Merc-cruiser, i.o. needs mechanical work $400 firm. 503-668-7172 SPOTTING SCOPE, Optolyth 30x60mm rubber-armored coated, made in Ger- many w/camera adapter, $250. 360-835- 8000 M ISCELLANEOUS PFALTZGRAFF SNOW BEAR, new; 12 place settings plus many extras, $475 obo. 503-771-1570. 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