Jan. 7, 2011:NWLP
1/4/11
9:59 AM
Inside
Page 1
MEETING NOTICES
See
Page 6
Volume 112
Number 1
January 7, 2011
Portland, Oregon
Unions and friends help make spirits
brighter for members out of work
In late summer 2010, Labor’s
Community Service Agency’s
(LCSA) Helping Hands program
began receiving an overwhelming
increase in referrals for temporary
hardship assistance. The reason:
massive job loss and long-term un-
employment, a lack of available liv-
ing-wage jobs, shrinking unemploy-
ment insurance benefits, and a
brittle economy that left many union
families facing insurmountable ad-
versity. Referrals continued to in-
crease throughout the fall.
With the holiday season ap-
proaching, LCSA’s board of direc-
tors considered how the agency
could bring joy and relief to these
families. The need was great, and
staff would have to think “outside Janet Tackett (left) and Jill Lukens help a child pick out a toy at the 14th
the box” in order to make a real dif- annual “Presents from Partners” holiday party. Unions donated a record
ference. But how much could be ac- 2,000 toys that filled five office suites at the Nase Building in Southeast
complished in such a short amount Portland.
of time? It would take a unified ef-
fort to reach its holiday goals, and the number of willing would provide turkey dinner to an out-of-work family of
four. The second appeal came right after Thanksgiving.
partners was uncertain.
“We were asking for participation from labor and NOLC again asked its affiliates for contributions, this
community organizations on the heels of an important time for a Christmas Dinner Program. Soon after, affil-
political election, and we knew that funds across-the- iates were hit with yet another request for funds and toys
board were strapped,” said LCSA executive Director to benefit LCSA’s “Presents from Partners” toy drive.
Vickie Burns. “All we could do was issue appeals and The annual children’s toy distribution party was held
Dec. 19 to benefit out-of-work labor families first and
hope that the response would be enough.”
In early November, LCSA’s holiday program co- foremost.
“We forwarded letters to other potential partners and
sponsor, the Northwest Oregon Labor Council (NOLC),
distributed the first request, asking for funds and refer- community organizations, made phone calls, and satu-
rals for a Thanksgiving Dinner Program. A $40 donation
(Turn to Page 8)
Machinists, Woodworkers
district lodges consolidate
Machinists District Lodge 24 and
Woodworkers District Lodge W1
have merged to create the Interna-
tional Association of Machinists Dis-
trict W24. The merger was effective
Jan. 1.
The International Association of
Woodworkers has been a division of
the Machinists since affiliating at the
national level in May 1994. And
they’re not strangers locally, having
worked together on the Oregon Ma-
chinist Council and the annual Leg-
islative Conference. Merger talks
have been ongoing for several years,
but they intensified early in 2010 as
membership for both organizations
continued to slide.
The new district will combine
roughly 60 union contracts under for-
mer District LodgeW1 and about the
same number under former District
Lodge 24, for a total of 120 contracts
covering more than 6,000 workers.
Portland-based District Lodge 24
was comprised of Local Lodges 63,
1005, 1432, and 2911. Those locals
represent 2,800 workers at compa-
nies such as Boeing, Daimler Trucks
North America (formerly Freight-
liner), Johnson Controls, ConMet,
Silver Eagle Manufacturing, Crown,
Cork and Seal, Cascade General,
Gerber Knives, and at various ma-
chine and diesel mechanic shops in
Oregon and Southwest Washington.
[Local 2911 was disbanded in Octo-
ber, with members who work at Ger-
ber Knives absorbed by Local 63.]
District W1 is headquartered in
Gladstone and represents approxi-
mately 3,400 workers, with three lo-
cals in Oregon — W12 in Klamath
Falls, W246 in Springfield, and
W261 in Central Point; five locals in
Washington — W2 in Aberdeen,
W38 in Shelton, W130 in Centralia,
W157 in Tacoma, and W536 in
Longview; and Local Lodge W98 in
Arcata, California, and Local Lodge
W364 in Lewiston, Idaho. Members
work at several Weyerhaeuser plants,
including in Springfield, Oregon and
Longview, Centralia, Tacoma, and
Cosmopolis, Washington; at Collins
Products in Klamath Falls; Timber
Products in Medford; Georgia-Pa-
cific in Coos Bay; and Sierra Pine in
Springfield. W1 also represents log-
gers and log truck drivers, public
workers in Reedsport, Winston, and
Elkton, Oregon; and Shelton and Ma-
son County, Washington; health care
workers, and auto mechanics.
Under the merger agreement, W1
Directing Business Representative
(DBR) Bob Wilson was named pres-
ident/DBR of the new Machinists
District W24. Former District Lodge
24 DBR Bob Petroff is now one of
three assistant directing business rep-
resentatives. The other two are Chip
Elliott and Steve Wilson of W1. El-
liott was an assistant DBR and Wil-
son was secretary-treasurer. Dan
Sass, secretary-treasurer of District
(Turn to Page 5)
YEAR IN REVIEW: A look back at labor stories of 2010
At the Northwest Labor Press, the
beginning of a new year is a chance to
look back on the old one: to summarize
the year’s most important labor news
and tie up loose ends on stories we re-
ported in 2010.
The year 2010 was a hard one for
many Oregon and Washington work-
ers, who endured freezes in pay, cuts in
hours, furloughs, and extended bouts of
joblessness. Hopefully all of us will see
a turnaround in the year to come.
• In January, Oregon voters ap-
proved Ballot Measures 66 and 67 by
54 and 53 percent. The two referrals,
which had tremendous union support,
raise state taxes modestly on corpora-
tions and high-income taxpayers. In a
severe recession, the new revenue is
helping prevent worse cuts to educa-
tion, public safety, and social services.
• Conflict between Fred Meyer and
United Food Commercial Workers
(UFCW) Local 555 mostly subsided
in 2010, after the union won several le-
gal battles and secured several multi-
employer contracts. The conflict came
to a head in October 2009 when man-
agers at a Hillsboro Fred Meyer called
police and had Local 555’s president
and two staff members arrested for tres-
pass. Local 555 insisted the reps had a
legal right to be there; they were talking
to members about a petition in support
of the contract bargaining team. In the
end, not only were the arrestees acquit-
ted of the trespass charges, but the court
in December ordered Fred Meyer to
pay the union’s legal bills. The union
also was vindicated by the National La-
bor Relations Board, which brokered a
settlement to an unfair labor practice
case; Fred Meyer admitted no wrong-
doing, but posted a notice saying its
employees have the right to meet union
reps on the job, not just in the break
room as the company had argued. Lo-
cal 555 also settled contract disputes.
On Jan. 23, three groups of Portland
metro area members ratified new
agreements with an employer group
that includes Fred Meyer, Safeway, and
Albertsons. And in November, Fred
Meyer members in non-food depart-
ments approved a new Portland-area
contract. One continuing flash point re-
mains: A group of non-food workers at
a Fred Meyer store in The Dalles, Ore-
gon are still without a first union con-
tract — more than three years after they
voted to unionize. The company also
remains a villain to some local build-
ing trades unions, because parent com-
pany Kroger shut union contractors out
of a store-by-store remodeling project
in 2009. A union health trust affiliated
with International Brotherhood of Elec-
trical Workers Local 48 dropped
Kroger as a prescription benefit man-
ager, and the local continues to dis-
courage members from shopping at
Fred Meyer.
• The Oregon Legislature met in
February and passed new laws banning
most employers from using credit
checks in hiring, granting union rights
(Turn to Page 3)