NWLP-02-18-11:NWLP
2/15/11
9:54 AM
Page 3
...New hospital in Coquille will be built by union workers
cility. The discussion initially was about
project labor agreements, but evolved
into financing. “One thing led to an-
other and everything fell into place,”
Smith said.
Coquille Valley Hospital spokes-
woman Jenny Silva said the hospital
probably wouldn’t have been built with-
out the AFL-CIO Housing and Invest-
ment Trust involvement. “It might still
have happened, but it would have been
way down the road.”
Coquille Valley Hospital opened in
1969. The Coquille Valley Hospital Dis-
trict was certified under federal law as a
Medicare critical access hospital in
2003. Silva said the new medical facility
is not a new wing or expansion of the
existing 25-bed hospital. She said once
the new hospital is completed, the old
one will be used for medical and health
related services and/or education.
The project has resulted in several
“firsts” for the involved parties. It is
HIT’s first investment in Oregon and its
first time utilizing Build America
Bonds. The bond program was intro-
duced in 2009 as part of the American
Recovery and ReinvestmentAct to stim-
ulate the economy. It expired at the end
Unions call for boycott
of Columbian newspaper
SILVER SPRING, Md. —The Na-
tional Labor College, which is spon-
sored by the AFL-CIO and is the na-
tion’s only regionally-accredited higher
education institution devoted exclu-
sively to educating union members,
will launch three new online bachelor’s
degree programs in Construction Man-
agement, Emergency Readiness and
Response Management, and Business
Administration.
The new programs offer union
members the convenience of online
study. And with special union member
rates and scholarships, NLC students
can complete their degree for less than
$10,000 in two years. Plus, learning
from work experience and apprentice-
ships can earn union members credits
towards completing their degrees.
NLC’s bachelor’s degree in Busi-
ness Administration is based upon the
ethical treatment of all members of so-
(From Page 1)
considerable construction work for lo-
cal area union members,” Smith said.
“We commend Coquille Valley Hospi-
tal and The Neenan Company for
choosing to build this new hospital re-
sponsibly.”
The Building Trades Council credo
has always been to “build responsibly.”
Several years ago it turned its focus on
elected officials, encouraging them to
pledge to look for “responsible contrac-
tors that pay a living wage with fringe
benefits” when using tax dollars on new
construction or renovation.
Smith said labor immediately
reached out to hospital executives after
learning of their plans to build a new fa-
VANCOUVER — The Southwest
Washington Central Labor Council and
the Columbia Pacific Building Trades
Council passed resolutions placing the
Columbian newspaper on their respec-
tive “Do Not Patronize” lists.
The daily newspaper covers the
greater Vancouver/Southwest Washing-
ton area.
“They don’t report the news of the
entire community,” said Shannon
Walker, president of the labor council
and a member of United Food and
Commercial Workers Local 555. “The
Columbian continues to publish articles
that are biased against and inflammatory
toward working-class people, union
members, and public employees.”
The resolution calls for a boycott
starting this month and continuing
through July 31, 2011. In August, the
labor council will revisit the issue to de-
termine whether or not the newspaper
has expanded its coverage “to represent
all of the community.” If it has, the boy-
cott will be withdrawn.
Meantime, the labor council and
FEBRUARY 18, 2011
building trades council are asking union
members to cancel their subscriptions
and to not advertise in the newspaper.
They also ask union members to write
letters to the editor and publisher ex-
plaining why they are canceling.
“If you’re not a subscriber, write or
call them and tell them why you don’t
subscribe,” Walker said.
Ed Barnes, a retired business man-
ager of the International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers Local 48, said he
canceled his subscription after 60 years
reading the newspaper. “I delivered that
newspaper as a kid, and I’ve sat on their
community advisory board,” he said.
Barnes advised union officials to
spread the word of the labor action via
newsletters, websites, and at meetings.
The Portland-based Northwest Ore-
gon Labor Council will vote on the res-
olution at its monthly meeting Feb. 28.
Walker said she is forwarding copies
of the resolution to local politicians.
To cancel a subscription, call 360-
694-2312. Send letters to the editor to
lou.brancaccio@columbian.com.
of 2010. It also is the first project labor
agreement ever signed by the Lane,
Coos, Curry, Douglas Building Trades
Council or The Neenan Company.
AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust
Investment Officer Chris Shaw called
the project a “win-win because it will
bring needed medical care to the com-
munity, while creating jobs and stimu-
lating the local economy.”
Shaw said the union construction
jobs generated by the hospital project
puts the HIT on track to achieve its goal
of creating 10,000 union construction
jobs by this spring. To date, the HIT has
committed over $695 million for 29
projects representing nearly 9,000 con-
struction jobs and $1.5 billion of devel-
opment.
The Coquille hospital is scheduled
to be completed in the spring of 2012.
(Editor’s Note: Nurses at Coquille
Valley Hospital are represented by Ore-
gon Nurses Association.)
National Labor College launches 3 new
bachelor’s degree programs for unionists
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
ciety, sustainable business practices,
and the idea that all organizations
should contribute to the health of the
community. The program is unique in
that it has required courses that explore
the labor movement’s contributions to
American society and economic pros-
perity.
The NLC offers the only bachelor’s
degree in Construction Management
with required courses that explore the
labor movement’s preeminent role in
the construction industry. The degree is
geared for members of building and
construction trades unions who are in-
terested in becoming construction
managers.
The NLC also is the only higher ed-
ucation institution offering a bachelor
of science degree in Emergency Readi-
ness and Response Management that
includes required courses examining
the nation’s safety and security from a
labor perspective. The program is
specifically designed for rank-and-file
union members in fire services, EMS,
law enforcement, public safety, Home-
land Security, and other related unions.
Areas of study include the rise of mod-
ern terrorism, domestic terrorism, the
Homeland Security organization, and
labor and civil liberties issues.
“Our new online degree programs
are designed to help union members
and members of their families advance
in their current jobs or move into
growth areas for new, good jobs,” said
Dr. Paula Peinovich, president of the
NLC. “The college is proud to add
these new programs to our current of-
ferings in Labor Studies and to be part
of the solution to our country’s current
unemployment crisis.”
For more information on The Na-
tional Labor College, go to http://
www.nlc.edu.
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