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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 7, 2012)
Inside Meeting Notices See Page 6 Volume 113 Number 17 September 7, 2012 Portland, Oregon Avakian, Starr spar at building trades gathering Welcome, Postmaster General Donahoe More than 50 protesters picketed outside the Vancouver Hilton and Convention Center Aug. 21, where Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe was speaking to business representatives from the Greater Portland Postal Customer Council’s annual Mailer’s Conference and Expo. Protesters handed out a “WANTED” poster for Donahoe, whom they allege is violating federal law by willfully destroying mail service. Donahoe is in the process of cutting half of the Postal Service’s mail processing plants, including four in Oregon, and eliminating Saturday mail delivery. National Association of Letter Carriers union officials Kevin Card and Jim Cook signed up with retired Rev. John Schwiebert to attend the mailers conference. Schwiebert handed out fliers inside. Afterward, Card reported that Donahoe talked about the “crisis in confidence” surrounding USPS. “I don’t think anyone has created more of a crisis than Patrick Donahoe himself, going out in front of the American people and telling them that we’re broke and that we’re about to go out of business — and nothing could be further from the truth,” Card said. Union officials say the post office isn’t broke, it’s not going out of business, and it’s not asking for a bailout.” Card said Congress created much of the problem when it passed a law in 2006 requiring USPS to pre-pay its retiree health benefits for 75 years in the future — at a cost of $5.5 billion a year. “Basically, all Americans are being held hostage by a Congress that does not want to admit that they are taxing the USPS to death, and they’re destroying an American institution that’s been around since before we had the Declaration of Independence. That’s the real crime here,” Card said. The protest was organized by Portland Community and Postal Workers United, a coalition of groups committed to save USPS. club, which in turn pays for BEND — Oregon Labor re-turfing without being Commissioner Brad Avakian subject to prevailing wage said he will work with labor laws. After the project is to close a loophole in state done, the field is gifted back statutes that allow universities to the school. and public schools to avoid “It’s a loophole in the law paying prevailing wages on that has absolutely got to be construction projects. closed,” Avakian said. “You “This is a sham,” Avakian B RAD A VAKIAN better believe that I will be told delegates at the 51st right up there with your convention of the Oregon leadership and leading the State Building and Construc- way to get that loophole tion Trades Council (OS- closed and make sure that BCTC). Avakian was re- workers who work on these sponding to question about truly public projects get the the Oregon University Sys- money they deserve.” tem skirting prevailing wage Starr wasn’t quite as em- laws during a candidates’ fo- phatic with his answer. “As rum Aug. 16. Avakian, a De- B RUCE S TARR far as I’m concerned, univer- mocrat, is being challenged in November by Republican state Sen. sities that use public tax dollars should Bruce Starr. OSBCTC endorsed be paying prevailing wage on any con- struction project.” Avakian in the non-partisan race. A legislator since 1999, Starr said “We’ve got projects in the state right now that are being done by public enti- bills on this issue have been introduced ties, but what they’re doing is taking in the past but have gone nowhere. their land, they’re taking the project, “The politics on this are interesting to they’re giving it to a booster club or say the least,” he said. “Legislation has some other private group that does all been introduced; we’ve seen where the construction and all the funding to those bills have gone ... You look at it — with this handshake that at the who runs the Oregon Senate, and that end, it’s all going to be gifted back to has a lot to do (with) where legislation the public body for use,” Avakian said. like this goes.” In response to a question about us- Avakian said this scenario played out on the $200 million basketball ing the labor commissioner bully pul- arena project at the University of Ore- pit to advocate for a fair permitting gon, and it’s happening at some local process for proposed coal and liquefied high schools, whereby the school do- natural gas (LNG) export terminals, nates its football field to the booster Starr replied: “There’s no equivocation on this from my perspective, it’s ab- solutely yes ... I will be championing projects like this in the Legislature ... I will advocate for it. I will lead on it. We have to get it done.” Elder thinks a majority of those em- Avakian wasn’t quite as emphatic. ployed at Dosha today were not there a “My opponent and I both know that year ago, when the vote to unionize there are no real plans in Oregon right took place. And most of the actively now that are going to end up with an pro-union workers quit for better jobs LNG facility or a coal facility being elsewhere as bargaining dragged on. built in the near future. Politically “Our people stuck it out as long as speaking, it just is not going to happen they could,” Elder said. “But our com- right now. Whoever tells you different mittee started leaving because they be- than that, whether it’s politics or not, is lieved that we weren’t going to get a not giving you the straight scoop.” contract. And they were absolutely cor- Avakian said he supports memo- rect. We could have gotten a contract if randa being signed by building trades we’d agreed to everything staying the councils assuring that terminals are way it is now, but why would we do built under union project labor agree- that?” (Turn to Page 12) CWA effort for contract at Dosha comes to an end A five-store local chain of Aveda-branded salons is nonunion once again Communications Workers of Amer- ica (CWA) Local 7901 called it quits at Dosha Salon Spa on Aug. 16 — a week before a scheduled decertification elec- tion was to have taken place. Local 7901 President Madelyn Elder said the decision to “disclaim interest” was a painful one, and came after a discus- sion with a committee of pro-union workers. Sentiment among Dosha workers was running two-to-one against continued union representation, Elder said. Hair stylists, massage ther- apists, estheticians and other workers at the five-location Aveda-branded chain had voted 79 to 66 to unionize on March 30, 2011. But Dosha’s owners never agreed to a union contract. Dosha hired former Oregon Repub- lican Party chair Bob Tiernan to over- see contract talks. The negotiations went nowhere, Elder said: The union made all sorts of proposals, to which the employer’s response was “no” — even to a proposal for direct deposit of paychecks. When there is no union contract a year after workers vote to unionize, the National Labor Relations Act allows a decertification vote. “Employers know they can wear us down, and at the end of the year, get workers to sign an anti-union petition,” Elder said. “All they have to do is say, ‘Well, what did they accomplish for you?’ They say, ‘What’s in your con- tract? Oh, you don’t have a contract. Then why do you have a union?’ ” Meanwhile, turnover took its toll, of employees and of union supporters.
