At IBEW Local 48
Davis leaves for international job;
Young appointed business manager
Clif Davis has resigned as business
manager of International Brotherhood
of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local
48, effective April 8. The union’s Ex-
ecutive Board appointed Gary Young
to finish out the term, which expires in
June. Davis will remain at the local
during the transition. His last day will
be no later than May 17 — which is the
100th anniversary of the local.
“I came into Local 48 on May 16,
1988. I’ll say goodbye on May 17,
2013,” Davis said.
The whirlwind of change happened
unexpectedly, after Davis, 56, was of-
fered a job by the international union
as a business development representa-
tive for the 8th and 9th districts. Those
districts cover Oregon, Washington,
California, Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada,
and parts of Idaho and Montana.
Business development is a rela-
tively new program within the IBEW’s
Construction and Maintenance Depart-
ment. The mission statement is to es-
tablish strategies to maintain and de-
velop personal customer relationships
that will result in more work opportu-
nities for union members in the electri-
APRIL 19, 2013
cal industry. Jerry Westerholm is the
director.
“To be honest, I’m not sure what it
all entails,” said Davis, who had just
launched his re-election campaign for
a third term as business manager.
“I did not see this offer coming
when it did. It was a tough decision
given the times we are in, and I did not
take it lightly,” he said.
Davis will work out of his home in
Fairview.
Davis is a 25-year member of Lo-
cal 48, having come through the ap-
prenticeship program. Seventeen of
those years were spent working for Lo-
cal 48 as lead organizer, a part-time
dispatcher, and as a business agent. He
was elected business manager in 2007.
Under Davis’ administration, the lo-
cal changed its dues structure; imple-
mented an online dispatch system;
turned the meeting hall into a state-of-
the-art facility with video and Power-
Point capabilities; built a 75 kW solar
array to showcase members’ expertise
in green technology; and installed elec-
tric car charging stations.
Davis said the local’s public and
political profile also saw a boost
through outreach and creation of a new
union branding logo.
He said he is most proud of the di-
versity and unity he brought to the lo-
cal. “Our meeting attendance is up by
40 to 50 percent,” he said.
Young is a 24-year member of Lo-
cal 48. He was serving his first term as
vice president when he was tapped by
the Executive Board to be business
manager. Prior to that he served one
term on the general Executive Board.
A graduate of Barlow High School
in Gresham, Young, 52, entered the
electrical apprenticeship training pro-
gram at the age of 28. His father, three
cousins, and a nephew are members of
Local 48; an uncle and several more
cousins are IBEW members in Cali-
fornia.
Young has worked for numerous
contractors throughout his career, but
most recently he was a foreman for
Oregon Electric. In years past he was
superintendent on the InFlow data cen-
ter project in Portland and a general
foreman on the LSI (now ONSemi-
conductor Corp.) job in Gresham.
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
Newly-appointed IBEW Local 48 business manager Gary Young (seated) gets
some advice from former business manager Clif Davis. Davis stepped down
from the post to take a job with the international union. Young took over
April 8.
As business manager, Young repre-
sents 4,200 members working under 25
different contracts, and oversees a staff
of 23.
Young said he will continue to focus
on bringing more jobs to the local. “I
am committed to further strengthening
our partnerships and increase our visi-
bility in the community. I am dedicated
to growing our membership,” he said.
Young told the Labor Press he will
run for a full three-year term. Nomina-
tions for all IBEW Local 48 offices are
in May, and the election is in June.
One of Young’s first big tasks will
be to get through Local 48’s 100th An-
niversary Gala slated for May 17 at the
Oregon Convention Center. IBEW’s
Ninth District progress meeting is
scheduled to coincide with the anniver-
sary. Meetings will be held at the Ben-
son Hotel.
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