Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (June 7, 2013)
...Union campaign at Jeld-Wen (From Page 1) workers. Organizers are hearing from workers who complain about fa- voritism for promotions and incentive pay; safety policies that blame workers who get injured (with no followup to determine the actual cause of an acci- dent); mandatory overtime with little notice; and numerous allegations of su- pervisors throwing door and window parts at workers. In Illinois, Jeld-Wen docked atten- dance points to workers who failed to show up on a day when the Illinois state police had issued a snow travel advisory and asked everyone to stay off the roads. As the union campaign ramps up, organizers and members have been threatened with arrest by Jeld-Wen management while engaged in lawful leafleting. In two cases, Elliott said, the threat of gun violence was directed against handbillers. Meanwhile, Jeld-Wen has remod- eled break rooms and lunch rooms at several locations. Managers are now personally handing out paychecks with a smile and a handshake. And at least five plant managers have been termi- nated or transferred. To support the struggle fo justice for Jeld-Wen workers, go to their Face- book page at www.facebook.com/Jeld- WenJustice. Women in Trades Fair touts scores of career possibilities A Women in Trades Career Fair held May 16-18 in Portland introduced nearly 2,000 women and teens to the possibility of a future career in the building and con- struction trades. The three-day fair is produced by Oregon Tradeswomen Inc. This year was the 21st annual event. The fair offered 34 different interactive/hands-on workshops. Attendees learned how to make their own concrete stepping stones in a workshop with the Cement Masons Local 555 (photo above left). They tried their hand at virtual welding in a workshop put on by Sheet Metal Workers Local 16 (photo above right). And they received instruction on how to operate a crane in a workshop with Interstate Crane (photo right). All told, 70 exhibitors had booths at the fair, including employers, educational institutions, government agencies, apprenticeship and other training programs, and community and technical colleges. The first day was set aside for middle school girls; Day Two was for high school- ers; and Day Three was open to the general public. Nearly 1,300 students from schools throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington attended. Another 450 at- tended to the Careers for Women Day on May 18. Union-backed candidates, measures do well on election night Candidates and ballot measures endorsed by the Northwest Oregon Labor Council (NOLC) did well in the May 21 special election. Measure 26-152, a regional property tax ini- tiative to pay for parks owned by Metro, passed 148,542 (54.2 percent) to 124,830. The labor-en- dorsed measure was widely supported in Mult- nomah County, but it drew more opposition than support in Clackamas and Washington counties. Homeowners in those three counties will pay 9.6 cents per $1,000 of their home’s assessed value to generate $50 million over five years to fight invasive species, limit erosion and build trails on about 13,000 acres of open spaces bought by Metro using money from previously approved bond measures. In Clackamas County, voters in Oregon City narrowly passed Measure 3-423, amending the City Charter to eliminate an automatic rollback of water rates to near 1994 levels. Had the rate setback gone into effect in 2014, it would have decreased water revenue by approximately 27 percent, resulting in significant changes to the City’s water system operations and maintenance programs. The vote was 2,343 (51.8 percent) in favor of amending the city charter, to 2,183 (48.2 percent) against. PAGE 8 NOLC-endorsed candidates Larry Sowa, Kenneth Humberston, and Hugh Kalani were elected to full terms on the five-member volun- teer Clackamas River Water board of directors. All three were appointed by the Clackamas County Board of Commissioners in November, following a successful union-led recall of board member Patricia Holloway in March. Humberston defeated Grafton Sterling, with 68.9 percent of the votes. Sterling, who was an ally of Holloway, already holds a seat on the board, so he retains that seat. [An effort to recall Sterling at the same time as Holloway failed due to a clerical error that disqualified the petition.] Kalani outpolled Warren Mitchell, a former Clackamas River Water board member who was ousted by voters in 2009. Mitchell is an ally of Holloway and Sterling. Sowa ran unopposed. In the North Clackamas School District, Vi- vian Scott was re-elected to a third term on the school board, capturing 62.6 percent of the vote against one challenger. In Washington County, labor-endorsed Jaime Rodriguez, a member of the Portland Community College Federation of Faculty and Academic Professionals Local 2277, American Federation of Teachers (AFT), lost his bid for a seat on the Hillsboro School District board of di- rectors. Rodriguez was a graduate of the first class (2012) of the Oregon Labor Candidates School, which helps prepare rank-and-file union mem- bers to run for political office. Several graduates of OLCS were elected to office May 21. They include: Francisco (Frank) Acosta, a member of Portland Federation of School Professional Local 111, was elected to the Multnomah Edu- cation Service District Board. Erick Flores, a member of the Oregon Edu- cation Association, defeated two other candi- dates for an open seat on the Parkrose School Board. Sam Aley, a member of the Oregon Educa- tion Association, was elected to the Coos Bay School District board of directors. Austin Folnagy of Service Employees In- ternational Union Local 503 was elected to the Klamath Falls Community College board of directors. Nancy MacMorris-Adix, a member of the Oregon Nurses Association, and Paul Kyllo, a former member of the Oregon Education As- socation, were elected to the Salem-Keizer School District board of directors. Two other graduates of the Oregon Labor Candidates School lost their elections. Trish Stephens of the Oregon School Employees As- sociation lost her race for Amity School District NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS board of directors, and IBEW office secretary Nicole Milam finished third in a three-person race for the Medford School District board of di- rectors. A Portland City Council initiative — Meas- ure 26-151 — to fluoridate Portland’s water sup- ply, was rejected by voters 60 percent to 40 per- cent. The measure had support from several unions, including United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 555, the Oregon Fed- eration of Nurses & Health Professionals Local 5017; the Oregon Nurses Association; and Serv- ice Employees International Union locals 49 and 503. It was not endorsed by NOLC. In other election results: Chris Groener, a union rep for UFCW Lo- cal 555, was re-elected to the Clackamas Com- munity College board of directors. He ran un- opposed. And Barbara Carter, a former president of the Oregon School Employees Association, McMinnville Chapter 90, was elected to the McMinnville School Board. She won with 55 percent of the vote in a three-way race for Posi- tion 2. Voter turnout reached 41 percent in Mult- nomah County, 30 percent in Washington County, and 28 percent in Clackamas County. JUNE 7, 2013
