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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 4, 2013)
...Oregon AFL-CIO bolsters organizing assistance program (From Page 1) resolutions than in previous years, and nearly all passed unanimously. [See “Resolved” on Page 8, for details.] Only one resolution — endorsing plans for a union-built liquified natural gas export facility in Coos Bay — encoun- tered significant opposition. It passed 83-29 after it was amended to call on the project developer to take extra steps for environmental remediation. At the convention’s close, Oregon State Building and Construction Trades Council Executive Director John Mohlis credited AFSCME Local 3135 President Jeff Klatke for reaching out six months before the convention to avoid “messy floor fights.” “We’re not always going to agree,” Mohlis said. “But if we’re willing to sit down and listen to each other, and talk and be respectful of each other, it’s worth a try. It’s what our members ex- pect us to do.” Another sign of unity was Oregon’s AFL-CIO stepped-up organizing assis- tance program, which federation lead- ers credited with victories ranging from unionizing 1,900 University of Oregon faculty to forming a union-affiliated taxi co-op to securing a neutrality agreement with Hyatt that could make it easier for future workers to unionize if a convention center hotel is built in Portland. The Oregon AFL-CIO has been trying a new approach to organiz- ing, in which affiliated unions pool their staff organizers for all-out blitzes. Delegates endorsed that approach, ap- proving an organizing resolution that hikes — by 5 cents per member per month — the dues that affiliated unions pay to the Oregon AFL-CIO. The in- crease, dedicated to organizing, will raise over $60,000 a year to pay for Oregon AFL-CIO organizing staff. The organizing resolution also sets a goal of 3 percent net growth in union member- ship, and it codifies the organizing pro- gram’s principles. To get help with or- ganizing, unions must commit to a playbook for successful campaigns, which includes visits to every worker, meetings to involve workers, formation of a worker committee, and a commit- ment not to file for a union election un- less it’s clear there is at least two-thirds support in a workplace. Over two days and a night, delegates also heard from politicians, labor lead- ers, and allies, including Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber, U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, and American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten. Kitzhaber’s appearance put public employee unions in an uncomfortable position — two days before a special legislative session that he called in or- der to further trim retiree benefits in the Public Employee Retirement System (PERS). Oregon AFL-CIO affiliates U.S. Postal Service Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation Required by 39 U.S.C. 3685. 1. Publication Title: Northwest Labor Press. 2. Publication No.: ISSN 0894-444X. 3. Filing Date: Sept. 24, 2012. 4. Issue Freque--cy: Semi-monthly basis on first and third Fridays of each month. 5. No. of Issues Published Annually: 24. 6. Annual Subscription Price: $13.75. 7. Complete Mailing Address of Known Office of Publication: 4275 NE Halsey St., P.O. Box 13150, Portland, Multnomah, Oregon 97213. 8. Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters or General Business Offices of Publisher: 4275 NE Halsey St., P.O. Box 13150, Portland, Multnomah, Oregon 97213. 9. Full Names and Complete Mailing Address of Publisher, Editor, and Managing Editor. Publisher: Oregon Labor Press Publishing Co., Inc., 4275 NE Halsey St., P.O. Box 13150, Portland, Multnomah, Oregon 97213. Editor: Michael Gutwig, 4275 NE Halsey St., P.O. Box 13150, Portland, Multnomah, Oregon 97213. Managing Editor: Michael Gutwig, 4275 NE Halsey St., P.O. Box 13150, Portland, Multnomah, Oregon 97213. 10. Owner: Oregon Labor Press Publishing Company, Inc., (a non-profit corporation) 4275 NE Halsey St., P.O. Box 13150, Portland, Multnomah, Oregon 97213. Shareholders owning or holding one percent or more of the total amount of shares are: Musicians Mutual Association No. 99 (Bruce Fife, trustee); IBEW Local 125 (Travis Eri, trustee); Oregon AFL-CIO (Tom Chamberlain, trustee); United Food & Commercial Workers Local 555 (Jeff Anderson, vice president); Northwest Oregon Labor Council (Bob Tackett, vice pres- ident); Label Trades Section, Northwest Oregon Labor Council (Bob Tackett); Oregon School Employees Association (Steven Araujo, trustee); Iron Workers Local 29 (Kevin Jensen, trustee); Iron Workers Shopmen’s Local 516 (Aden J. “AJ” Blair, trustee); Machinists District W 24 (Bob Petroff, chair); Machinists Lodge 63 (John Hall, trustee); United Association Local 290 (Al Shropshire, trustee); Sheet Metal Workers Local 16 (John Candioto, trustee); IBEW Local 48 (Ed Barnes, vice president); Office & Professional Employees Local 11 (Mike Richards, trustee); Communications Workers Local 7901 (Madelyn Elder, trustee); Auto Mechanics Lodge 1005 (Gene McGlothlin, trustee); Columbia-Pacific Building and Construction Trades Coun- cil, (Jodi Guetzloe-Parker, trustee); Oregon State Building and Construction Trades Council (John Mohlis, treasurer). 11. Known Bondholders, Mortgagees, and Other Security Holders Owning or Holding 1 Percent or More of Total Amount of Bonds, Mortgages or Other Securities: None. 12. Tax Status (For completion by non-profit organizations authorized to mail at non-profit rates): The purpose, function, and non-profit status of this organization and the exempt status for Federal income tax purposes has not changed during preceding 12 months. 13. Publication Title: Northwest Labor Press 14. Issue Date for Circulation Data Below: Sept. 20, 2013 15. Extent and Nature of Circulation Average No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months Leaving the Oregon AFL-CIO convention, Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber — along with his girlfriend Cylvia Hayes and her Rhodesian ridgeback — see a last-ditch appeal from a handful of union delegates: “Hands off PERS.” (Photo by David Young.) like AFSCME, AFT-Oregon, and Ore- gon School Employees Union objected strongly to Kitzhaber’s PERS cuts pro- posal, and pledged to challenge it in court. But they’re also counting on help from the governor to defeat a proposed anti-union “right-to-work” ballot initia- tive that would weaken public em- ployee unions by barring any require- ment that workers pay for union representation. Kitzhaber pledged at a Labor Day picnic to campaign against the measure. In caucus meetings the morning of Kitzhaber’s visit, public employee union leaders asked delegates to be courteous. In the end, some public sec- tor delegates stayed seated and with- held applause during his address, one delegate held a protest sign as Kitzhaber entered the convention, and a handful held signs outside as he left. Kitzhaber told convention delegates he doesn’t have all the answers on how to rebuild the middle class, but said the proposed anti-union ballot measure is certainly not the answer: “We are not going to let that take root in Oregon, not now, not ever.” At the conclusion of his remarks, Kitzhaber took part in a ceremonial signing of a bill passed earlier this year that requires managers to stay neutral when public sector employees consider whether to unionize. After his convention address, Kitzhaber told the Labor Press he hopes his opposition to the anti-union initiative and support for basic union rights will be seen as the real litmus test of his support for unionism — not his PERS proposal. “These are benefits that were earned. I understand people who dis- agree with me about this,” he said. Kitzhaber said he would seek no further cuts to PERS. He also con- firmed that he’s working behind the scenes to keep both the anti-union ini- tiative — and a set of tax initiatives pro- posed by the union-backed group Our Oregon — off the ballot. Kitzhaber said the measures would be counterproduc- tive to his goal of developing a labor- business coalition that could reach agreement on public finance. Merkley, taking the stage several hours after Kitzhaber, also took a shot at the proposed anti-union ballot initia- tive: “The 1 percent have a strategy,” Merkley said. “It’s easier to squeeze profits out of working people if they’re disorganized than if they’re organized.” Merkley, who has voted 100 percent in accord with the recommendations of the national AFL-CIO, talked about trade, infrastructure, and his campaign to end abuse of the filibuster, which he said is used by “the 1 percent” “as a veto on legislation that would benefit working people.” Beijing has gone from bicycles to bullet trains in 10 years, Merkley said, because China spends 10 percent of its budget on in- frastructure. The United States, by con- trast, spends 2 percent — “not enough to maintain the infrastructure our par- ents built.” As for future NAFTA-style trade (Turn to Page 8) Actual No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing Date A. Total No. Copies (net press run).............................................................. 49,803 B. Paid Circulation (by mail and outside the mail): 1. Mailed outside-county paid subscriptions stated on PS Form 3541 .....48,518 3. Sales through dealers and carriers, street vendors and counter sales........450 C. Total Paid Distribution (Sum of 15b (1), (2), (3) and (4).............................48,968 D. Free or Nominal Rate Distribution......................................................................... 1. Outside-county copies included on PS form 3541 ..........................................0 2. In-county copies included on PS Form 3541 ..................................................0 3. Mailed at other classes through the USPS .....................................................0 4. Outside the mail (carriers and other means)...............................................125 E. Total Free or Nominal Rate Distribution .........................................................125 F. Total Distribution......................................................................................49,093 G. Copies not Distributed ..................................................................................710 H. TOTAL ....................................................................................................49,803 I. Percent Paid 98.30% 58,181 56,510 641 57,151 0 0 0 125 125 57,276 905 58,181 98.2% 16. Publication of Statement of Ownership...............................................Oct. 54, 2013 17. I certify that the statements made by me above are correct and complete: Michael Gutwig, Editor OCTOBER 4, 2013 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS PAGE 3
