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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 18, 2013)
Painters #10 turns up pressure on nonunion Edwards Painting “If you go to that union meeting, you’re fired.” That’s what several painters say their manager told them when he learned of a meeting to discuss unionizing Edwards Painting. Edwards Painting is a nonunion painting contractor based in Oregon City with about 20 employees. It does a fair amount of commercial work for general contractor Walsh Construction. But workers say they earn up to $6 an hour less than their union counterparts in Painters Local 10, and have no bene- fits. When some workers started wear- ing union T-shirts, things got tense with manager Grant Edwards, son of com- pany owner Gene Edwards. Sean Carter, 33, says he was fired the Friday before Labor Day after com- ing out in favor of the union effort. But Sean Carter, joined by his 11-year- old daughter Kylee and two co- workers, stands outside a $125-a- plate fundraiser with a banner reading “Shame on Walsh Construction.” Congressional gym stays open during shutdown By JUDD LEGUM Head Start programs have been shut- tered, small businesses can’t get loans and hundreds of thousands of federal government employees are furloughed. But the exclusive gyms available only to members of Congress have remained open throughout the shutdown. A House aide confirmed to ThinkProgress that the House mem- bers’ gym is open. The House gym fea- tures a swimming pool, basketball courts, paddleball courts, a sauna, a steam room and flat screen TVs. While towel service is unavailable, taxpayers remain on the hook for cleaning and maintenance, which has been per- formed daily throughout the shutdown. OCTOBER 18, 2013 There are also costs associated with the power required to heat the pools and keep the lights on. According to the aide, the decision to keep the gym open — even while other critical government services were shelved — came directly from Speaker Boehner’s office. Meanwhile, the staff gym available to Congressional staff has been closed. It appears that the members gym in the Senate remains open on similar terms. On Oct. 7, Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-SC) complained to a reporter from the Omaha World-Herald that the mem- bers gym was getting “rank.” The daily operating cost of the House and Senate gyms remains shrouded in secrecy. The Architect of the Capitol, which oversees both gyms, has previously refused to provide infor- mation about the gyms for “security rea- sons.” A call to the Architect of the Capitol for this story was not immedi- ately returned. Dozens of House members — in- cluding many members of the Tea Party who pushed the government into shut- down over demands to defund Oba- macare — live in their offices to save money and use the House gym to shower. (Editor’s Note: This article was cre- ated by the Center for American Progress Action, www.americanpro- gressaction.org.) NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS when he went in to collect his final check, he was joined by several pro- union co-workers. They confronted the company, and the termination was re- scinded. Still, his experience led other workers to get cold feet about having their names on a union petition. Painters Local 10 filed an unfair la- bor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Under U.S. labor law, workers have the right to unionize if they choose, and it’s ille- gal for an employer to threaten or retal- iate against workers for supporting a union. On Oct. 10, Carter and two pro- union co-workers took the dispute pub- lic, showing up outside the Portland Art Museum with a “Shame on Walsh Con- struction” banner. The museum was the site of a $125-a-plate fundraiser for Lifeworks Northwest, a non-profit or- ganization that works to prevent child abuse and treat addiction. To construct a new treatment center in Northeast Portland, Lifeworks hired Walsh, and Walsh picked Edwards Painting as a subcontractor. Painters Local 10 wants to see Ed- wards Painting unionize — both to bring up standards for workers there, and to prevent existing members from losing work to lower-wage competi- tion. Local 10 offers a rigorous four- year apprenticeship training program, turning out journeyman painters. Under the union contract, journeyman painters earn $19.81 an hour and have em- ployer-paid full-family health coverage and a defined-benefit pension. But it’s hard to maintain those standards when lower-wage nonunion contractors have up to 40 percent market share in com- mercial painting. POSITION AVAILABLE Compliance Investigator Requirements Working knowledge of the construction industry, knowledge of prevailing wage law is a plus. Excellent writing skills, computer skills in Word, Excel, Internet research, verbal and personal communica- tion skills in English and Spanish are required. Will need to be able to travel throughout Oregon and SW Washington to meet with contractors, contractor associations, labor organizations and gov- ernment agencies. Competitive hourly rate starting at $24 per hour, plus pension and health & welfare. Full time position. Company car is provided. Submit resume with cover letter by Oct. 28 to: rdelance@fcffair.org or Fair Contracting Foundation P.O. Box 9158 Portland, OR 97207 Contact Person: Rick DeLance: 503-244-3644 PAGE 11
