NW Oregon Labor Council
backs one school, one jail levy
The Nov. 5 general election is a
quiet one for the Northwest Oregon
Labor Council (NOLC). The council
has endorsed only two measures this
election cycle. NOLC supports renew-
ing a Lake Oswego school levy, and it
supports a jail operations levy in Co-
lumbia County.
Operating Engineers Local 701 officers installed
Gladstone-based Operating Engineers Local 701 installed new officers at its union meeting Sept. 30. From left to
right they are: Dist. 4 Rep. Ray Akers, Dist. 2 Rep. Harold Chevrier, Dist. 1 Rep. Mike Thun, Conductor Nolan David
Carter, Vice President Kevin Miller, President Robin Wicklander, Business Manager/Financial Secretary Nelda
Wilson, Treasurer Boe Ellis, Dist. 3 Rep. Clifton Smith, Dist. 5 Rep. Richard Lauderback, and Dist. 5 At-Large Rep.
Dylan McComiskey.
Puerto Rican union mergers with Office & Professional Employees
SAN JUAN, P.R. (PAI) — Mem-
bers of a union representing 2,000
Puerto Rican telephone workers voted
by a 10-1 margin to merge into the Of-
fice and Professional Employees
(OPEIU).
The Independent Union of Tele-
phone Workers (UIET) joined the
larger union after its members’ em-
ployer, the Claro Telephone Company,
imposed onerous demands that UIET
OCTOBER 18, 2013
felt unable to resist alone, OPEIU Pres-
ident Mike Goodwin said.
The “terms and conditions elimi-
nated the union security and dues
check-off provisions,” Goodwin said.
“OPEIU will now help UIET reach an
agreement with the company that
would include restoration of both pro-
visions for all 2,000 employees.”
The membership benefits OPEIU
offered also attracted UIET, he added.
OPEIU uses member benefits such as
Union Privilege as an organizing tool.
UIET will become OPEIU Local
1971 and “will continue to exist as an
autonomous labor organization, admin-
istrating its own business, but will be
assisted by OPEIU in building the or-
ganization through organizing, collec-
tive bargaining, and legislative and pub-
lic relations support,” Goodwin said.
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
Lake Oswego School District/
Measure 3-434 is a five-year local op-
tion levy for school education pro-
grams. This is a renewal of the exist-
ing school levy, so tax rates will not go
up. The levy is $1.39 per $1,000 of as-
sessed property value.
NOLC endorsed the levy at the re-
quest of Melissa Siegel, Chapter 12
president of the Lake Oswego School
Employees Association.
Columbia County/Measure 5-234
is a four-year local option levy to oper-
ate the county jail. If passed, the levy
would add 58 cents per $1,000 of as-
sessed value to property tax rolls. If it
fails, County Commissioner Tony
Hyde told union officials the jail is
likely to shut down completely.
The Portland Tribune reported in
September that 600 inmates have been
released ahead of sentencing in 2013,
eclipsing the 582 early releases in
2012, all because of funding restraints.
The proposed levy would restore 75
beds for local use, fund five additional
corrections deputies, one technician,
and one supervisory position, and pro-
vide constitutionally required food,
clothing, management, and health care
to inmates.
Measure 5-234 also has endorse-
ments from Oregon AFSCME Coun-
cil 75 and United Food and Commer-
cial Workers Local 555.
CORRECTION
In the Oct. 4, 2013, edition of the
Northwest Labor Press, an article about
the Oregon AFL-CIO convention in-
correctly identified Jeff Klatke as pres-
ident of AFSCME Local 3135. In the
article, Klatke was credited for reach-
ing out to the building trades council
before the convention to avoid “messy
floor fights.” Klatke is a former presi-
dent of Local 3135, but was elected
president of Oregon AFSCME in April.
The distinction is important because
Klatke was head of the statewide dele-
gation, not just Local 3135, at the con-
vention.
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