Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 15, 2014)
Jack Roy follows Ken Morgan as head of Laborers Local 296 Laborers Local 296 has a new top look for work in 1982, when the Ore- officer: longtime business rep Jack Roy, gon economy was in bad shape. When his Texas employer, J.W. appointed business-manager/secretary- Bateson, got a construction treasurer following the retire- contract on the Portland Vet- ment of Ken Morgan. Roy erans Hospital, he moved served the remaining two back to Oregon in January months of Morgan’s term, 1984, and became a member and ran unopposed for the job of Local 296. in May. In 1997 he went to work Roy grew up in the Port- for the non-profit Fair Con- land area, attended Reynolds tracting Foundation. Investi- High School, and followed gating abuses on prevailing his dad, a member of Operat- wage construction jobs, Roy ing Engineers Local 701, into uncovered everything from the building trades. He got his first union job at age 18, as a KEN MORGAN intentional misclassification to payment in cash. Hired as member of Laborers Local 320, the Portland-area heavy highway a Local 296 business representative the local. He worked for Ross Brothers following year, he put that experience pouring concrete to construct highway to work for the Laborers. As a union bridges in Beaverton. Roy says he en- rep, he was responsible for members joyed the work, which included drilling working under construction contracts rock and using dynamite to blast rock and at Portland Public Schools and the and stumps to widen roads. He did that Portland Housing Authority. He also be- for 10 years, then moved to Texas to came recording secretary, and delegate to the Oregon and Southern Idaho Dis- trict Council of Laborers. Local 296 represents close to 900 members, including construction labor- ers and hod carriers, shipyard laborers, weatherization workers, landscapers and other laborers at school districts and in public housing, and heavy and high- way laborers in Southern Oregon. It has a headquarters a 4545 NE 102nd Ave, in Portland, and a satellite office in Cen- tral Point that focuses on heavy high- way and commercial construction. Most Local 296 members work un- der contracts with Associated General Contractors (AGC) and the General and Concrete Contractors Association (GCCA), which are negotiated by the district council. The current agreements run through May 31, 2016. Under the AGC contract, the hourly wage is $27.44, and total compensation comes to $40.89. Those wages and benefits make a strong argument for construction labor- ers to join the union; for employers, a big selling point is access to a ready pool of skilled labor that doesn’t need to stay on the payroll after a job is done. Local 296 union reps get members placed on jobs, take care of problems on job sites, enforce the union contract, recruit new union members, and sign up Jack Roy is the new business manager at Laborers Local 296. new contractors. The business manager also does those things, and oversees staff of six, including three business representatives, two office support staff, and a dispatcher. “Unionism is a brotherhood,” Roy says. “It’s a family.” In Ken Morgan’s case, family is also union: His son Derick is a Local 296 member. Ken Morgan, 62, grew up in Buxton, Oregon, the son of a logger. During the Vietnam War he served in the U.S. Air Force as a crew chief repairing F-4 fight- You are cordially invited to participate in the 2nd Annual Oregon Shoot For A Cure Sporting Clay Shoot, to be held at MID-VALLEY CLAYS in GERVAIS, OR on THURSDAY, SEPT. 18, for the benefit of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. We are asking organizations to field a team of four shooters. First-time shooters are welcomed and encouraged to participate! Awards will be presented. CONTRIBUTION LEVELS: D IAMOND S PONSOR : $5,000, includes all Platinum Sponsor benefits, plus a VIP shooting clinic and dinner for four the day before the event (Only 2 available). P LATINUM S PONSOR : $3,000, includes 4 shooters, Station Sponsor recognition, Platinum gift, plus ammunition, targets, hats, knife, lunch and raffle ticket package. G OLD S PONSOR : $2,500, includes 4 shooters, Gold Sponsor recognition, plus ammunition, targets, hats, knife, lunch and raffle ticket package. S ILVER S PONSOR : $2,000, includes 4 shooters, Silver Sponsor recognition, plus ammunition , targets, hats, knife and lunch. S TATION S PONSOR : $750 Sponsor Sign recognition at a shooting station (no shooters). I NDIVIDUAL S HOOTER : $175, includes ammunition, targets, hat, knife and lunch. Additionally, any help you can provide for raffle prizes, such as trips, golf foursomes, camping equip- ment and/or gear or other prizes will contribute to the success of this worthwhile cause. It is our hope to raise $20,000 this year. Please RSVP by Sept. 10, as this event will sell out. ers and other aircraft in Saigon. In the mid-to-late 1970s, he worked as a union laborer on highways and pipelines with Laborers Local 341 in Anchorage, Alaska. In 1979, he moved to Portland and joined Local 296. He attended union meetings, became an Executive Board member, and was hired as a business representative in 2006, working for members on the West side of the Port- land area. In 2007, he was appointed business manager to replace Richard Steward, who died of heart attack. “I believe in the union,” Morgan said, “the benefits, and what it does for our families and for society. If every- body had union health care and pen- sions, we wouldn’t have so much need.” As business manager, Morgan helped keep the union going through five years of economic downturn. He also oversaw a remodel of the Portland union hall and development of the Local 296 web site, and made it possible for members to pay dues over the phone. Morgan says he looks forward to traveling with his wife Lynn in retire- ment, a retirement made possible by a union pension that, unlike some others, is in good health. Morgan will continue to serve as a union trustee on the Ore- gon Laborers Employers Pension Trust Fund. All Local 296 officers ran unop- posed this year. Besides Roy, that in- cluded: President Gary Moore; Vice President Earl Browning; Recording Secretary Zack Culver; Sergeant-at- Arms J.P. Wedge; Auditors Jeff Olson, Shon Brinkmeyer, and Scott Hancock; Executive Board members Paul Askew, Dago Aranda, and Greg Held; and Dis- trict Council Delegates Greg Held, Jack Roy, Gary Moore Jr, and Gary Jackson. Terms of office are three years. Low Prices! For more information, contact Mark Gagliardi (925) 698-0719 or email mark@shootforacure.us Mon-Fri 9-6, Sat 9:30-5:30, Sun 12-6 AUGUST 15, 2014 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS PAGE 19
