Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 7, 2014)
A BOON FOR PORTLAND’S MARITIME SECTOR Vigor christens new drydock at Portland’s Swan Island shipyard Union shipbuilder Vigor Industrial held a christen- ing ceremony Oct. 25 for its new drydock, the Vigor- ous. The 960-foot Chinese-built vessel is the largest floating drydock in North America and will open Port- land to new markets, such as cruise ships and post- Panamax vessels. Two MARAD cargo ships will be the first vessels in the dock, creating 130 union jobs. The company also has a cruise ship booked for repairs in March 2015. Vigor Industrial is the parent company of Cascade General and Vigor Marine LLC at Portland’s Swan Is- land ship repair yard. Workers at Vigor Marine are represented by Seattle-based Boilermakers Local 104. Workers at Cascade General are members of various craft unions who work under a master labor agree- ment negotiated and administered by the Metal Trades Department, AFL-CIO. The Portland Metal Trades Council bargains local terms and conditions at Swan Island. [The Carpenters Union represents some em- ployees there under a separate agreement.] The Portland Metal Trades Council contract at Cascade General expires Nov. 30. Bargaining for a new contract began last month. The master agreement with the national Metal Trades Department expires June 1, 2017. Vigor invested more than $50 million to build and deliver the Vigorous from China to Swan Island. “This is a momentous day for us,” said Vigor chief operating officer Dave Whitcomb at the christening. “Vigorous is here to support family-wage jobs for the men and women of Vigor as well as the marine com- munity here in Portland.” Gary Moore, a business representative for Laborers Local 296, said the new dry dock marks the resur- gence of the maritime industry in Portland. “We an- ticipate a lot of good jobs coming from this,” he said. Vigor CEO Frank Foti said at the christening that the choice to sell the original dry dock in 2001 was a difficult decision which took courage. Now, 13 years later, the Vigorous joins 11 other drydocks at locations across the Pacific Northwest from Portland to Ketchikan. Including Portland, Vigor In- dustrial employs approximately 2,000 union workers at facilities in Seattle, Tacoma, Everett, Bre- merton and Port Angeles. KEY SPECIFICATIONS Lifting capacity: 80,000 tons Length: 960 feet Inside Width: 186 feet Total width: 228 feet Height: 70 feet Weight: 24,000 tons A little wind and rain didn’t deter nearly a thousand employees, union officials, customers and their families from enjoying music, food and games Oct. 25 at the christening of Vigor Industrial’s new drydock — the Vigorous — at Portland’s Swan Island ship repair yard. (Photos courtesy of Vigor Industrial) Worker activists plan ‘Black Friday’ protests at Walmart Walmart worker activists who have been agitating peacefully for years for pro-worker changes at the notoriously anti-union retail giant are again plan- ning mass protests at stores nation- wide on “Black Friday,” the big shop- ping day immediately after Thanksgiving. In Portland, a protest is scheduled Friday, Nov, 28, at 11 a.m. at Wal- mart, 4200 SE 82nd Ave, Portland. For more information, go on line at https://actionnetwork.org/events/ore- gon-walmart-workers-stand-up. Where’s our report on the November 2014 election? This issue of the NW Labor Press headed to the printer be- fore the results of the Nov. 4 election were known. For a comprehensive look at what the election results mean for work- ing people, visit us online at nwlaborpress.org/election-2014, or look for our Nov. 21 print is- sue. PAGE 12 NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS NOVEMBER 7, 2014
