NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS | May 15, 2015 | PAGE 5
Arbitrator orders
Portland Parks & Rec must halt use of nonunion casuals
An arbitrator has ruled that the
City of Portland violated its
union contract with Laborers
Local 483 when it regularly as-
signed the work of bargaining
unit members to nonunion em-
ployees who were classified as
seasonal or casual.
The May 1 decision by arbi-
trator David W. Stiteler settles a
dispute the union has been pur-
suing since 2002. It has to do
with Portland Parks & Recre-
ation, where the equivalent of
80 full-time union-represented
employees work side-by-side
with as many as 250 to 300 less-
than-full-time “recreational sup-
port persons,” who are limited
to 1,200 or 1,600 hours a year.
Stiteler ruled that the City has
been misclassifying those work-
ers as outside the union—de-
spite their performing the same
work as union members on a
regular basis. The nonunion
workers are paid roughly $3 an
hour less, and have no benefits
or job security. They work in
aquatics, fitness, tennis, arts,
music, and other programs of
the bureau.
The fact that the City
changed its argument going into
arbitration didn’t help its case
with the arbitrator: During the
grievance process, City man-
agers said those employees
don’t do the same work as unit
members, but during arbitration,
they said the employees do the
same work, and had always
done so, so it should be allowed
to continue.
Local 483 filed the grievance
in April 2013, took it to binding
arbitration that November, and
presented its arguments at a
Incumbents at Port of St. Helens add union support
erty at Port Westward. It is one
of the largest sources of jobs and
economic activity in the county,
which includes Scappoose, St.
Helens, Columbia City, Rainier
and Clatskanie.
Keyser, who currently serves
as chair, is seeking his fourth
four-year term. He is a lifelong
resident of Clatskanie, and owns
Clatskanie Builders Supply. He
was a member of the United Pa-
per Workers Union while em-
ployed at what is now Georgia-
Pacific in Wauna. In a question-
naire response submitted to the
Northwest Oregon Labor Coun-
cil, Keyser said he also was a
member of Fire Fighters Local
696 while working for the City
of Astoria, and that he helped or-
ganize the staff of Clatskanie
and Rainier fire departments
into Fire Fighters Local 3651
while employed at Clatskanie
Rural Fire District.
DeShazer is in her 15th year
as a Port commissioner. A resi-
dent of Warren, she works under
contract as a project manager for
Bonneville Power Administra-
tion. One of her opponents,
Larry Ericksen, last year ran un-
successfully against Brad Witt
for state representative in House
District 31. Witt is a union rep
for UFCW Local 555 and a for-
mer secretary-treasurer of the
Oregon AFL-CIO.
Avent, who is seeking a third
term, is a resident of Rainier. He
is co-owner of a development
business that buys and remodels
properties. One of his opponents
is Scappoose resident Mike
Stanton, president of the Inter-
national Longshore and Ware-
house Union Local 8.
NATIONAL
Merkley bill would require American-made
materials on all federal transportation projects
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S.
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon)
and Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-
Wisconsin) introduced the In-
vest in American Jobs Act to re-
quire federally-funded trans-
portation projects to use Ameri-
can steel, iron and manufactured
products whenever possible.
Currently, similar require-
ments—known as “Buy Amer-
ica” standards—exist for key as-
pects of highway and water
infrastructure, but many projects
the case, says the City will now
have to either hire them as union
members, or stop assigning them
the work of union members.
“The union has been fighting
for over 10 years so that the
low-paid temporary workers at
Parks and Rec would be given
fair wages and benefits,” Dia-
mond said. “I see this as a great
win.”
STORY UPDATES
Unitarian union leads to fund drive
WASHINGTON COUNTY
ST. HELENS — Three incum-
bent commissioners on the Port
of the St. Helens continue to
pick up endorsements from or-
ganized labor.
Robert Keyser, Mike Avent,
and Colleen DeShazer—run-
ning on a slate—have received
endorsements from the North-
west Oregon Labor Council,
the Columbia Pacific Building
Trades Council, IBEW Local
48, Operating Engineers Local
701, United Food and Commer-
cial Workers (UFCW) Local
555, and others.
Seven other candidates have
filed to run in the May 19 elec-
tion. Keyser and Avent have two
opponents, and DeShazer has
three challengers.
The five-member Board of
Commissioners oversees the
Port of St. Helens and its prop-
hearing held Jan. 21–23, 2015.
The arbitrator said it was out-
side his authority to order that
the employees become union
members under the contract.
But he ordered the City to stop
assigning bargaining unit work
to employees who aren’t mem-
bers of the bargaining unit.
Attorney Barbara Diamond,
who represented Local 483 in
do not fall under the requirement.
The legislation would expand
Buy America provisions so that
all major projects overseen by
the U.S. Department of Trans-
portation would fall under Buy
America requirements, with fed-
erally-funded transit and Federal
Aviation Administration projects
eventually having to meet a 100
percent Buy America standard
wherever feasible.
“When we make things in
America, we grow the middle
class in America,” said Merkley.
“Ensuring that American tax-
payer dollars go to support
American businesses and work-
ers wherever possible is just
common sense.”
Scott Paul, president of the
Alliance for American Manu-
facturing commended the sena-
tors. “American workers and
manufacturers stand ready to re-
build America’s infrastructure—
this bill will give them a chance
to do just that.”
In our Feb. 20 issue, we reported that Portland’s First Unitarian
Church agreed to recognize a union of church support employ-
ees known as sextons. Church leaders initially rebuffed the idea
that the workers could be represented by Communications
Workers of America Local 7901, pointing out that federal labor
law doesn’t require churches to recognize employee unions.
But pressure from members of the famously progressive con-
gregation prompted a change of heart, and on Feb. 7, church
leaders agreed to recognize and bargain with the union for the
19 employees. Negotiations on a first union contract have been
under way since then. The church also launched a fundraising
campaign, asking members to dig deeper by pledging an addi-
tional $120,000 a year — in order to raise wages to at least $15
an hour. As of late April, the congregation was reportedly close
to meeting that goal.
Grand Central Baking union effort falls flat
In our March 20 issue, we reported on accusations that Grand
Central Baking closed its Northwest Portland cafe early in re-
taliation for employees’ union-like demands. Workers at the
2240 NW York retail location had been talking with Laborers
Local 483 about unionizing, but in January, the company an-
nounced it would close the cafe on March 31 to expand the ad-
jacent wholesale bakery. Workers demanded preferential rehir-
ing to open positions at other company locations, but company
owners didn’t agree, and then closed the cafe Jan. 22, two
months earlier than announced. Local 483 filed a charge Jan.
23 with the National Labor Relations Board alleging that the
sped-up closure was illegal retaliation. But Local 483 withdrew
the charge March 17, after the investigating agent said the union
was unlikely to prevail. To date, the company has not hired any
of the laid-off workers to new positions.
Ban the Box nearly ready for council vote
Remember the “ban the box” ordinance we reported on in our
March 20 issue? A citizen working group is near completion
on an ordinance for Portland City Council to consider, says
union ally Midge Purcell of the Urban League of Portland. Pur-
cell has been working on the task force alongside Graham
Trainor of the Oregon AFL-CIO to hone the details of an ordi-
nance that would give formerly incarcerated individuals a better
chance at finding work after their release — by barring em-
ployers from asking about criminal history on the initial appli-
cation. Employers could still do criminal background checks
later in the process and decline to hire for relevant convictions,
but the ordinance would at least give individuals a chance to
explain the circumstances, and show how they’ve been reha-
bilitated. Purcell says an ordinance is likely to see the light of
day sometime in late May.