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June 5, 2015 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
Portland School Professionals
Local 111 see their union grow
Portland Federation of School
Professionals Local 111 has
converted more than 130 “fair
share” employees to full union
membership so far this year.
Local 111—an affiliate of
American Federation of Teach-
ers (AFT)—represents about
1,300 support staff at Portland
Public Schools, including spe-
cial ed para-educators, class-
room education assistants,
school secretaries and close to
60 other occupational classifica-
tions. But after a wave of retire-
ments last year, less than half of
those working under the terms
of the union contract were full-
fledged union members.
Under Oregon law, union-
represented public employees
who don’t want to join the union
may pay a reduced “fair share”
fee covering just the cost of bar-
gaining and grievance handling.
At PPS, fair share has been the
default setting for new hires,
and Local 111 President Belinda
Reagan says many represented
employees thought they were
union members.
So in letters and in organized
phone banks, union staff and
member volunteers are reaching
out to non-members to share the
value of union membership.
The difference amounts to $5 to
$8 a month, and members can
Machinist Lux new
president of Labor
History Association
Machinists District Lodge 751
retiree Tom Lux has been
elected president
of the Pacific
Northwest Labor
History Associa-
tion. He succeeds
Ross Rieder, who
did not seek re-
election.
Lux was elected to the post
during the association’s annual
conference held May 1-3 at
SeaTac. The association works
to preserve the history and her-
itage of workers in Oregon,
Washington, and British Co-
lumbia. Members are trade
unionists, students, academics.
“We believe the labor move-
ment must know where it’s been
to know where it’s going,” Lux
said. “I feel that those of us who
are active in the labor move-
ment need to take a significant
role in telling our own story.”
vote on the contract and elect
union leadership, as well as get
access to union member dis-
counts and life insurance. But
the most important benefit of
membership, Reagan said, is
that it shows management the
union has broad support when it
comes time to bargain a con-
tract.
“While we have a really ter-
rific relationship with PPS, there
are times we need those voices
behind us,” Reagan said.
As of late May, Local 111
had signed up 132 fair share
employees to full membership,
bringing the total to 655.
M
embers of Portland
Federation of School
Professionals, American
Federation of Teachers Lo-
cal 111, returned incum-
bents to union office at
their May general mem-
bership meeting. They
are: Belinda Reagan, pres-
ident; Tim Taylor, treas-
urer; and Michele Catena
and Ryan Arditi, vice pres-
idents at-large. All terms of
office start July 1 and run
two years.
Kathy Muir, Michelle Batten, Tim
Taylor and Belinda Reagan, offi-
cers of Portland Federation of
School Professionals Local 111,
present a check for $2,000 to La-
bor’s Community Service Agency
Executive Director Vickie Burns.
The local has seen significant
growth over the last two years,
with the Portland Public School
District hiring more classified em-
ployees, and the union recruiting
more “fair share” co-workers to
become full-fledged members.
The donation will allow LCSA to
extend its Helping Hands pro-
gram this year.