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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 17, 2017)
PAGE 2 | February 17 , 2017 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS ...UNDER THE BRIDGE NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS From Page 1 (International Standard Serial Number 0894-444X) Established in 1900 in Portland, Oregon as a voice of the la- bor movement. Published on a semi-monthly basis on the first and third Fridays of each month by the Oregon Labor Press Publishing Co. Inc., a non-profit mutual benefit corpo- ration owned by 20 unions and councils including the Ore- gon AFL-CIO. Serving more than 120 union organizations in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Office location: 4275 NE Halsey St., Portland, Oregon Mailing address: P.O. Box 13150, Portland, OR 97213 Phone: (503) 288-3311 Web address: http://nwlaborpress.org Editor & Manager: Michael Gutwig Associate editor: Don McIntosh Office manager: Cheri Rice Printed on recycled paper, using soy-based inks, by members of Teamsters Local 747-M. SUBSCRIPTIONS: Individual subscriptions are $14 a year for union members, $22 a year for all others. Pay by credit card online at nwlaborpress.org/subscribe, or send a check to our mailing address (above) along with your name, address and union affiliation, if any. Group rates of $10.08 a year per person are available for 25 or more subscriptions; call 503-288-3311 for details. CORRECTIONS: See an error? Please let us know at editor@nwlaborpress.org or by phone at 503-288-3311. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT PORTLAND, OREGON. CHANGE OF ADDRESS: If you move, let us know at nwlaborpress.org/subscriber-services or by mail at our mailing address (above). Be sure to provide your old and new addresses and the name/number of your local union. Please allow three weeks for the change to take effect. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS P.O. BOX 13150 PORTLAND, OR 97213-0150 PLEASE SHOW OUR ADVERTISERS YOU APPRECIATE THEIR SUPPORT FOR THIS LABOR MOVEMENT NEWSPAPER! 140 Low Prices! Mon-Fri 9-6, Sat 9:30-5:30, Sun 12-6 A salt is a worker who takes a job as the agent of a union. Salts document management mis- deeds, educate co-workers about their rights, and even take part in union organizing campaigns. In this case, Rubi was sent in by Painters andAllied Trades District Council 5 on suspicion that something wasn’t right on the Ross Island Bridge repaint- ing project. It’s a complicated three-year deal that involves the construction of temporary sup- port structures and containment systems underneath the bridge in order to safely sandblast and re- paint three steel arch spans that have aged and rusted since they were last painted in the 1960s. The Ross Island Bridge spans the Willamette River, connecting U.S. Route 26 between south- west and southeast Portland. In 1976, ownership was transferred from Multnomah County to the state. Oregon Department of Trans- portation (ODOT) estimated that bids would come in at $30 to $40 million. But nonunion Abhe & Svoboda of Minnesota won the contract with a low bid of $22.3 million — $11 million be- low the union-signatory contrac- “When it’s ‘go, go, go’ sometimes people don’t pay attention. … Traditionally when you’re working in a dangerous en- vironment like that, employers don’t usually rush you to get things done be- cause they understand the liability issue.” — Abhe & Svoboda employee Omar Rubi tor, Hercules Painting of New Castle, Pennsylvania. The union wanted to know how Abhe & Svoboda could bid so low, even though they’re re- quired to pay the same hourly wage and benefits as their union competitor, under the state “little Davis-Bacon” law, which re- quires contractors on govern- ment construction projects to pay the prevailing wage. Could they be cutting corners to make the project pencil out? Rubi got a job there to find out, and soon found problems. Paint in some cases was being applied at the wrong thickness or in conditions that were too cold or humid to meet manufacturer specifications, Rubi said. In places, paint was bubbling or chipping, or missing required “striping” along joints. From along the river bank, Painters District Council 5 field representative Scott Oldham took video of workers without proper respirators, suits, safety glasses or fall protection using air blowers to clean up sand- blasting debris when the struc- ture wasn’t fully contained by tarps. Oldham says that could re- sult in the toxic metals such as lead, cadmium, and chromium falling into the Willamette River. But as bad or worse were con- ditions for workers. As Rubi de- scribes it, Abhe & Svoboda’s un- der-the-bridge crew of 20 to 30 workers — many of whom were brought in from out of town — was a hotbed of racial and gen- der discord and tension. African- American workers were derided for laziness and referred to as monkeys and leeches by co- workers and supervisors, Rubi says. Rubi, a native Spanish speaker, arrived at work on Elec- tion Day to find his locker de- faced with obscene images and the words “Trump 16.” A super- visor told him, on threat of fir- ing, not to talk to a female African-American co-worker who had complained of extreme sexual harassment. Meanwhile, Oldham did some research, and found viola- tions and fines on numerous Abhe & Svoboda bridge proj- ects. Some examples: ■ Connecticut, 2007 – $1.3 million in unpaid wages for paying painters at the wage for laborers and carpenters ■ Astoria, Oregon, 2011 – Nearly $30,000 in penalties for dozens of OSHA violations ■ Hawaii, 2012 – $15,500 in penalties for three serious OSHA violations ■ Fresno County, California, 2013 – $90,900 in civil penalties for failure to employ apprentices as required ■ Mendocino County, California, 2016 – $60,000 in back wages and $55,000 in penalties for prevailing wage violations And this wasn’t even the first time Abhe & Svoboda had been scrutinized by Portland-area unions. In 1998, when Abhe & Turn to Page 6
