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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (July 21, 2017)
PAGE 2 | July 21, 2017 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS NORTHWEST ...Unions oppose City of Portland’s revamped equity policy 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: 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 $13.75 per year for union members, $20 a year for all others. Send a check for that amount, indicating mailing address and union affilia- tion, to P.O. Box 13150, Portland, OR 97213. For 25 or more subscriptions, group rates of $9.60 a year per person are available to trade union organizations. 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 NOTICE: Three weeks are required for a change of address. When or- dering a change, please give your old and new addresses and the name and number of your local union. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS P.O. BOX 13150 PORTLAND, OR 97213-0150 Low Prices! Mon-Fri 9-6, Sat 9:30-5:30, Sun 12-6 140 PLEASE SHOW OUR ADVERTISERS YOU APPRECIATE THEIR SUPPORT FOR THIS LABOR MOVEMENT NEWSPAPER! “No one disputes that there is an under-utilization of minority and female businesses on large- scale City projects,” she said. “Where I think there is also an under-utilization is with the mi- nority and female workforce. I think having a trigger point to a CBA helps to accomplish in- creasing a minority and female workforce.” Willy Myers, executive secre- tary-treasurer of the Columbia Pacific Building Trades Council, said he can’t support the resolu- tion in its current form. “There needs to be a trigger. The threshold of $25 million has to be the trigger that says ‘we will be doing the Community Benefits Agreement,’” Myers testified. At the end of public testimony, Commissioner Dan Saltzman of- fered two amendments — one to trigger the CBA on any project of $25 million or more; the second to raise the threshold for work- force participation requirements from the current $100,000 per project to $500,000. Mayor Ted Wheeler tabled the amendments, stating that more information was needed. Com- missioners agreed. Wheeler said the resolutions will be voted on in August. A date had not been set at press time. [Two separate resolutions related to the CEIP had first readings at the July12 council meeting. They ask City bureaus to develop and imple- ment a contract delivery method selection process, and to develop a Community Opportunities and Enhancements Program and funding plan.] Myers told the Labor Press af- ter the meeting that the building trades supports Saltzman’s first amendment, but not the second. Overall, Myers said the CEIP is “moving in the right direction,” noting specifically the addition of a partnership agreement sig- natory page, and oversight through a Community Equity and Inclusion Committee. ...Painter files harassment lawsuit against Abhe & Svoboda From Page 1 ten statement to management about the incident, but the wit- nesses she named were never in- terviewed by the company. The lawsuit further states that on Dec. 7, 2016, Brown injured her hand and arm on the job, and promptly reported it to manage- ment. The project manager drove her to a company doctor, accompanied her to the examin- ing room, and participated in the medical exam, interacting with the doctor and interfering with Brown’s account of the injury. He or a company safety officer also sat in on all subsequent ap- pointments with the doctor. As a result, the lawsuit says, Brown felt intimidated and unable to freely express herself to the doc- tor about her injuries. The doctor put her on light duty, but the suit says Abhe & Svoboda failed to honor the re- strictions, ordering her to per- form work the doctor had warned against. Managers ques- tioned her injury, and made light of it. Brown, who is African-Amer- ican, alleges in the suit that the company allowed co-workers to verbally harass her, referring to her as an “African monkey” and using the ‘n word.’ Her complaints about it to management were ignored. The suit also alleges that African American workers were the first to have shifts cut when work slowed, and the last to be called back when work was available. When Brown or another African-American co-worker were injured on the job, com- pany representatives told them not to seek medical care or file a claim, but when Latino employ- ees were injured, they were im- mediately taken for medical care and given time off, the suit al- leges. In January, Brown filed an anonymous complaint with Ore- gon OSHA about unsafe condi- tions on the bridge painting proj- ect. That resulted in an inspec- tion. On Feb. 2, management accused her of making the OSHA complaint, and termi- nated her. This is the same com- pany that Oregon OSHA fined $189,000 last month for multiple serious and willful safety viola- tions that contributed to a near- fatal 37-foot fall. The suit seeks a jury trial. The case has been assigned to U.S. District Court Judge Anna J. Brown. Abhe & Svoboda did not re- spond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.
