PAGE 8 |
May 18, 2018 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
UNION DEMOCRACY
Fire Fighters
#43 turns 100
Karl Koenig, a member
Hamilton, who did not
of Fire Fighters Local
seek re-election. Alan
1159 in Clackamas
Ferschweiler, presi-
County, was elected
dent of Portland Fire
president of the Oregon
Fighters Local 43, was
State Fire Fighters
appointed legislative
Council (OSFFC). He
director at the conven-
succeeds Bob Liv-
tion. Seven vice presi-
ingston, who did not
dents were elected to
run for re-election.
serve on the OSFFC
Karl Koenig
Koenig, a station cap-
Executive Board:
tain at Clackamas Fire District Dist. 1: Isaac McLennen, Portland IAFF #43
#1, previously served as legisla- Dist. 2: Matt Brozovich, Salem IAFF #314
tive director for OSFFC.
Dist. 3: Irik Rinnert, Roseburg IAFF #1110
Election of officers and Exec- Dist. 4: Kevin Larson, Gresham IAFF #1062
utive Board members took place
at OSFFC’s 30th bi-annual con- Dist. 5: Tricia Connolly, Bend IAFF #227
vention held last month in Bend. Dist. 6: Brian Smith, Tualatin Valley IAFF #1660
Rocky Hanes, president of Tu- Dist. 7: Mike Caven, Lane County IAFF #L851
alatin Valley Fire Fighters Local
Officers and board members
1660, was elected secretary- were installed by IAFF General
treasurer. He succeeds Jeff President Harold Schaitberger.
LONG MAY IT WAVE. Port-
land Fire Fighters Associa-
tion Local 43 turned 100
years old on Feb. 28. In
honor of the historic occa-
sion, Oregon U.S. Senator
Jeff Merkley presented the
local with an American flag
that flew over the U.S. Capi-
tol. The presentation was
made May 3 at Fire Station
1 in downtown Portland.
Local 43 President Alan Fer-
schweiler said the flag will
fly at the union hall in
Southeast Portland. Local
43 represents 700 firefight-
ers at 30 fire stations in the
City of Portland and at the
Port of Portland.
Oregon union leaders arrested
Photo by Ross Grami, courtesy of Oregon AFSCME
Koenig succeeds Livingston at
Oregon State Fire Fighters Council
From left, Oregon AFL-CIO president Tom Chamberlain, Oregon AF-
SCME executive director Stacy Chamberlain (his daughter), and Oregon
AFSCME organizing director Corey Nicholson were among 10 union-
ists arrested May 14 for an act of civil disobedience in which they re-
fused to leave the offices of non-profit Volunteers of America (VOA).
About 70 workers at two addiction treatment centers run by VOA voted
to join AFSCME in September 2016, but VOA has stonewalled union
contract negotiations and is insisting on an open shop. Also arrested
were Graham Trainor, Jamie Partridge, AJ Mendoza, Justin Kertson-
Norton, Andrea Lemoins, Allen Smith, and Emily Wiant.
Raymond Thomas
James Coon
Revival of the Poor People’s Campaign
A movement Martin Luther
King, Jr., started 50 years ago
near the end of his life is getting
a revival. On May 14, the Poor
People’s Campaign kicked off
40 days of action in 40 states, in-
cluding Oregon’s capital in
Salem. It will reach a crescendo
in a mass march in Washington,
D.C., on June 23
The campaign brings together
faith leaders, community leaders,
labor unions, and low-wage
workers to address four core is-
sues: systemic racism, poverty,
militarism, and ecological de-
struction. Nationally, the cam-
paign is endorsed by Communi-
cations Workers of America,
United Steelworkers, and the
Service Employees. A number of
local unions from Oregon at-
tended the rally in Salem.
More than 530,000 Oregoni-
ans were living below the
poverty line in 2016—including
nearly 140,000 children—ac-
cording to the U.S. Census Bu-
reau. A report measuring how the
country is doing on the cam-
paign’s four core issues com-
pared with when it launched a
half century ago found that in
many respects, the nation is
worse off than it was in 1968.
(Public News Service and Press
Associates Inc. contributed to this
report.)
Cynthia Newton
Melissa Haggerty
Chris Frost
Sydney Montanaro
If you are working
and are hurt
by another
company’s worker
or action then
you may be able
to recover money
damages in
addition to
your workers’
comp claim.
820 SW Second Ave., Suite 200,
Portland, OR 97204
Scott Sell
Chris Thomas
www.tcnf.legal