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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 21, 2020)
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS | woman president of Communications Work- ers Local 9201, elected state representative from east Multnomah County. 1979: Neil Goldschmidt resigns as Portland mayor to become U.S. Secretary of Transportation. Re- tail Clerks and Meat Cutters merge to form United Food and Commercial Workers. George Meany steps down and Lane Kirk- land is elected national AFL-CIO president. 1980: Former actor and Screen Actors Guild President Ronald Reagan elected President of U.S. First strike in 66 years of Pressmen’s Local 43 called against Daily Journal of Com- merce. Strike by Multnomah County Employ- ees Local 88 lasts 38 days. Unions also strike Chevron, Wagner Mining, Nabisco, FMC, Ross Island Sand and Gravel. Eruption of Mt. St. Helens leaves massive cleanup task in Southwest Washington. Oregon Federation of Nurses wins representation election at Kaiser Sunnyside Hospital. Oregon AFL-CIO calls for federal and state plant closure legis- lation. Union Labor Retirement Association opens Kirkland Union Manor. Portland Brick- layers Local 1 has first all-woman pre-ap- prenticeship class. Joyce Miller, a vice presi- dent of the Amalgamated Clothing & Textile Workers, becomes first female member of the AFL-CIO Executive Council. Energy costs soar and uncontrolled imports hit auto, steel industries. 1981: President Reagan busts air traffic controllers union and fires 11,000 strik- ing controllers. Republican Gov. Vic Atiyeh opposes ”right-to-work” legislation. “Scab or starve” proposals of State Department of Hu- man Resources halted. Republican Attorney General Dave Frohnmayer rules state labor laws do not apply on Indian reservations. Port of Portland employees strike. Irv Fletcher and Bob Baugh elected president and secretary- treasurer, respectively, of Oregon AFL-CIO. 400,000 union members march in Washing- ton, D.C., in labor’s first Solidarity Day to protest Reagan Administration policies. Jobs with Justice rally in Washington State draws 8,000 unionists to Olympia. 1982: USPS dou- bles postage costs for non-profit publications such as the Labor Press. 15,000 workers August 21, 2020 | PAGE 25 A DAY FOR JOBS AND JUSTICE 1982 Solidarity March in Portland. rally in Olympia calling for more jobs and eco- nomic justice. Thousands attend Oregon AFL-CIO “Jobs and Justice” rally at Portland’s Terry Schrunk Plaza to protest programs of the Reagan Administration. Sheet Metal Workers Local 544 merges into Local 16. Groundbreaking of new Veterans Administra- tion Hospital on Marquam Hill in Southwest Portland. 1983: Metal Trades strike Swan Is- land repair firms, Bingham-Willamette, FMC. Louisiana-Pacific scabs out jobs of striking union workers while other wood products firms settle contracts with Woodworkers and LPIW. Labor protests contracts awarded for Banfield Freeway expansion, Tri-Met light rail construction to non-union R.A. Hatch of Bend. Oregon Legislature changes law to permit sales of unpasteurized Coors Beer. LERC conducts classes for unions on how to buy a computer. Nationwide strike at Bell System impacts 14,000 CWA and IBEW members in Oregon and Washington. 1984: After a trip to Asia, Nellie Fox, Oregon AFL- CIO political director, says plant operated in China for Nike is unsafe for workers. Armour sells north Portland packing plant to ConA- gra, which illegally weeds out union workers. AFTRA loses decertification election at Port- land television station KATU (Channel 2). 1985: Atlantic-Richfield (Arco) awards con- tract to build Alaskan oil field modules at Port- land ship repair yard to nonunion Brown and Root. Port of Portland invites nonunion Lock- port, an offshoot of Seattle’s Lockheed Ship- building, to Swan Island. Union professional football players appear briefly as Portland Breakers of United States Football League, stage a one-season stand. Kirkland Union Manor II is dedicated and Union Labor Re- tirement Association says planning is under way for third structure at Powell Boulevard site. 1986: United Food and Commercial Workers locals in Oregon and Southwest Washington merge into Tigard-based Local 555; it becomes largest private-sector union in Oregon with about 17,500 members. Dillingham Ship Repair illegally implements Metal Trades contract and then fires union members who protest. Metropolitan Area Ex- press (MAX) light rail begins operation. 1987: Dillingham and Lockport close down; new Swan Island repair firm, WSI, goes union af- ter strong organizing drive. Citing irreconcil- able differences, Woodworkers split into sep- arate United States and Canadian organizations at Portland convention. Attor- ney General Dave Frohnmayer angers build- ing trades with opinion that payment of pre- vailing wages not required on construction of “turnkey” structures for state agencies. Co- WE BUILT THIS CITY Iron Workers Local 29 members topped out the new Veterans Administration Hospital on “Pill Hill” in Southwest Portland in 1984. Pickets were common at Portland International Airport in support of striking Machinists at Eastern and Continental airlines. Mechanics and ramp service employees walked out on March 4, 1989. A sympathy strike called by the pi- lots represented by the Air Line Pilots Association and flight attendants rep- resented by the Transport Workers Union effectively shut down the airline’s domestic operations. Non-contract employees, including airport gate and ticket counter agents and reservation sales agents, did not honor the strike. lumbia County Labor Council merges into Northwest Oregon Labor Council. Seattle Seahawks use scabs during NFL players strike. Teamsters back in AFL-CIO fold after absence of 30 years. 1988: International Longshore & Warehouse Union granted a charter by the AFL-CIO. Sailors Union of Pa- cific closes Portland office. UFCW Local 555
