Jul 9, 2020 | iMail
After petitioning the government and lobbying Congress, the IAM has successfully secured additional federal assistance for at least 700 union members at Local 2379 (District 160) who will be laid-off at the Alcoa Intalco Works aluminum smelter production plant in Ferndale, WA.
The company, which has operated in Whatcom County for a half-century, announced on April 22 that it would be curtailing the facility.
The much-needed government assistance will fall under the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program, which protects U.S. workers who lose their jobs due to outsourcing. The program offers extended unemployment benefits for up to two years while members participate in retraining classes, out-of-area job search allowances, and more.
“As we continue to fight to keep the plant open, the news of this relief is welcomed,” said IAM Western Territory General Vice President Gary R. Allen. “This is still the beginning stage of this fight, rest assured we will continue to work tirelessly on behalf of the Alcoa workers to keep the plant open.”
READ: With curtailment looming, Intalco workers get help from federal government The Bellingham (WA) Herald
At the IAM’s request, members of Washington state’s congressional delegation, led by Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, along with Reps. Suzan DelBene and Rick Larsen supported the IAM’s petition with a letter to the U.S. Department of Labor. Gov. Jay Inslee also sent a letter supporting the extra assistance.
This was the IAM’s second win in July advocating for laid-off Machinist members. District 751 secured TAA assistance for IAM members facing layoffs at the Boeing Co. in Washington state and Oregon.
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Jul 9, 2020 | iMail
In June 2019, Bradken Foundry workers in Tacoma, WA, reached out to District 160 Business Representative/Organizer Steve Miller to join the IAM. Now a year later, these 188 workers have ratified a fine first contract.
Directing Business Representative Paul Miller, the head negotiator, successfully took this private sector unit through hard-fought bargaining sessions against an anti-union law firm hired by the company. The members’ uncompromising solidarity proved to be the difference and they emerged victoriously.
Like the fight to win the first contract, the organizing campaign was also an uphill battle. Thanks to the brilliant tactics employed by the organizers, the win would not be denied. The tactics included phone banking, hand billing, house calling and enlisting the services of Vietnamese-speaking District 751 member Thong Trang, who was able to communicate with bilingual workers. The tactics and professionalism of the organizers and the tenacity of the Bradken workers created overwhelming momentum that secured the victory.
“Congratulations on your first contract. Twelve months of hard work has finally paid off. You now have a solid, strong contract that you can build your future on,” said Directing Business Representative Paul Miller. “We are excited to have you as part of our union family and we look forward to building a better future together. By continuing to stick together in the months and years to come, we can raise the tide and float all boats.”
“This win was a total collaboration between the staff in the Western Territory, District Lodge 160 and District Lodge 751,” said General Vice President Gary R. Allen. “I am so very proud of this victory; it’s extremely difficult to get a first contract for such a large unit in the private sector. Congratulations to the lead negotiator, District Lodge 160 Directing Business Representative Paul Miller, the bargaining committee and all our new members at Bradken. This was a magnificent organizing and bargaining campaign that succeeded because of the collaboration between Territory and District staff who never lost sight of the commitment to help better the lives of all Bradken workers. Congratulations to all involved including District Lodge 160’s Business Representative/Organizer Steve Miller and Business Representative Tommy Hunt, Grand Lodge Representatives Jimbo Watson, Joe Solis and Ryan Carrillo, Grand Lodge Special Representative Gary E. Allen, and Associate Organizers Bob Simoni and Nicole Pugh.”
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Jul 9, 2020 | iMail
Joe Biden, the IAM’s endorsed candidate for president, has laid out a strong and comprehensive plan to bring back hundreds of thousands of manufacturing jobs to the United States by building, investing and innovating in America.
IAM members voted to endorse Biden in March after a first-of-its-kind membership vote for the union’s endorsement. In multiple surveys, IAM members indicated that stopping the outsourcing of U.S. jobs and strengthening the nation’s industrial base should be top priorities of the next administration.
“Vice President Biden’s well-thought out, comprehensive manufacturing initiative will bring supply chains and U.S. jobs back home—something the current administration promised but never delivered,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “We agree with Joe Biden that giving up on manufacturing means giving up on working people. It means that we would further lose our capability to produce critical supplies domestically, something we can’t afford during crises like the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We need a president who will ensure a key role for America’s labor unions and workers beset by millions of layoffs caused by the current pandemic,” said Martinez. “We need a president who is about action, not talk, and a president who will be a friend of U.S. workers and their unions in the White House.”
Biden’s plan will restore U.S. manufacturing by:
– Giving unions a seat at the table and restoring the right of workers to join a union and negotiate better pay and benefits for themselves and their families.
– Protecting the right of workers to form unions and engage in collective bargaining—rights that have been destroyed by the Trump NLRB.
– Putting real teeth in Buy American requirements by closing loopholes and strengthening requirements that ensure that goods are actually made here at home.
– Eliminating GOP tax rules that give incentives to companies to outsource U.S. jobs.
– Supporting much-needed union apprenticeship and training programs to train workers for tomorrow’s manufacturing needs.
– Providing unions with the opportunity to participate in the innovation that will help us a build a sustainable future.
The post Machinists Applaud Biden Manufacturing Plan to Bring Jobs Home appeared first on IAMAW.
Jul 7, 2020 | iMail
IAM District 160 is taking its annual Run for the Dogs fundraiser virtual!
Instead of the traditional motorcycle fun run, which has been a staple of previous years, participants will have multiple options to get involved in 2020. This year, it’s all about the miles, whether they be on a motorcycle, on a bicycle, in a car, or on your feet—there are lots of ways to join in on the fun.
Click here to register and for more information.
Participants will have the entire month of August to log miles. The more miles, the better! Winners in multiple categories will be selected after the completion of the event.
Categories include:
- Miles ridden on motorcycle
- Miles driven in classic car
- Miles walked
- Miles ran
- Miles on bicycle
Participants can register online beginning June 15, 2020, and select a category from the above list to participate. The fee to participate is $20 and that amount goes directly to Guide Dogs of America. Click here for the event flyer.
Guide Dogs of America, the IAM’s favorite charity, provides blind and visually-impaired men and women with increased independence, confidence and mobility through an expertly-trained guide dog. Their services are provided free of charge to residents in the U.S. and Canada.
Click here to register and get more information about District 160’s virtual “Run for the Dogs.”
The post Help Guide Dogs of America in District 160’s Virtual ‘Run for the Dogs’ appeared first on IAMAW.
Jul 7, 2020 | iMail
A Georgia Tech study has found that so-called “right-to-work” laws lead to a decrease in worker wages, confirming what labor unions have known for decades.
A study published in the Journal of Financial Economics examined more than 19,000 collective bargaining agreements in the United States between 1988 and 2016 and asserts that it is the “first paper to use wage information embedded in these contracts.”
“Companies are out for big money. They’re not out to protect to workers,” said Craig Norman, Director of the IAM’s Collective Bargaining Department. “They’re out to maximize their profitability at the expense of workers. We’re trying to get a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work.”
The study found wage growth of 2.9 percent, with inflation at 2.6 percent, suggesting that the applicable RTW laws “eliminated a substantial fraction of real wage growth.”
When workers negotiate together, working people earn higher wages. The average worker in a RTW state makes $6,109 less per year than a worker in a free-bargaining state, according to the AFL-CIO. Twenty-eight states have RTW laws, mostly in the Midwest, South and Southwest, according to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).
The authors of the study are Sudheer Chava, András Danis and Alex Hsu, professors at the Georgia Institute of Technology’s Scheller College of Business.
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