Machinist Union members, representatives, staff and volunteers of District 70 in Wichita, KS delivered nearly 1,000 Angels and their gifts to the Salvation Army’s 2020 Angel Tree Program last week.
“Our community has suffered greatly from layoffs, furloughs and the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused a much greater need in our community this year,” said IAM District 70 President and Directing Business Representative Cornell Beard. “We hope to help fill the need. To ease the burden for those who are faced with the stress of lost wages and benefits. To brighten the holidays for children and families in our community.”
District 70 members continue to strive to make a difference in their communities despite a global pandemic.
The Salvation Army’s 2020 Angel Tree program encourages people to give back to their local communities. It allows people the ability to give holiday joy and gifts to children in need who would otherwise be left out during the holidays. People can donate and share with those less fortunate who live in their own city, town and county.
Give the gift of love, confidence and hope this holiday season. By donating during Guide Dogs of America’s Holidays of Hope fundraiser, you can transform someone’s life with a service dog partnership.
One special donor has graciously offered to match up to $1,000 in donations every day, until December 25. It is only fitting because this year GDA has doubled their services to offer not only guide dogs, but service dogs as well.
With each donation, you will give twice the love, twice the confidence and twice the hope to someone in need. All gifts made will directly benefit a veteran, person who is blind, or child with autism that desperately needs the life changing companionship that a service dog provides.
The IAM is advocating for lawmakers to quickly approve a bipartisan defense authorization bill that would fund numerous military programs built and maintained by Machinists Union members. Together, the programs support more than 100,000 IAM aerospace defense and shipbuilding jobs.
Thanks to the IAM’s lobbying efforts, the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) authorizes funding for the following IAM-built and maintained programs:
– 93 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters
– 24 F-18 Super Hornets
– 15 C-130 Super Hercules
– 12 F-15 Eagles
– 15 KC-46 Tankers
– Eight F-8 Poseidons
– Two DDG-51 Arleigh Burke-class Destroyers
– One Columbia-class Ballistic Submarine
– Two Virginia-class Attack Submarines
“This vitally important, bipartisan legislation will help ensure our U.S. national security, bolster the safety and effectiveness of our men and women in uniform and sustain hundreds of thousands of high-skilled jobs in the aerospace defense and shipbuilding industries,” wrote IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. in a letter to members of the U.S. House.
Unfortunately, the final version of the 2021 NDAA stripped out House-passed language, championed by the IAM and U.S. Rep. Donald Norcross (D-NJ), which would have gradually increased Buy American requirements for major defense programs to 100 percent. The IAM will continue its push to increase domestic content in defense production.
The 2021 NDAA (H.R. 6395) does, however, include a well-deserved 3 percent pay raise for our nation’s armed service members. The legislation also includes additional pandemic leave and paid parental leave provisions for most federal employees.
The IAM is sad to learn of the passing of retired Midwest Administrative Assistant James Seidl at the age of 79.
Brother Seidl started at Sealtest where he worked for five years before taking a job at the Naval Ordinance as a machinist apprentice. He later became a business agent for District 21, eventually becoming Director of the Government Department and Administrative Assistant in the Midwest Territory. He was also a mason and 50-year member of the Robinson Plumb Lodge.
“Brother James Seidl was a true trade unionist, leader, and mentor,” said IAM Midwest Territory General Vice President Steve Galloway. “He sincerely demonstrated with his activism his commitment and beliefs for justice in the workplace, as well as social and economic justice for the underprivileged. The impact, integrity, and respect that Brother Seidl established in the Midwest Territory and the IAM is a credit to his continuing legacy. The Midwest Territory extends heartfelt condolences and prayers to the Seidl family from his entire IAM family.”
“Brother Seidl was a great unionist, who devoted much of his life to serving and bettering the lives of his coworkers,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “I have a great deal of respect for everything he did for our members fortunate enough to have known him. Our condolences and prayers go out to the Seidl family.”
Six months after his retirement and with his negotiation skills in great demand, he returned to his union calling as a General Representative for the Metal Trades Union, where he stayed for another 10 years. Jim retired again in 2011, but remained very active with union business, helping out many times with contract negotiations.
Cold War Patriots is an organization helping nuclear weapons and uranium workers get the recognition, compensation and health care they deserve. Retired IAM Organizing Director Larry Washam was recently honored by the group when he was chosen to represent workers in a 2021 calendar celebrating the lives of these Everyday Patriots.
“It was quite an honor to be nominated by my peers for the calendar,” said Washam, who initiated into the Machinists Union in 1969. “The work done by Cold War Patriots is so important for those of us living with the effects of working such dangerous jobs.”
In an area like Oak Ridge, Tenn. which was a hub for nuclear weapon research and development such as the Manhattan Project during World War II, workers have been dealing with a host of health care issues for generations. Many were unaware of the far reaching effects this exposure would have on their lives when they took the job. In some cases, that information wasn’t known at the time.
“It’s really hard to tell what you worked on back then because it was all classified but I remember in meetings, the company would tell us it was safer to be on the job than in our own homes. We know now, that wasn’t the case,” explained Washam.
For this reason and because of his own health battles, Washam has spent his golden years working with other retirees, machinists and the Cold War Patriots to ensure everyone understands which healthcare options are available to the working class men and women who sacrificed so much for the job. That’s why Washam requested for his photo to be taken in front of his home local, Lodge 480.
“This is why being union is important. So that’s there someone on your side, protecting the working class and making sure this doesn’t happen to workers in the future,” said Washam.
In 1990, the U.S. Government created the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) to compensate the men and women who worked these jobs between the years of 1942 – 1971. Today, thousands of workers across the United States, including many IAM members, are getting the health and survivor benefits they deserve. Washam is making sure the word is out in Oak Ridge. He’s often invited to speak to area retiree clubs about Cold War Patriots and how they can help.
“There’s only a certain amount of people you can talk to about these jobs. It’s a small group. So it’s important that we stay in touch and share information about what’s available to us,” insisted Washam. “There’s help out there for them.”
Not often recognized, these working class heroes provided a service to this country. That’s something the IAM, nor Larry, will ever forget.
“My union friends used to tell me I was born to be a Machinist because the IAM and I share the same birthday, May 5. That’s why I requested to represent May in the calendar. It just made sense,” said Washam proudly.
For more information on the Cold War Patriots, you can check out the their work at coldwarpatriots.org.
