Feb 8, 2022 | iMail
Legal professionals who are members of IAM Local S89 employed at McTeague-Higbee, a Topsham, ME law firm that has represented organized labor in Maine for decades, unanimously ratified a new contract with pay raises and other improvements.
Wage increases of 6.5%, 4%, 2% that will balance out inequities in the wage system due to labor market compression and other factors, and an increase to the pension contribution. Two more categories of family added to the company bereavement policy, and adoption of a child added to the parental leave policy. The new deal also provides time and a half for members required to work during a pre-approved vacation.
“The bargaining went very well,” said Carol Sanborn, a paralegal and President of Machinists Local S89. “We needed only two bargaining sessions which, together, took a total of about two hours. The company came to the table ready to listen and negotiate seriously and with IAM District 4 Directing Business Representative Jay Wadleigh, we were able to work it all out in the second session.”
“My thanks go out to this Bargaining Committee,” said DL 4 DBR Jay Wadleigh. “They were prepared, and it showed. My thanks also to McTeague-Higbee for being open to working with organized labor.”
“Congratulations to DBR Jay Wadleigh, President Sanborn, and the Bargaining Committee on a job well done,” said IAM Eastern Territory General Vice President Brian Bryant. “Our members work hard and this agreement reflects their hard work and dedication.”
The Topsham law firm specializes in employee/plaintiff-oriented labor law, workers’ compensation, discrimination, and personal injury cases, and has enjoyed a long relationship with Maine AFL-CIO, and its affiliated unions.
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Feb 8, 2022 | iMail
This year, for Black History Month, the IAM is highlighting some of our current history makers within the organization. All this month, we will be running stories on current Black activists in the IAM, telling their story in the union.
Edison Fraser began his career, and his IAM membership, as a Customer Service Agent with Southwest Airlines at BWI Airport in 2002 with Local 846. He immediately became involved in his union and was appointed first as a shop steward and then as a Local Lodge educator. He continued his leadership roles by serving as a Local Lodge Recording Secretary, then Local Lodge Secretary-Treasurer, and finally Local Lodge President, before becoming an organizer for District 142.
In that role, he helped achieve significant organizing victories, including Air Tran Airways and United Airlines. In 2012, he was appointed first as a Grand Lodge Special Representative for the Transportation Department and later as a Grand Lodge Representative. Most recently, in 2021, he became Transportation Coordinator.
Fraser said that although he encountered obstacles along the way, older leaders realized that he was willing to learn, so most welcomed him.
“I took advantage and volunteered to participate in union activities every chance I got,” said Fraser.
He was mentored by the late IAM Grand Lodge Representative Rene Cicero, who took Fraser under her wings and always encouraged him.
Fraser recalls Cicero telling him, “Eddie, you fit the mold, and one day you will make this union proud.”
Fraser was encouraged by seeing other Black IAM leaders, like now retired General Secretary-Treasurer Robert Roach Jr., and General Vice President Diane Babineaux.
These experiences have made Fraser the union activist he is today.
“Edison Fraser lets nothing stand in his way,” said Richard Johnsen, IAM Chief of Staff to the International President. “His work ethic and dedication to this union is second to none. I feel so fortunate and proud to have him as one of our leaders in Transportation. There is no doubt that he is paving the road for future leaders of the IAM.”
Fraser’s advice is to look at the history of the IAM and see how diverse it has become, and to take the opportunity to become more active in our union, especially for Young Machinists.
“Remember, you are the future, and no one can stop that,” Fraser says of the IAM’s younger members.
Fraser hopes members realize there are many resources to allow equal opportunities in the IAM to service our members in various capacities. He also encourages members to take advantage of the educational opportunities the IAM. He earned his associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s degrees through the IAM.
Fraser relates to and admires the great Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He says King had a vision and would let nothing stop him. His favorite quote by King is, “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
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Feb 8, 2022 | iMail
WASHINGTON, February 8, 2022 – The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) proudly supports the recent findings from the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment. The report, which includes more than 70 recommendations, empowers workers, supports unions by leveling the playing field, and allows everyone to have a seat at the table.
“The report from the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment solidifies the commitment the Biden-Harris administration made to workers to take on injustices that have left them without a seat at the table,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “No longer will those in power be able to sit idly by and watch our nation’s workers suffer at the hands of corporate CEOs without recourse. This report’s recommendations will help grow the middle class, build an economy that works for everyone, and strengthen our democracy. We applaud the Biden-Harris team for being true to their word and fighting for working people. Unions built the middle class, and it’s the legacy of the hardworking men and women of the labor movement who we owe a debt of gratitude, not just for the past but for the future they will help secure for generations to come.”
“I am excited to be a liaison for our Union on this much-needed task force,” said IAM Organizing Director Vinny Addeo. “As someone who spends most of my time fighting to level the playing field for workers trying to establish a voice in the workplace, it feels powerful to have our President issue these findings. This report shows that the Biden-Harris administration holds the same values as the Machinists Union. Being able to join a union is a basic human right, and for far too long, companies have been left unfettered in their abilities to stop workers from joining a union. With the recommendations made by the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment, this administration is showing workers across the country that their voices and their rights matter.”
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers is one of the largest and most diverse industrial trade unions in North America, representing approximately 600,000 active and retired members in the aerospace, defense, airlines, railroad, transit, healthcare, automotive, and other industries.
goIAM.org | @MachinistsUnion
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Feb 3, 2022 | iMail
Register now for the 2022 Machinists Wood, Pulp & Paper Council (MWPPC) Conference from May 9-13 at the Intercontinental Saint Paul Riverfront in Saint Paul, MN. A registration form and more information about the conference are enclosed in the conference call letter.
Register today for the 2022 Machinists Wood, Pulp and Paper Conference.
Please complete the form and return it to the IAM Woodworkers Department, c/o Terri Kenealy at 9000 Machinists Pl., Upper Marlboro, MD 20772, or email tkenealy@iamaw.org.
The conference registration fee will be $125 per delegate and $75 for each guest and can be paid upon arrival at the Conference. This fee will help defray the cost of the Machinists Wood, Pulp & Paper Council Conference.
MWPPC President William “Billy” Barnwell will chair this meeting and direct the busy agenda, which will follow CDC recommendations and fully comply with the State of Minnesota laws and guidelines for COVID-19. Council business will include Machinists Wood, Pulp & Paper Council Officer elections for Vice President and Sentinel, a host of great speakers, and a focus on organizing. The conference will hold a Guide Dogs of America-Tender Loving Canines fundraising event, and on Thursday afternoon, May 12, the conference will tour Bell Pole in New Brighton, MN.
If there are any questions concerning this conference, please direct them to Woodworkers Chief of Staff Mike Rose at 301-967-4555.
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Feb 2, 2022 | iMail
Starting in early 2021, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) made it clear that it intends to ramp up its ability to protect all workers and their rights. But this latest wave of outreach specifically includes Spanish-speaking workers—a large group of U.S. workers who have been excluded from such efforts in the past.
In March 2021, the NLRB launched a Spanish website with information about the Board and the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). Last month, the NLRB launched a Spanish language e-filing service on its website for users to file unfair labor practice charges and petitions for union elections. And the NLRB has created Spanish Twitter accounts for the NLRB and the NLRB General Counsel, along with posting its news releases in Spanish as well.
Why is the NLRB engaging in this Spanish-language outreach? Within the United States, over 41 million people age five or older speak Spanish at home, making it the second-most spoken language in the U.S., according to the U.S. Census. As the U.S. labor force has grown more ethnically diverse, the number of workers who are not native English speakers has increased, with more than 20 percent of the US population overall speaking another language at home (QuickFacts). Workers who do not speak English, or do not speak it as fluently as other languages, are less likely to know their rights at work, and are therefore more likely to be exploited.
“It is vital that our members can learn about their legal rights in ways that are accessible to them, including in their native languages, so we can better inspire effective and meaningful activism among our members,” said IAM General Counsel Carla Siegel. “We commend the NLRB and the Biden administration for taking this much-needed step to reach workers in more ways.”
To address these disparities, the new appointees at the NLRB have undertaken an unprecedented level of outreach to Spanish-speaking workers.
“By allowing workers, employers, and unions to file an unfair labor practice charge or union petition in Spanish, we’re going to reach a portion of the public that we may have previously been unable to engage with as effectively,” said NLRB Chair Lauren McFerran.
This is also why the IAM has created Spanish Leadership courses, available at the Winpisinger Center each year. This three-course series brings the Leadership I, II and III courses to IAM Spanish speakers, and allows participants to develop skills necessary to be a good Local Lodge officer and/or active member in their native language. The IAM wants all of its members to get access to the information needed to be good unionists on the job, and the Leadership program is an excellent start in Spanish or English.
“One of our top priorities is to train and motivate our next generation of IAM leaders in ways that reflect the changing labor movement and the evolving demographics of our country, in Spanish and English,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “The IAM continues to show its commitment to developing future officers, activists, organizers and leaders from all backgrounds to represent and add future members to the IAM.”
The IAM Spanish language program description can be found here, and District Lodge leadership can provide you with more information if you want to participate.
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