Brothers and Sisters,
Please click the link below for the latest leadership alert regarding Article 51 facts and rationale.
CLICK HERE: ARTICLE 51 FACTS AND RATIONALE: CLICK HERE
Click the link below for the related interest poll. Please click Yes or No, regarding your interest in the Union following through with article 51.
CLICK HERE: ARTICLE 51 INTEREST POLL: CLICK HERE
In Solidarity,
Local S6 Leadership
WASHINGTON, May 5, 2022 –More than 200 mechanics and related who work in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, at Lufthansa Technik, Puerto Rico, LLC. voted to join the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), the largest airline and transportation union in North America.
“This election is the voice and feeling of all of our co-workers who desire to progress here on the island without the need to abandon our families.,” said Lufthansa Technik Senior Aircraft Mechanic Jonathan Diaz. “It is very important for those who in the beginning and after so much training to try and reach their dream to feel proud of working in the aviation industry. A dream of many but at the same time so few attain it in the country. We will demonstrate that in Puerto Rico we do good and be better not only as humans but as workers.”
“We congratulate the Lufthansa mechanics and related work for choosing to join the Machinists Union,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “This victory is a win not just for the Lufthansa workers, but for all workers in Puerto Rico who are trying to make their lives better. We urge Lufthansa to respect the decisions its workers have made and come to the negotiating table in good faith. I want to thank the amazing IAM team on the ground, including Javier Almazan, José “Lole” Rodríguez-Báez, and Juan Negron, for their dedication to getting the Lufthansa workers an opportunity for union representation.”
The National Mediation Board (NMB) election results come months after aggressive tactics and appeal to stop Lufthansa Technik workers’ right to join the IAM. Last year, Lufthansa mechanics and related sought IAM representation due to various workplace issues, including reduced work hours, irregular work rules, and inadequate wages and benefits.
“The highly skilled aircraft mechanics and related at Lufthansa Technik have overcome many challenges over the past two years,” said Juan Negron, IAM Special Assistant to the International President. “I am proud of their courage and strength. It is time to sit down at the table and get a first contract to benefit the workers and their families. We will utilize the IAM’s full resources to ensure the workers at Lufthansa get what they deserve with a voice in the workplace and respect and dignity on the shop floor.”
“The Lufthansa Technik workers have spoken loud and clear,” said IAM Southern Territory General Vice President Rickey Wallace. “They now have the legal right to negotiate a contract that will improve their quality of life and give them respect and dignity. The IAM is fully committed to achieving a first contract at Lufthansa Technik.”
Lufthansa Technik mechanics and related provided service for United Airlines, Allegiant, Spirit, Avianca, and JetBlue until recently.
“Today we are full of hope because finally after overcoming so many obstacles, the day is here that we the Lufthansa Technik employees in Puerto Rico are united in one voice,” said Lufthansa Technik Aircraft Mechanic Carlos Santiago. “With this victory, all the employees working at Lufthansa will gain better working conditions.”
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) is among the largest industrial trade unions in North America and represents nearly 600,000 active and retired members in the manufacturing, aerospace, defense, airline, railroad, transportation, shipbuilding, woodworking, health care, and other industries.
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The IAM is joining the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) to help collect donated food in more than 10,000 communities across the country. The 30th annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive is set for Saturday, May 14, 2022.
Just leave non-perishable food donations next to your mailbox on May 14 and your mail carrier will take care of the rest. Donations will stay in your community to help those who do not have enough to eat.
Access to nutritionally adequate and safe food is limited or uncertain for 1 in 6 Americans. Many households include single working parents with young children, grandparents helping to raise their grandchildren, college students or households with one parent actively serving in the military.
With more than 50 million people facing hunger every day in America, including nearly 17 million children, this drive is one way you can help those in your community who need help.
If you or your local lodge wants to become more involved, visit the Letter Carriers’ Food Drive Tool Kit webpage by clicking here. On the site, you can help NALC by purchasing union-made grocery distribution bags, print out food drive posters and flyers, and contact your local NALC food drive coordinator.
Capture your hard work on or before Saturday, May 14, by sharing your best photos on social media with the hashtag #StampOutHunger. Your pictures could get posted on one of the official food drive accounts on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
The post Help Letter Carriers Stamp Out Hunger on May 14 appeared first on IAMAW.
Sisters and Brothers,
Today, we celebrate the 134th anniversary of our great union. In 1888, 19 Machinists met secretly in a locomotive pit in Atlanta declaring themselves “The Order of United Machinist and Mechanical Engineers.”
A year later, 40 local lodges were established, and in 1889, the first Machinists Union Convention was held at the state capital in Atlanta, with 34 locals represented. Our 40th Grand Lodge Convention will be represented by more than 800 locals this October.
Our founders would be proud of how our union has grown, both in size and diversity, as Machinists Union members now work in over 200 industries across North America.
As we reflect on our past accomplishments today, we also continue our preparations for the future. The core principles which built the IAM—justice on the job and service to the community—remain true to this day.
We will continue to hold corporations and politicians accountable, so working families can have a voice on the job, safer working conditions, and improved livelihoods.
In Solidarity,
Robert Martinez Jr.
IAM International President
The post Today, the IAM Celebrates 134 Years of Fighting for Working Families appeared first on IAMAW.
Apple store employees in Towson, Md. who recently organized a union called Coalition of Organized Retail Employees (CORE), with the assistance of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) filed for a union representation election yesterday with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).
Over one hundred employees should be eligible to vote in the election.
READ: Second Apple Store officially files petition to hold union election The Verge
“IAM is proud to support the employees at the Apple store in Towson on their union effort,” says IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “We represent customer service employees in multiple industries and are excited about the new wave of organizing efforts in the tech and service industries. These workers, like all workers, have the federal right to union representation and we are happy to see CORE file for election.”
CORE and IAM recently sent a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook informing him of the decision to organize their union, listing “access to rights we do not currently have” as a driving reason for the move, which has strong support from a majority of the workers.
“As other large companies in the service and tech sectors continue to organize we are also proud to take this step,” reads the letter. “As our store approaches its 20th year anniversary we think about the history of this company and how we have always been different; because we have always thought differently. Today we are asking you to do the same and to pledge not to use your resources to engage in an anti-union campaign to dissuade us. We ask that you voluntarily recognize our union so we can begin working together as equals in a spirit of cooperation and collaboration.”
The Coalition of Organized Retail Employees (CORE) is requesting that Apple follow the same neutrality requirement laid out in its Supplier Code of Conduct under the section “Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining” so that employees can obtain their rights to information and collective bargaining that the law affords through unionization.
READ: Maryland Apple Store Employees Move to Join the IAM IAM
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) 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.
@ACOREUNION | @ACOREUNION Instagram | goIAM.org | @MachinistsUnion
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