Jul 26, 2022 | iMail
Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the First Responder Fair Return for Employees on Their Initial Retirement Earned Act (RETIRE) (H.R. 521) 417 to 0 in a bipartisan display of support for injured federal first responders. The bill requires agencies to place injured first responders who return to work with injuries into “equivalent positions” as they held before, thereby protecting their employment and accelerated retirement status. In addition, the act prevents first responders from losing thousands of dollars from forfeited retirement contributions that were paid by the employee at a higher than the standard rate under their “6(c)” retirement system.
“NFFE-IAM has been advocating for this fix to 6(c) retirement for years now,” said NFFE-IAM Federal District 1 National President Randy Erwin. “We are exceedingly pleased that Congress acted to preserve the employment and retirement classifications for injured first responders. I appreciate the leadership of Representative Connolly and Chairwoman Maloney for their leadership on the bill and for calling it to the House Floor under a suspension of the rules for quick passage. I urge the Senate to pass the accompanying bill and put it on President Biden’s desk as soon as possible.”
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Jul 26, 2022 | iMail
Ahead of today’s high-level meeting between the U.S. and 13 Indo-Pacific nations, more than 100 civil society organizations urged the Biden administration to increase transparency and public participation in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) as talks heat up.
IPEF is expected to be the most consequential trade initiative of the Biden administration and is being proposed at a time when voters are increasingly skeptical of trade deals. The organizations – representing a broad swath of labor, environmental, human rights, faith, family farm, and consumer organizations – warned the deal could be viewed in the same light as the unpopular Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) if it is drafted in a manner that bars the public from reviewing negotiating texts, while corporate advisors maintain access.
“The IAM will continue to fight for a fair trade policy that puts workers first,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “IAM members have felt the hardships from trade policies that give corporations the upper hand while they offshore our jobs. “The IPEF needs to include binding and enforceable labor and environmental standards. We have an opportunity to create a trading strategy that builds upon the U.S. labor and environmental laws. Now is not the time to turn our back on our nation’s workers.”
Signers of the letter include the American Federation of Teachers, Amnesty International USA, Citizens Trade Campaign, Communications Workers of America, Government Accountability Project, Greenpeace USA, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, National Family Farm Coalition, National Organization for Women, Partners In Health, Public Citizen, Rethink Trade, Sierra Club, Trade Justice Education Fund, United Steelworkers and many others.
The groups urged the administration to replace the corporate advisory system with an on-the-record public process, including public hearings, to formulate U.S. positions and obtain comments on the draft and final U.S. text proposals, as well as consult and engage with Congress throughout the process.
“One of the fundamental reasons why the TPP became so unpopular was that it was negotiated under the influence of hundreds of corporate advisors while the public and Congress were locked out,” the letter said. “Terms needed for the deal to benefit most Americans were traded away in favor of special protections for the corporate interests that had access.”
“We share your goal of creating a new model for U.S. trade policy that prioritizes the interests of working people, communities of color, the environment, consumers, and family farmers instead of just big corporations,” the letter said. “A transparent and participatory negotiating process is critical to ensuring the best possible outcomes from IPEF or any other future trade negotiations.”
A full copy of the letter and its signers is available at: bit.ly/IPEFTransparency
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Jul 26, 2022 | iMail
IAM Local 459 members recently ratified a new contract with Waterous Company that raises wages, gets the union time with new employees, increases shift differentials, and more.
The 150 IAM Local 459 members at Waterous Company in Saint Paul, Minn., manufacture fire hydrants, municipal water valves, and pump apparatus for fire trucks. Negotiations began on May 17, and a tentative agreement was reached on June 21.
“It was a strong negotiating committee, and the whole group was engaged, had t-shirts made, and members wore them every Friday in solidarity,” said District Lodge 77 Directing Business Representative John J. Steigauf. “They weren’t afraid to respectfully speak their minds and made sure the company knew our position. These successful negotiations were a team effort.”
The deal is a three-year contract with a nine percent wage increase in year one and three percent in years two and three. The second and third shifts each got increased shift differentials, and the company increased its contribution to members’ 401(k) and pension retirement funds.
The negotiating committee maintained its employee portion of their healthcare premium and eliminated the surcharge penalty for members who don’t complete a wellness check.
The new contract also establishes a 30-minute new-hire orientation for the steward to explain the union’s presence at the facility and how it is the union who bargained for their good wages and benefits.
Over the course of negotiations, eight IAM military veterans signed up with the IAM’s veterans assistance program and were able to get help with questions about Veterans Affairs.
“This is a great contract for IAM Local 459 members,” said Midwest Territory General Vice President Steve Galloway. “Their engagement and visible display of solidarity throughout negotiations paid off. Their work is an example of what happens when a negotiating committee puts in the hard work. I commend DBR Steigauf for leading this effort.”
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Jul 24, 2022 | iMail
Today, July 24, 2022, the United Rail Unions, who are bargaining as part of the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way/SMART Mechanical Coalition, and the Carriers represented by the National Carriers Conference Committee (NCCC) began their presentations before the Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) appointed by President Biden. The hearings are scheduled to continue through Thursday, July 28, with Friday reserved for facilitation meetings with the parties and the PEB. Following the hearings, the PEB will issue recommendations for settlement of the national agreement dispute. A second thirty-day cooling off period will begin when those recommendations are issued, which should occur on or before August 15.
A summary of the proposals being advanced by the United Rail Unions can be found here, and a summary of the proposals being advanced by the NCCC can be found here. The Unions’ proposals include a 5-year wage proposal seeking an increase of 31.2% when compounded, while the Carriers are asking the PEB to recommend 17% compounded over 5 years. On the issue of healthcare, the Unions are seeking status quo for employee costs sharing and only seeking slight increases in autism and hearing benefits that are long overdue. Despite employees keeping the Nation’s rail system operating during the pandemic as “essential employees,” the Carriers have the unmitigated gall to ask the PEB to recommend massive healthcare concessions in both the form of drastic increases in employee costs and decreases in certain benefits for employees along with healthcare plan changes that only serve to further increase the records profits they are already reaping. In addition, to wages and healthcare, the Unions are also seeking to create a national sick leave policy and to add 3 new holidays, along with various craft specific work rule proposals.
As we have previously communicated, the United Rail Unions remain unified in their efforts to secure the best contract possible for our members. We will show this week that the Unions’ proposals are supported by current economic data and are more than warranted when compared to our memberships’ contribution to the record profits of the rail carriers.
Additional information will be provided as developments warrant. We appreciate your continuing support.
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The unions comprising the Coordinated Bargaining Coalition are: the American Train Dispatchers Association (ATDA); the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen / Teamsters Rail Conference (BLET); the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS); the International Association of Machinists (IAM); the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers (IBB); the National Conference of Firemen & Oilers/SEIU (NCFO); the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW); the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU); the Transportation Communications Union / IAM (TCU), including TCU’s Brotherhood Railway Carmen Division (BRC); and the Transportation Division of the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail, and Transportation Workers (SMART–TD).
The Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees Division and SMART Mechanical Unions are also bargaining as a coalition.
Collectively, these Unions represent approximately 115,000 railroad workers covered by the various organizations’ national agreements, and comprise 100% of the workforce who will be impacted by this round of negotiations.
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Jul 24, 2022 | iMail
ST. LOUIS, July 24, 2022 – Nearly 2,500 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District 837 have voted to strike the Boeing Co. in St. Louis. IAM District 837, which represents workers at three Boeing Defense locations, released the following statement regarding the rejection of the company’s offer:
“Our members have spoken loudly and with one voice. We reject Boeing’s current contract offer and will strike at all three St. Louis area locations, starting at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 1, 2022. We cannot accept a contract that is not fair and equitable, as this company continues to make billions of dollars each year off the backs of our hardworking members. Boeing previously took away a pension from our members, and now the company is unwilling to adequately compensate our members’ 401(k) plan. We will not allow this company to put our members’ hard-earned retirements in jeopardy.
“We stand in solidarity across the United States and will use the might of the Fighting Machinists to bring home a contract that allows us to build and produce some of the best military aircraft and weapons in the world, and enables us to take care of our families.
“It is the bravest decision a union member makes to go on strike, putting their family and loved ones at risk. We do not make this decision lightly or in haste, but do so in order to stand up for working people around the globe and fight for the contract we deserve.”
IAM members at District Lodge 837 build and produce the world’s best weapons and military aircraft, including the F-15, F-18, T-7A trainer, and the MQ-25 unmanned refueler. The plants on strike include St. Louis, St. Charles, Mo., and Mascoutah, Ill. Boeing locations.
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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