At the 2022 Guide Dogs of America – Tender Loving Canines (GDA/TLC) Charity Banquet in Las Vegas last month, the non-profit honored different types of fundraising with superlatives to highlight creative events and inspire others to find fun ways to raise money.
The Machinists Wood, Pulp, and Paper Council was honored for having the “most innovative event”, a virtual barbeque that took place at the end of the summer.
IAM District Lodge 751 received recognition for a “first-time event”, a Halloween-themed Axe Throwing tournament at Axe Kickers in Seattle, Washington.
IAM District Lodge 142 was deemed “most committed to the cause” for their in-meeting penalty donation rule: a $25 donation ‘fine’ per phone interruption in local union meetings.
The IAM applauds members’ creativity in finding new and spirited ways to raise donations for GDA/TLC, a cause the entire union is passionate about. GDA/TLC hopes that awarding superlatives to creative fundraising will inspire others to imagine more original ways to incite donations.
Machinists Union and TCU/IAM members, along with the Georgia AFL-CIO, have mobilized over the past weeks to encourage members in the state to get out and vote to reelect worker-friendly U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock in Georgia’s U.S. Senate runoff on Dec. 6.
“I want to thank all the volunteers, the Legislative and Political Departments and my entire staff for working tirelessly throughout this very important campaign,” said IAM Southern Territory General Vice President Rickey Wallace. “Together, we have contacted thousands of members, helping to ensure the futures and livelihoods of working-class people statewide.”
“As you know, elections have consequences. Our nation’s working people need economic security, safe jobs, and the power to join and form unions,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. “This is achieved with the help of strong allies like Senator Warnock.”
The Georgia State Council of Machinists has endorsed U.S. Sen. Warnock because he is an ally in Washington in helping to pass legislation that working families desperately need.
IAM members are contacting thousands of Georgia Machinists via door knocking, member-to-member phone calls, robocalls, text messages, and emails.
On November 29, members of IAM Local 1802 (District 54) voted to ratify their union contract at Nordson Corp. in Amherst, OH, ending their 2-week strike and returning to work on November 30.
The new contract includes major victories for members including better mandatory overtime policies, higher wage increases, health insurance cost freeze, retirement benefits improvements and more.
IAM Local 1802 members stood together, fought for the treatment they deserve and proved that solidarity works when securing their new contract.
IAM members working at the Nordson Corp. manufacture products used for dispensing adhesives, coatings, sealing and more for end products that include packaging, electronics and medical equipment.
IAM District 54 represents more than 14,000 active and retired members in Ohio, West Virginia, northeastern Indiana and Michigan.
As the holidays approach and if you have not completed your holiday gift shopping, support union workers by buying union-made products. Union members have been working hard making this holiday season happen.
You can show some love not only by shopping for union-made gifts but also purchasing items from your favorite local union shop or supporting union-friendly companies.
From games, to beverages to sport equipment and more, the options are limitless.
Check below for a list compiled by the AFL-CIO of union-made holiday gift ideas:
The Winpisinger Center is excited to announce the call for the inaugural IAM Education Conference, to be held Sunday, March 26 through Friday, March 31, 2023, at the William W. Winpisinger Education and Technology Center in Hollywood, MD.
The conference will provide an opportunity for IAM educators at all levels to learn and share training techniques, materials, and strategies. Local or District educators, members of education committees, and other Local, District, and Grand Lodge leaders who currently provide training or want to expand training in their lodges are encouraged to attend.
The overall goal of the Education Conference is to advance and strengthen the IAM’s long commitment to building power through member education and training.
“When Tom Talbot organized nineteen machinists in that railroad pit in Atlanta, Georgia, he had already envisioned member education as a primary undertaking for the union,” said Winpisinger Director Mary McHugh. “It remains an essential component of our work almost 135 years after our founding.”
Conference topics will include methods and techniques of labor education, organizing, and steward and officer training, among others. Discussions about the labor movement’s role in politics and economic systems are planned to round out the curriculum. The conference will also allow the Winpisinger Center to learn more about the educational goals of the membership so that the curriculum can be refined and expanded to better meet their needs.
“We are developing a peer-to-peer mentorship program for IAM educators and plan to work with a number of organizations outside of the IAM allowing participants to network within the broader labor movement,” said Winpisinger Center Assistant Director Joe Gruber. “I am excited about the opportunities this will provide for the future of member education at the Winpisinger Center and in the field.”
The deadline for registration is January 31, 2023. Questions about the IAM Education Conference should be directed to Assistant Director Joe Gruber (jgruber@iamaw.org). Questions about registering for the program should be directed to Registrar Tracy Woodburn (twoodburn@iamaw.org).
For 16 years, the F-35 Lightning II program has played a critical role the American economy and national defense with nearly 300,000 total jobs supported across the F-35 supply chain nationwide, including thousands of Machinists Union jobs at Lockheed Martin.
“Machinists Union members working on the F-35 program across the country are the best in the world at what they do. With their finely tuned skills and expertise, they build the most advanced fighter aircraft the world has ever known,” said IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. in a letterto the White House. “As a nation, we must continue to invest in this program in order to stabilize the production line, support this indispensable workforce, shore up the supply chain and bolster our national defense industrial base.”
The IAM is the largest aerospace and defense union in the United States and has advocated consistently for adequate funding of the F-35 Lightning II program in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 defense budget.
In response to disappointing news that only 61 F-35 aircraft have been requested in the FY23 proposed budget, a 30% reduction in funding, IAM International President Martinez sent a letter to the White House demanding that the government fully fund the F-35 program in the best interest of national defense and American workers.
“The Machinists Union and our members are committed to the F-35 program and to the men and women in uniform who rely on this peerless aircraft; however, our members cannot adequately support the program without funding for a minimum of 86 F-35 aircraft a year for our U.S. Services,” wrote Martinez. “This minimum number of aircraft is absolutely necessary to keep our workforce intact and our production lines firing on all cylinders.”
The IAM is asking the U.S. government to support the highly skilled union workforce behind the infamous F-35 by investing in nation’s largest defense program, strengthening the U.S. economy, workforce and national security all at the same time.
The IAM’s Winpisinger Center recently hosted a Local Lodge History Program, an initiative that began in 2001.
“We did the program every couple of years,” said IAM retiree Charles Micallef. “The objective is to teach a team of people from a local lodge or district to research through history or collect it then find ways to disseminate it or make a presentation of it and then archive it so that it’s not lost again.”
Karen Lovelace, IAM Retiree and 12 other IAM members attended the week-long session at W3.
“This is something I’ve always wanted to do, but I knew I didn’t have time to do it correctly, and now that I retired from the actual work I can,” said Lovelace. “I think it would be important to have this put down somewhere for future generations”
Shop Steward nominations for the above classification(s), shift, and facility are now open. Petitions may be picked up beginning on Thursday, December 1, 2022, at the Local S6 Union Hall.
You must be a member in good standing for one (1) year to run for Shop Steward and the petition must be signed by ten percent (10%) of the members in the classification(s) affected.
All petitions must be returned to the Recording Secretary (Ryan Ryder) no later than 4:00 p.m., Friday, December 16, 2022.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) has filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to represent approximately 50 LMI Aerospace employees in St. Louis.
LMI Aerospace supplies structural assemblies, kits, and components for aircraft. They provide design engineering services to the commercial, business, regional, and defense aerospace markets, supporting aircraft product lifecycles from design to fleet support.
“Aerospace workers see the value in having a stronger voice in their workplace,” said IAM District 837 Business Representative and Organizer Dan Forbes. “They are machinists and highly-skilled manufacturing technicians who decided to organize because they know union representation will bring dignity, respect, better wages, and benefits.”
IAM is among North America’s largest industrial trade unions and represents approximately 150,000 workers in the aerospace industry, including approximately 2,500 members at the Boeing Co. in St. Louis.
“The IAM has a strong presence in the St. Louis area, and our union is dedicated to fighting for fair contracts for Aerospace workers,” said IAM Midwest Territory General Vice President Steve Galloway. “LMI Aerospace workers want respect and dignity on the job, and the IAM will help them achieve those goals.”
LMI is headquartered in St. Louis and has 13 locations across the United States and Mexico.
