WASHINGTON, April 21, 2022 – Hundreds of mechanic and related workers at Lufthansa Technik, Puerto Rico, LLC. in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, are currently voting in a National Mediation Board (NMB) election to join theInternational Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), the largest airline and transportation union in North America.
The NMB sent out the mailed ballots to the employees on March 10, 2022. The election voting period is March 10through May 5, 2022. The final tally will be at the NMB offices in Washington, DC on May 5, 2022.
Earlier this year the National Mediation Board (NMB) ruled that the IAMhad provided the required showing of interest to proceed to a mail-ballot election. The Lufthansa Technik workers have endured aggressive anti-union tactics and appeals from management to stop their right to join the IAM.
Most recently, IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. and IAM Southern Territory General Vice President Rickey Wallacevisited with Lufthansa Technik mechanic and related workers.
“These hard-working Lufthansa workers are doing a fantastic job organizing their fellow employees and I urged them to vote for the IAM in this mail ballot election,” said Martinez. “They are facing many workplace issues, including reduced work hours, irregular work rules, and inadequate wages and benefits. With the IAM as their legal representative, we can help address these issues with management”
“Workers explained to us how this company has let them down year after year,” said Wallace. “Lufthansa Technik workers deserve competitive wages and benefits.”
“Our hope is to make a positive change,” said Juan Negron, IAM Special Assistant to the International President. “We know that we will represent the best interests of the workers and their families.”
The Lufthansa Technik mechanics based at Aguadilla maintain some of the biggest airline carriers globally, providing service for United Airlines, Allegiant,Spirit, Avianca, and recently, JetBlue.
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.
IAM International President Robert Martinez, Jr., has appointed Jon Irvine from Woodworkers Local W130 and District Lodge W24 as an Education Representative at the William W. Winpisinger Education and Technology Center in Hollywood, MD, effective July 1, 2022.
“I am proud to appoint Jon to the Winpisinger Center,” said Martinez. “He brings a wealth of relevant and practical knowledge to the Center and has been involved from the ground up in organizing and servicing. I know his knowledge and experience will be put to immediate use to the benefit of our membership.”
Irvine, a 12-year member of the IAM, comes to the Winpisinger Center with strengths in collective bargaining and organizing. He has organized workers in professions as diverse as law enforcement, government, healthcare, transportation, and timber product manufacturing.
“Organizing and growth are critical to our future,” said Winpisinger Center Director Chris Wagoner. “Jon has been involved in multiple organizing efforts, and he will be able to bring that experience into the classroom. He has also bargained contracts and argued grievances, which will contribute to our programs that teach collective bargaining and steward training. We are confident that Jon will make an impact on the union’s up-and-coming leadership.”
Irvine became Shop Steward for his department in 2013, Camp Shop Steward in 2014, Secretary-Treasurer in 2015, and Local Lodge President in 2017. He also represented the IAM on the Washington State Central Labor Council as Recording Secretary (2016-2017) and currently serves as chair of the Central Oregon Chapter of the Oregon AFL-CIO.
Irvine has also served the State of Oregon on the Governor’s Workforce & Talent Development Board (2019-2021); the Oregon Employment Department Modernization Taskforce (2020-2021); the Oregon Forestry Resource Institute (2019-present); the Eastern Oregon Workforce Investment Board (2019-present); and the Clackamas Workforce Investment Board.
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Richard Johnsen, IAM Chief of Staff to the International President (IPCOS), recently visited members of IAM Air Transport Locals 1351 and 2202 in Washington State. The visit included meetings and question and answer sessions with IAM members in the Seattle (SEATAC) and Tacoma airports.
IPCOS Johnsen has spent nearly the past year traveling the country to listen to air transport members and address their concerns in the industry.
“Meeting and listening to our members continues to be a top priority of mine,” said IPCOS Johnsen. “I want to hear and speak with members directly and answer any questions or concerns they may have about their workplace and the IAM.”
IPCOS Johnsen was joined on the visit around the SEATAC airport by Grand Lodge Rep Jeffrey Tobius, IAM District 142 President and Directing General Chair John M. Coveny Jr., District 142 General Chairs Kaleb Rosa, David Figueira, Jason McAdoo, Ole Staveland, Carrie Lessley, VP of Alaska Justin Bates and District 141 Assistant General Chairs Mike Maiorino, Shannon Robello, and Kyle Carroll.
“It’s crucial for the workers to hear from our Grand Lodge Representatives. Having IPCOS Johnsen doing these stations visits is very important,” said John M. Coveny Jr., IAM District 142 President and Directing General Chair.
IPCOS Johnsen visited with members at Alaska, American, Hawaiian Southwest, McGee Air Service and United Airlines.
IAM Local 4 (District 4) members continue to serve veterans in Charlotte Hall, MD. Their aspirations are an example of coordination with local VSOs (Veterans Service Organization)that the IAM Veterans Services Department encourages.
The Fighting Machinists at Local 4 provided liquid laundry detergent, body wash, and compression socks to the Charlotte Hall Veterans Home residents. Commander Mark Phippen of DAV Chapter 26 lauded the partnership with the IAM.
“This is just the beginning of a great partnership,” said Phippen. “The Fighting Machinists of Local 4 sets the standard for unions to follow when it comes to helping our veterans.”
Following the rollout of the new Veterans Benefits Support program and a rejuvenated Veterans Services Steering Committee, other Local and District Lodges are establishing more Veteran Service Committees of their own.
“This partnership with the DAV and Local 4 has been ongoing and has been incredibly beneficial for both groups,” said IAM Local 4 President Jeremy Leissner. “We look forward to continuing that relationship.”
The maintenance staff and caregivers at the Charlotte Hall, MD facility are Machinists Union members who take great pride in caring for the veterans residing there. In addition, members of Local 4 and the residents alike can see the improvements to the quality of life since the Machinists Union secured its first contract with the facility back in December 2017.
“Just as our members are passionate, so is the entire Executive Council to provide support to our military veterans,” said IAM Eastern Territory General Vice President Bryant. “We will continue to find ways to support our defenders, active and retired.
Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs) are organizations that aid and serve veterans, service members, dependents, and survivors. Descriptions of different types of VSOs appear in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA’s) VSO Directory.
According to the directory, VSOs may fall into one or more of the following categories:
– congressionally chartered organizations
– organizations recognized by VA
– organizations recognized by VA to prepare, present, and prosecute claims
– national organizations
– state, county, or tribal governmental organizations
– regional or local organizations or
– nonprofit organizations.
There is no uniformly applied statutory definition of the term VSO, but certain laws use the term more narrowly than the Directory of VSOs. For example, the Veterans Appeals Improvement and
Modernization Act of 2017 (P.L. 115-55) stated: “The term ‘veterans service organization’ means any organization recognized by the Secretary for the representation of veterans under section
5902 of title 38, United States Code.”
Maryland public library employees took their voices and their message to the State Capitol to lobby lawmakers to support House Bill 1225 which would give public library employees across the Free State the freedom to collectively bargain.
Negotiating committee members from IAM Local 175, along with District 98 Assistant Directing Business Representative Kermit Forbes, Winpisinger Education, and Technology Center (W3) Director Chris Wagoner, Director of Collective Bargaining Craig Norman completed a Negotiation Preparation Field Program prior to entering contract talks with Harley-Davidson last week.
The four-day training provided the bargaining committee with the tools needed to develop a strategic negotiating plan. Training included writing contract language, analyzing the company’s strengths and weaknesses, and communicating with members. The week concluded with the group giving a bargaining presentation, a facet of the class created to give the bargaining committee a simulation of the atmosphere at the bargaining table.
“The field negotiation prep program is one of our most important tools,” said IAM Eastern Territory General Vice President Brian Bryant. “This negotiating team has our full support and resources at their disposal.”
“The week of intense long days gave us the opportunity to assemble and develop a detailed plan to secure the best contract possible,” said Forbes. “The Committee worked hard, and they are better prepared to represent the needs of the members.”
“A huge thank you to the bargaining committee and ADBR Kermit Forbes for their hard work,” said District 98 Directing Business Representative Kevin Hallam. “Their hard work will pay off during the negotiation process.”
After rigorous preparation by the negotiating committee which represents nearly 700 IAM members working at three separate United Launch Alliance (ULA) locations across the USA, this week marked the beginning of negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement.
“We want to build and launch rockets, that’s what we are here to do. And no one can do it as well as the group of ULA machinists who have spent decades of their careers honing their skills and expertise,” said IAM Aerospace Coordinator Tony Wirth. ”Our team is the best of the best, helping ULA maintain a 100% mission success rate for launches. We are ready to partner with this company to bring to fruition a strong contract which will benefit both sides.”
“We build and launch the best rockets in the industry and that’s because of the dedicated men and women who have spent their careers making sure ULA remains a leader in the aerospace industry,” said IAM District 166 Assistant Directing Business Representative Kevin DiMeco. “I am so proud of this negotiating team and how prepared they are to bring home the best IAM contract for the members they represent.”
The current agreement covers Machinists Union members from IAM Local 610 in Cape Canaveral, FL, Local 44 in Decatur, AL, and Local 2786 at Vandenburg AFB in California, with the current contract set to expire on May 1, 2022. ULA Machinists are the hardworking men and women who make sure this country’s launch capability remains second to none by not only manufacturing but helping to launch rockets such as the Atlas 5, working with NASA, DoD, and a number of other federal agencies.
“These members put their lives, and the lives of their families, on the line during the COVID-19 pandemic by coming to work every day and making sure ULA remained an aerospace leader even in the most tumultuous of times,” said IAM Aerospace General Vice President Mark Blondin. “They deserve a contract that compensates them for all they have given to this company. We are ready, willing, and able to bring home a strong, IAM contract with wages, benefits, and working conditions that mirror the success this company has enjoyed because of our member’s hard work and expertise on shop floors across the country.”
“I am very proud of our members who launch the most technically advanced rockets that keep us safe and make our lives better,” said IAM Western Territory General Vice President Gary R. Allen. “Our members’ world-class work deserves a world-class, top-notch contract.”
“For more than half a century, the members of the Machinists Union have left their fingerprints on every aspect of the space program. We are very proud of that,” said IAM Southern Territory General Vice President Rickey Wallace. “We enter into this negotiation knowing the path for success our members have already carved and how the IAM will continue to set the trajectory for the future of space exploration and for ULA. We will do whatever it takes to bring home the best, possible contract for our members who deserve nothing less.”
With the country and the industry watching, the IAM/ULA negotiations are set to last for about two weeks. Priorities for IAM members in this contract will be to maintain health care costs, job protections, secure retirements and make sure our contracts are the preeminent standard in the aerospace industry.
For daily updates from the bargaining table, you can log onto www.iamulanow.com.
IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. has appointed David J. Lehive as a Headquarters Communications Representative, effective April 14, 2022.
Lehive, formerly the IAM District 141 Communications Director, is an award-winning communicator with a long history of telling worker stories and helping to develop and implement strategies that advance the goals and brand of the IAM.
“The IAM is fortunate to welcome Dave on board at Headquarters after many great years of service to our members at District 141,” said Martinez. “Our members across North America will quickly get to know Dave as a passionate and dedicated advocate for our union and all working people.”
Lehive was hired on with Piedmont Airlines in April 1985 and became a union organizer almost immediately. After years of airline mergers and persistence, Lehive and his coworkers won IAM representation at US Airways in 1994 and he initiated Philadelphia’s Essington Obie O’Brien IAM Local 1776.
In 2005, Lehive was appointed shop steward, where he helped with communications duties. In 2008, he was appointed local lodge communicator and in early 2009 was appointed District 141 communications coordinator for US Airways, and later for all air carriers in the district.
In 2019, Lehive was appointed communicator for the Pennsylvania State Council of Machinists Executive Board.
