effort - International Union of Operating Engineers

Transcription

effort - International Union of Operating Engineers
International
Operating Engineer
spring 2007
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Spring 2007
g e n e r a l o f f i c e r s
Vincent J. Giblin, General President
Christopher Hanley, General Secretary-Treasurer
William C. Waggoner, First Vice President
William E. Dugan, Second Vice President
Jim McLaughlin, Third Vice President
Brian E. Hickey, Fourth Vice President
Gary Kroeker, Fifth Vice President
John M. Hamilton, Sixth Vice President
Allan B. Darr, Seventh Vice President
Kenneth Campbell, Eighth Vice President
Patrick L. Sink, Ninth Vice President
William K. Duffy, Tenth Vice President
Gerald Ellis, Eleventh Vice President
Jerry Kalmar, Twelfth Vice President
Phil Schloop, Thirteenth Vice President
Russell E. Burns, Fourteenth Vice President
Frank Hanley, General President Emeritus
t r u s t e e s
Mark Holliday, Chairman
John T. Ahern, Trustee
Mike Gallagher, Trustee
Rodger Kaminska, Trustee
Kuba J. Brown, Trustee
The International Operating Engineer
(ISSN 0020-8159) (USPS 581900) is published quarterly by the: International Union of Operating Engineers
1125 17th Street, NW - Washington, DC 20036
Printed in the USA on union-made paper.
Subscription Terms - $5 per year
Change of Address - Requests must be submitted
in writing to the IUOE Membership Department (address
above). Include your new address, registration and local union
number.
POSTMASTERS – ATTENTION:
Change of address on Form 3579 should be sent to:
International Operating Engineer - Mailing List Dept.
1125 17th St., NW, 3rd Floor - Washington, DC 20036
Periodicals postage paid at Washington, DC and additional office
Publications Mail Agreement No. 40843045
Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to:
PO Box 503
RPO West Beaver Creek
Richmond Hill, ON L4B 4R6
t ON THE COVER:
Local 103 (Indianapolis, IN)
members are working on Lucas
Oil Stadium, the future home
for the Super Bowl champion
Indianapolis Colts. The $850
million project is expected to
be completed in 2008 (See
Page 5) . Photo furnished by
Above All Aerial and Special
Photography.
International Operating Engineer
ff e
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s
eatures
Spring 2007 - Volume 150, No. 1
Editor - Christopher Hanley
Local 94 ratifies new pact
4
Local 3 dismantles Carquinez Bridge
6
GEB Open Session - setting a new direction
16
M ak ing a difference
31
departments
departments
9
Organizing News.............. 9
Safety & Health News...... 10
Legal Briefs.......................... 10
Education & Training....... 11
Stationary Engineers....... 12
Canadian News................. 12
Politics & Legislation.......
Central Pension Fund............ 13
Hazmat News........................... 14
Around the Locals.................. 21
Members’ Service................... 22
GEB Minutes............................. 25
In Memoriam............................ 29
An IUOE perspective
•
General President Vincent J. Giblin
Reaping the benefits of working together
I
t’s a good idea every so often to take time to assess
where we stand as an organization. In the simplest
terms, we accomplish that by figuring out how far we’ve
come from where we started, and how far we still have
to go. Based on the findings of this inventory-taking, we
can make informed decisions about what policies and programs are working or what adjustments have to be made.
We recently completed such an assessment, using a starting date
of March 2005, the date when I was entrusted with stewardship of
our union. Two years later, the bottom line is that it’s a great time to
be an Operating Engineer and the state of our union is vibrant and
strong.
The work picture for Operating Engineers is excellent, not just for
this year, but for years to come, with few exceptions in virtually every
geographic region of the U. S. and Canada.
We have a growing membership; we are in solid financial condition; the advances we have made in the priority areas of political
action, organizing, training and health care are remarkable.
These successes are fueled in large measure by our new way of
doing business: together. More members and more local unions than
ever are actively involved in the continuing efforts to protect and advance the interests of all members and their families.
Perhaps nowhere was the effectiveness of this new participatory
approach better illustrated than in the area of political action, especially the November 2006 elections. Our members made their voices
heard and their influence felt in these elections on the national, state
and local levels.
We took a bi-partisan approach to the elections and were successful in the vast majority of those races we specifically targeted.
Our members recognize that many of their jobs depend on the actions of legislators at all levels of government – and they spoke loud
and clear via their votes to protect their interests.
Our successes election day were not born that day. They were
the result of initiatives and programs launched well over a year before the election to help reinvigorate a basically dormant, voiceless
political action program. We took to heart populist commentator
Jim Hightower’s admonition that “the only things in the middle of
the road are yellow stripes and dead armadillos” and got off political
dead-center and into the trenches.
Operating Engineers is fast becoming a household name across
the entire political spectrum. As even more and more members and
locals get actively involved in political efforts, it won’t be long before
“Operating Engineers” is a name that all political parties and all politicians not only know, but also listen to and respect.
There is another way we can increase our influence in the political-legislative arenas. To find out how, turn to the Point of View
column on the inside back cover of this issue. It’s a tantalizing idea
and one that scores of IUOE members are involved in, but we’ll be
saying more about that in future issues. In the meantime, please read
the Point of View column.
Our union has a growing membership, mostly as a result of the
aggressive organizing being done by our local unions. There is no
question that organizing is an extremely difficult task. But with the
growing shortages of skilled operators throughout the U. S. and Canada, we have to take advantage of the situation to organize and build
our strength in our core industries and increase our density.
We have to look hard at what organizing strategies work and, at
the same time, recognize that not all strategies work the same in different regions. We presently are committed to trying some new, dif-
ferent approaches in our restructured Southern Region, and will continue to explore any
and all avenues to organize.
We also implemented a number
of changes to our Organizing Grant
Program to make it more efficient and
effective. Locals wanting to participate for the first time in the program
or wanting to renew an existing grant
must now submit a detailed plan, including strategies and timelines to
accomplish their goals. Most importantly, we now mandate accountability in the grant program.
The IUOE recognizes that organizing sustains the vitality of our
union, and we remain committed to
organizing the unorganized to build
a stronger union.
There is not an Operating Engineer out there who does not realize
that education and training produce
skills, and that skills produce employability and job security.
Knowing that, the importance
and value of the unparalleled training offered by the IUOE and its local unions cannot be understated at
this time of projected record work
opportunities in the construction industry and the growing shortages of
skilled operators.
‘... the
bottom line
is that it’s a
great time
to be an
Operating
Engineer...’
To help our members take full
advantage of this state of affairs, the IUOE and its local unions have
expanded their training programs greatly, especially in the pipeline
industry.
Lastly, every member understands all too well that virtually all
of any negotiated wage increases over the last many years has been
allotted to his or her health and welfare fund to maintain medical
coverage in the face of outrageous health care costs.
To help ease the strain on our members and their families of these
out-of-pocket medical and prescription drug costs, the International
and many of its local union health and welfare funds have been forming coalitions that allow us to negotiate package deals to secure lower
pricing from medical providers and prescription drug suppliers.
In fact, the greatest success we had in this regard was last year
when we negotiated a vastly improved pharmacy benefit pricing program for our health and welfare funds that will mean significantly
lower drug costs for participating funds and members.
The key to our continued progress in keeping costs somewhat
manageable is to expand our coalitions to include more and more local unions and their health and welfare funds and to continue opening and maintaining lines of communication between our various
funds so we can share helpful information. Unfortunately, there is no
magical elixir that will cure the pain of health care costs, but we intend to pursue all possible avenues to keep the pain to a minimum.
The bottom line is that the IUOE and its members are doing well.
We will continue to do well if we stay the course. It is, indeed, a new
day and a new way in the IUOE and our members and their families
are the better for it – and will be for years to come.
Spring 2007
Davis-Bacon Y E S
I
n a well-earned victory for the IUOE and other trades,
the U. S. House of Representatives rejected an amendment to repeal Davis-Bacon prevailing wage coverage
by a 2 to 1 majority vote, 280 to 140. This was the first
time in nearly 10 years that there was a straight up-ordown vote strictly on Davis-Bacon on the House floor.
On Friday March 9, the House debated H.R. 720, the Water Quality Financing Act of 2007. This $15 billion reauthorization of the Clean Water Act would provide thousands of
jobs over the next four years in the construction of sewage
disposal and other waste water treatment facilities.
In the course of the debate, an amendment was offered to
strike all of the underlying Davis-Bacon prevailing wage coverage. The House rejected this effort as reported above. The
vote came in the face of a Bush Administration threat to veto
the legislation over the prevailing wage issue. Every Democrat present and voting supported the IUOE position, as did
50 Republicans. On final passage of H.R. 720, the vote was
303 to 108, more than the number needed to override a veto.
The anti-union Associated Builders & Contractors made
this vote a priority and they were crushed on a bi-partisan
basis. When coupled with a House vote of 264 to 164 the
previous week to defeat ABC-supported legislation that
would have banned “salting” as a legitimate organizing
tool, the ABC has now suffered two consecutive defeats in
the House.
While the fight in the Senate on H.R. 720 will be difficult given the close partisan divide, this effort reflects the
IUOE’s commitment to utilize political and legislative resources to focus on job-creating infrastructure legislation
and to defeat all attacks by right-wing construction foes.
The active involvement of IUOE local unions and members
in the political process was instrumental in achieving this
solid legislative victory.
Local 94 ratifies four-year pact covering commercial buildings
A
dhering to the old adage that “united we stand….,” the members of Local
94 (New York City) maintained a united front during months of sometimes
contentious negotiations with the Real Estate Advisory Board (RAB) on a
new contract covering their work in the city’s commercial buildings.
Business Manager/IUOE Trustee Kuba Brown credited the members’ solidarity
as pivotal in the local’s success in securing sufficient benefit improvements that
the members ratified a new four-year contract with RAB by about 3 to 1.
“They turned out for membership information meetings and for several public
rallies,” Brown said. “We had nearly 3,000 at
a rally at Rockefeller Center right after Christmas where we took our case to the public.”
He added that Local 94 also received support in its efforts from others locals in the area
and from numerous local politicians.
“Our
members
supply skilled, quality
service to hundreds
of commercial buildings in the city, many
of them well-known
landmarks, and they
wanted and deserved
better health care
benefits,” he said after the contract was
ratified Jan. 10, 2007.
“And by staying united, we were able to
get a pact that the
members
approved
overwhelmingly.”
International Operating Engineer
Local 94 Business Manager/IUOE Trustee
Kuba Brown leads a rally of thousands
of members and supporters as they take
their cause public.
Local 94 members and
supporters, pictured here
and on the left, make
their sentiments known
and their voices heard at
a public rally.
Local 103 building new home for Super Bowl Champs
Local 103 operators, above, at work on the new $850 million Lucas Oil Stadium the future home of the Indianapolis
Colts. Inset: An architectural rendering of what the new stadium will look like when completed in 2008.
W
hile Peyton Manning and
company are focused on
building a Super Bowl
dynasty
following
this
year’s championship, the members
of Local 103 (Indianapolis, IN) are
focused on building a new home,
worthy enough for that of a Super
Bowl champion.
Just a stone’s throw from the RCA
Dome, the Colts home of more than
20 years, Lucas Oil Stadium is quickly
becoming an imposing part of the
downtown Indianapolis skyline.
With 65 Local 103 operators
working on the project, the state-of-theart sports complex is in capable hands.
Construction of the stadium is being
overseen by Hunt Construction Group
under a project labor agreement.
The $850 million stadium is slated
to be completed in time for the kickoff
of the Colts’ 2008 season. With a
seating capacity of 63,000 that can be
expanded to 70,000, the stadium has
a retractable roof that will allow the
Colts to play in open air when the
weather permits. Lucas Oil Stadium
is just one of several new projects to
which Local 103 members are applying
their expertise.
Other jobs include a $1 billion
airport project, using more than
150-200 operating engineers, and a
$180 million highway project in the
downtown area.
Lucas Oil Stadium will cover over
1.8 million square feet and include 142
corporate suites and 183,000 square
feet of exhibit space.
When the stadium opens, it will
have the largest operable window
in the world. Located above the
north end zone, the window will
allow scenic views of downtown
Indiananapolis. However, that title
will be relinquished once the new
Dallas Cowboys stadium, with its dual
open windows in each end zone, opens
in 2009.
In addition to serving as the
new home of the Colts, Lucas Oil
Stadium will be eligible to host
NCAA Basketball March Madness
Tournament games and serve as a
back-up host for the Final Four.
Once finished, the stadium will
include one million square feet of
poured decking, 600,000 square
feet of slab on grade, 1.1 million
concrete blocks and over
14,000 tons of steel in
the roof structure.
Spring 2007
C arquinez Bridge
Demolition involves Local 3 members, contractors
The Carquinez Bridge, built
be finished by the fall of
in 1927, has a long history
this year, and the historical
of being overshadowed. It was
bridge with its steel cantifinished on the day Charles
lever structure, will disapLindbergh completed his famous
pear completely from the Bay
transatlantic flight and since
Area skyline.
then has been elbowed out of
Local 3 (Sacremento, CA)
the spotlight by its famous
members and contractors began
sisters, the Bay and Golden
its demolition in April 2006,
Gate bridges. Even though the
because the cost of retrofitCarquinez Bridge was the Bay
ting the bridge for seismic
Area’s first modern steel span
safety specifications wasn’t
and the first
much less than
bridge erectbuilding a new
ed to actively
bridge. The de• The Carquinez Bridge actually
resist
shock
refers to the three parallel bridgconstruction has
by
the
use
es crossing the Carquinez Strait,
been
a
lesson
of
hydraulic
linking Vallejo to Crockett.
in patience, as
dampers, it is
• The 1927 bridge was dedicated
literally
piece
virtually unon May 21 and cost $8 million
by piece of the
known.
to build – it costs $18 million to
giant
structure
tear it down. It was the first maHowever, to
has been lifted
jor bridge in the Bay area.
the angst of
onto barges and
• In 1958, a similar bridge was
some,
maintaken to the Mare
built to serve eastbound traffic.
ly those old
Island shipyards
• In 2003, the new Al Zampa susenough to reto be used as
pension bridge was built to remember
its
scrap metal. Conplace the Carquinez Bridge for
construction
tractors include
seismic
safety.
and
Crockett
California Engi• The complete demolition of the
residents who
neering, Balfour
1927 Carquinez Bridge should
have viewed it
Beatty and CS Mabe finished in the fall of 2007.
as a landmark
rine, among othfor
decades,
ers.
the
CarquiAccording
to
nez Bridge will rest only in
28-year-member and Crane Opmemory, overshadowed again by
erator Vince Capizzo, “It’s
the eastbound 1958 bridge and
really
something
to
see.
the westbound Al Zampa Bridge
There’s a lot of history be(constructed in 2003), both
hind this bridge.” He continseismically secure.
ued: “Pop some of the rivets
The complete dismantling of
– Caltrans wanted some of that
the Carquinez Bridge should
for a historical museum.”
1927 - 2007
From the south side of the Carquinez Strait,
the Al Zampa Bridge to the left and the 1958
bridge to the right remain fully intact, while
the center piece of the Carquinez Bridge has
already been taken down.
From the north side, a crane is shown placing
pieces of the bridge onto trucks.
t FAR LEFT
From the left, Local 3 Deck Engineer Doug Kniss,
Crane Operator George Mariscal and Fairfield
Organizer John Galeotti are pictured on site at
the Carquinez Bridge Demolition Project.
t NEAR LEFT
Using four strand jacks (for a total of 76
strands), operators began demolition of the
Carquinez Bridge on April 25 by lowering the
first section of deck.
International Operating Engineer
Hoover Dam crane accident delays Bypass Bridge
C
ompletion of the Hoover Dam Bypass
Bridge was set back by at least two years
when a high wind-related effect caused
a series of tower cranes with attached
cables to fall onto the Nevada approach of U. S.
Highway 93 last fall.
Because the workday had ended, no injuries were
reported, and the bridge was not damaged in any
way. But replacing the collapsed crane system has
pushed back the bridge opening from late in 2008 to
the end of 2010.
The 280-foot tower cranes formed a pulley-type
high line system spanning opposite sides of Black
Canyon over the Colorado River. The lines were constructed for delivery of materials used in both foundation structures and the main arch crossing. The
2,300-foot-long steel cables carried up to 50 tons of
materials and workers about 1,100 feet over the river.
A number of ongoing investigations are underway
by insurers, engineers, subcontractors and suppliers
because the contractors need to understand what
failed. Investigation indicates that when one of the
two towers broke on the Nevada side of the canyon,
its steel cables dragged down the other three towers.
The remaining mystery is why this crane, previously
used at other construction sites, did not survive the
type of wind gusts that brought it down.
High winds were expected to be a major challenge
from the outset, which is why the bridge itself is being constructed to withstand winds of up to 100 mph.
But the tower crane system was designed to operate
where high winds are not unusual. On the day of the
accident, winds had been clocked as high as 55 mph.
Cost of the project, originally budgeted at $234
million with an additional $6 million built-in emergency cushion, is now expected to exceed the entire
figure. Engineers have finished bridge approaches on
the Nevada and Arizona sides of the canyon and are
partially through building support columns on either
side of the river.
For the remainder of this year construction will
continue with derrick cranes. These conventional
cranes will not extend out as far over the canyon as
the high-line cranes, but are sufficient for current
work phases until the tower crane system is rebuilt.
Even though high winds were were taken into consideration
for the design and construction of the Hoover Dam Bypass
Bridge in Nevada, the two tower cranes, above, toppled over.
The system is being rebuilt by a partnership of multinational construction firms that are the project’s primary contractors. These include the Obayashi Corp.
and PSM Construction USA Inc.
The new high-line crane system will be rebuilt
from scratch, instead of utilizing an imported used
system, like the old one. And the new crane will be
designed specifically for the work site about a quarter-mile south of the dam.
The revised construction schedule calls for building the arch and deck of the bridge over the river.
The deck should be finished by the spring of 2010,
with paving work starting early that year. When
complete, the 1,905-foot span will carry U.S. Highway 93 traffic 890 feet above the river, giving the Las
Vegas Valley easier access to northwestern Arizona
where a number of Southern Nevada developers are
planning residential developments.
Spring 2007
7
From a high crane seat, retiree has seen the world
Local 3 member reflects on a fulfilling career
L
ocal 3 retiree Brian Mackwood is not your average
guy. At 66 years of age, he has traveled around the
world at least four times, lived in seven different
countries, is fluent in five languages, holds the Manitowoc record for the largest lift in the Middle East – 1,100 tons
in Saudi Arabia – and helped build the Fillmore Center, more
than 500 feet in the air in a tower crane, during the 1989 San
Francisco earthquake.
This is just the beginning. He and his wife, Susanne, hold
many artifacts from their travels overseas, including a python
that fell across his loader in New Guinea. The loader won (or
Brian Mackwood won, depending on how you look at it), and he
still has the python to prove it; that python made it to many of
his children’s show-and-tell presentations, and if you talk to any
one of them, you’ll realize that they never forgot that python.
The Mackwoods have four children – Ronnie, Kelly, Brian and
Jason and five grandchildren.
According to Mackwood’s youngest son, Jason, his father
misses the work tremendously.
“My father’s story is a good one,” he said. “Many operators
will probably never see the places my father has,” Jason said.
“It’s kind of like when you say the phrase ‘the olden days’ – that’s
what I would compare it [his life] to.”
Now, Jason believes that traveling is not as easy as it used to
be with high security and strained international relations.
Despite all of Mackwood’s worldly travels and adventures
(he could easily be deemed the Indiana Jones of Operating Engineers), including operating a dozer in New Guinea at 14,000 feet
above sea level or driving 140-foot pile on
San Mateo Bridge,
“I have always felt the
the best aspect of his
lucky to be an Operating Local 3 career has
traveling to jobs
Engineer... it’s the best been
with his family.
thing that ever happened
to me.”
“Whenever they
could come with me,
they did,” Mackwood
said, “so everybody
had the experience of
traveling, and I remember coming off the jobsite in Venezuela
and seeing my children interacting one-on-one with the teachers there. They [his children] had excellent schooling and could
speak many different languages.”
Mackwood learned of the Operating Engineers through befriending the son of member Arthur “Buzz” Haskins and being
exposed to the work and the lifestyle through him. Mackwood
had two years of college under his belt but quickly learned that
dirt work could lead to travel (something he was always fond of,
since he was born in Canada and moved to the U.S. when he was
a young child) and excellent benefits, and so he signed on with
Local 3 in 1962, making him a 45-year member. Through the con-
International Operating Engineer
struction company Bechtel, he was one of the youngest operators
to travel abroad.
And thanks to
Local 3, Mackwood
has led his adventurous lifestyle and collected artifacts and
legendary stories fit
to fill volumes.
“I have always
felt lucky to be an
Operating Engineer;
I loved to go to work
every day. It’s the
best thing that ever
happened to me,”
said Mackwood.
He recalls being
in the union in the
Local 3’s Brian Mackwood and his wife,
60s and how back
Susanne, have been married 45 years – just
then, the union was
as many years as he has been a member of
run differently in
the local.
the sense that officers were getting
used to the business side of running things, rather than running
equipment. Consequently, their attention was focused on learning how to make the transition.
“Today,” he said, “the officers work entirely for the members.
We wouldn’t have the things we have now if it wasn’t for them
working as hard as they do.”
Mackwood is clearly appreciative. There is nothing boastful
or bold about him, even though he has bragging rights to experiences the rest of us could only dream of having, including
witnessing the 1989 San Francisco earthquake from 500 feet in
the air.
“I was pouring concrete, and there was a rumbling and shaking. It was dusk, and then a wave like an ocean roll started, and
I heard dogs barking and car alarms and hollering,” Mackwood
recalled, “but I was in the best place to be, I guess.”
Mackwood is in the best place to be right now as a retired
Operating Engineer. Having traveled and lived internationally for
years, he and his wife enjoy traveling within the U.S. now. They
are especially fond of the Grand Canyon. Their four children are
still within close proximity as they have always been.
Mackwood is not a big talker. He doesn’t have to be. His presence says enough, along with his quiet voice that does not brag,
but simply states the facts.
What advice does Mackwood have for apprentices hoping to
live as he has?
“Work hard, work as many hours as you can. You’ll see it’s
worth it. You’ll see it in your adventures and your retirement - it
is a great way of life.”
Highway funds restored, Clean Water bill cleared
F
aced with a potential $4 billion cut in the highway and transit program left over from the previous Congress, the recently installed Democratic congressional leadership crafted a 2007
fiscal year spending package which restored the
$4 billion and preserved 192,000 jobs. Most of these goodpaying jobs are in the construction industry. The International Union led a coalition of other
basic trades and industry groups in
defending the higher levels of federal infrastructure investment.
In a related development, the House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee reported out a $15 billion Clean
Water Act reauthorization bill for floor
debate in March. H.R. 720, the Water
Quality Financing Act of 2007, would
result in tens of thousands of jobs
building sewage disposal and other
clean water facilities. During committee debate, much attention was focused
on the application of Davis-Bacon prevailing wages to the construction dollars flowing from the State Revolving
Loan Fund (SRF) program. With strong
bi-partisan support, the committee adopted the long-held IUOE position that
Davis-Bacon wages apply to all rounds
of construction assisted by the SRF financing mechanism.
committed to scheduling floor debate and a vote in early March.
On the issue of Davis-Bacon coverage, we anticipate a strong
bi-partisan vote from Democrats and Republicans who want to
move this construction program forward. The non-union Associated Builders and Contractors have never been able to garner
a majority in opposition to Davis-Bacon because of the bi-partisan political approach of the IUOE and other National Construction Alliance unions. (See related
story, Page 4.)
politics &
legislation
The Republican leadership in the House over the past 10
years refused to schedule a floor vote on this major construction
program because of Davis-Bacon prevailing wages. Speaker Pelosi (D-CA) and Majority Leader Hoyer (D-MD) have already
On a final note, the House voted
241 to 185 March 1st to pass H.R.
800, the Employee Free Choice Act
(EFCA). All but two Democrats supported final passage, along with 13
Republicans. This bill, which is a priority of the AFL-CIO, would allow
employee card check options during
organizing drives instead of relying on
the NLRB’s broken and largely ineffective election process.
While the House vote is a positive
first step for enactment into law, the
prospects for passage in the Senate are
much more difficult, and the Bush Administration already has threatened to
veto EFCA. The enactment of EFCA is
likely going to be a multi-year project
and require a change in administrations.
During the debate, the Associated Builders and Contractors suffered a major defeat when conservative Republican Representative Steve King (IA) offered an amendment to
prevent union “salts” from partaking in elections. His amendment
was resoundingly defeated, 264 to 164, with 34 Republicans voting with 230 Democrats against the ABC position.
Organizing
news
Local 234 organizes Global Spectrum employees
Local 234 (Des Moines,
IA) recently organized 16
maintenance engineers from
Global Spectrum, pictured
here on the right. Global Spectrum operates the
Iowa Events Center in Des
Moines – the largest facility of its kind in
the state.
Spring 2007
safety & Health News
National 811 number launched to help prevent digging mishaps
t
he Common Ground Alliance (CGA) has
launched a new national 811 “Call Before You
Dig” web site – www.call811.com – designed
to serve as a national resource for
professional excavators. The new web site
is being launched to educate industry
audiences, which includes professional
excavators and homeowners about the
new 811 “Call Before You Dig” telephone
number.
811 is the new FCC-designated national
number created to eliminate confusion of
multiple “Call Before You Dig” numbers
across the country. Currently there 62
One Call Centers with multiple “Call Before
You Dig” numbers across the
United States. The national
811 number will eliminate the
confusion of multiple numbers
while continuing free and easy
local service.
This quick and efficient service
connects callers with local One Call Centers who notify the
appropriate local utilities, who then send crews to the requested
site to mark the approximate location of underground lines.
Whether planning a commercial excavation project, planting
a tree, installing a fence or a deck; the entire process is easy and
at virtually no cost to the professional excavator
or the do-it-yourself homeowner. The number
will be officially launched to the public on May
1, 2007.
Knowing where underground lines are
buried before each digging project helps
prevent injury, expense and penalties. In
2004, according to industry data, CGA
estimates there were approximately 680,000
underground line strikes resulting in
damages, including service outages and
injury.
Many of these accidents might have been
avoided by calling ahead to have lines
marked before digging. A recent national
survey conducted for CGA shows
that confusion exists among
the public as to the necessity
of calling before every dig
job. In the survey, only 35% of
homeowners indicated they or someone in their house have
called to have their utility lines marked in the past.
Lawyers Conference held in Phoenix
M
ore
than
70
lawyers
representing IUOE locals and
their related benefit funds
gathered in Phoenix in January for
the IUOE Lawyers Conference.
The
lawyers heard 22 different presentations
on a wide variety of topics.
IUOE Associate General Counsel
Helen Morgan led a panel discussing
recent National Labor Relations Board
decisions on whether workers with certain
authority to assign and responsibly direct
work are “supervisors” and lose their
legal protections; the panel also addressed
NLRB decisions on unit placement in the
health care industry.
Assistant General Counsel Elizabeth
10 International Operating Engineer
Nadeau moderated
a discussion of
various state laws
designed to rein in
employer attempts
to
misclassify
workers as independent contractors.
Central Pension Fund Counsel Mike
Crabtree led a panel which discussed the
Pension Protection Act of 2006, the most
important piece of pension legislation
since ERISA was enacted.
Legal briefs
The participants also had lively
discussions on immigration laws, various
subcontracting issues and the steps
necessary to make sure construction
industry unions have full representative
status. Finally, a conference highlight
was a wide-ranging question and answer
session, moderated by Local 18 Counsel
Bill Fadel, with three lawyers who, in
addition to representing IUOE locals,
also serve as General Counsels for other
international unions.
Education
&
Training
Locals complete pipeline training
Local 66 (Pittsburgh, PA) conducted pipeline training at its site in New Alexandria, PA
last November. Twenty-three members representing five locals completed the training.
Participants in the photo above included, front row, left to right: Instructors Bill Nathan,
Dave Riffle, Terry Ross and Keith Hoover. Second row, from the left (with local affiliation
noted): Tim Nearhoof (17), Bob Morrison (542), Joe Wilson (542), Eric Schultz (17), Jim
Schroeder (17), Steve Meyokovich (66), Brian Wolfgang (66) and Pete Kuhn (66). Third
row, same order: Matt Northrop (66), James Helewski, Jr. (542), Frank Morrison (178),
Tony Stasko (66), Wes Mitchell (542), Kurtis Gatrell (178), Frank Kephart (66) and Steve
Krzanowsky (66). Fourth row, same order: Dan Yohn (66), Steven Johnson (66), Mark
Swift (470), Keegan Lachut (17), Dave Houssock (542), and Paul Ziegelhofer (17).
Local 57 apprentices
complete training
Local 57 (Providence, RI) held its first CCO training class for apprentices. Participants included,
front row from the left, Doug Arruda, Damon
Hamilton, Vincent Silvaggio, John Savoy and Ralph
D’Ambruoso. Back row, same order, are Local 57
Administrator Chris Treml, Gary Torkomian, Don
Gliottone, John Grissom, Harry Charland, Glenn
Gresko, Jim McQuaide, John Pomfret and Instructor John Doorley.
Local 487 holds OSHA class
A Local 57 apprentice practices excavating during
the Hazmat training course.
Local 487 (Miami, FL) held its first OSHA 7600 Disaster Site Workers
class in January. Instructors included Chip Booth, from the National
Hazmat Program, and Training Director Mark Schaunaman. Participants
pictured, kneeling from the left, Roderick James and Mark Hall. Middle
row, same order: Kevin Bisby, Timothy Tayor, Jean Bustamante, Oscar
Castillo, Wendly Alexis and Daniel McCullers. Back row, same order:
Randall R. Piersall, Michael O’Hana, John Epperson Jamie Massey,
Wade Corley, Michael Smith, and Schaunaman.
Local 57 apprentices following completion of
their 40-hour Hazmat course. Kneeling are Jonathon King, left, and Training Site Coordinator Ellery Wood. Middle row, left to right, are Treml,
Carlos Perez, Jeff Steere, Walter Clark, David Rita,
Jason Tavares, John Fernandes, and Instructor Jim
Woloohojian. Back row, same order, Brookes Leone, David Crum, Ann Alexyon, Kyle Moffat, Craig
Shalvey, Chad Friel and Terry McNamara.
Spring 2007
11
Local 501 apprentice grads honored in Las Vegas
Stationary
engineers
Local 501’s Justin White, second
from the left, was
honored with the
2005
Apprentice of the Year
award. Pictured
with him, from
the left, are: Business
Manager
Jim McLaughlin,
Trustee Tom Ervin and Coordinator Mike Russell.
White, a
second generation Local 501 apprentice, never missed a night of
instruction during his four-year apprenticeship. He will be joined
by his brother who will graduate this year.
Local 501 (Los Angeles, CA) held its 2005-2006 Apprenticeship Graduation Dinner honoring the local’s 23 apprentice graduates at Bally’s Las Vegas. Business Manager/
IUOE Vice President Jim McLaughlin, second row, center,
is pictured with some of the graduates. Front row, left to
right are: Claude Braithwaite, Daniel Gonzales, Justin
White and Michael Chavez. Second row, same order: John
Stocker, Christopher Homer, Trustee Tom Ervin, McLaughlin, Coordinator Mike Russell and Chris Kachnik. Third
row, same order: Chris Mortensen, Frank Baldassare, Ronald Dressler, Ron Cole,
Shawn Barnes, Ricardo
Cacho, Matthew Reasner, Jose Duran, Rick
Parker, Justin O’Rourke,
Paul Wheeler, Gregory
Minarchan and standing,
top, is Daniel Benstead.
t
Greg Minarchan,
second from the
left, was presented with the
plaque for 2006
Apprentice of the
Year by Local 501
Business
Manager McLaughlin,
Ervin and Russell. Minarchan,
whose
attendance and grades
were the highest
of his class, received numerous marks of “outstanding” on work
evaluations from his employer and “was always the first to help
fellow apprentices who had trouble with their assignments.”
A special award was presented by the Local 501 Apprenticeship Committee to Fran Escar
zaga, pictured front center. Escarzaga entered the apprenticeship program in 1981 and was the first female apprentice to be dispatched to an employer, the Las Vegas Hilton - where she remained. During those 25 years at the Hilton, she met her husband Craig Es
carzaga and after a “lifetime”, as Fran puts it, she retired.
CLocal 905
anadian News
elects Goulet
as new business manager
Local 905’s (Montréal, QC) executive committee recently elected LouisJean Goulet as its new Business Manager. Due to the growing construction in Québec, including the beginning of the Eastmain A-1 Dam project,
Goulet is starting off with a very busy agenda.
12 International Operating Engineer
Central Pension Fund
Wall Street looks back 350 years to fix 401(k)s
I
t is well documented that
both Wall Street and Corporate America are very
fond of 401(k) retirement savings plans. They
view 401(k)s as a perfect solution to two problems they have
with traditional defined benefit
pension plans. For Wall Street,
401(k)s permit investment firms
to charge much higher fees than
they can collect from defined
benefit plans; for Corporate
America, they permit companies
to shift investment risk and funding costs to workers. Presto, two
problems solved.
But workers have been left to
search for solutions to the three
great problems of 401(k) plans:
Savings Investment and Longevity risks.
Savings risk is the risk that you
will not be able to save enough
in your 401(k) to provide an adequate retirement; Investment
risk is the risk that even if you
do save enough, you will choose
the wrong investments and lose
what you have saved; Longevity
risk is the risk that even if you
save enough, and wisely invest,
you will outlive your 401(k) account and be destitute in your final years.
While all three of these risks
can doom a secure retirement,
Longevity risk is the one that you
have no control over. You have
some control over your savings
and investment choices.
But
only the good Lord controls your
longevity.
Of course Wall Street and
Corporate America have had a
ready answer to workers concerned about Longevity risk -- when you retire just buy an
annuity policy with your 401(k)
account. Insurance companies
sell such policies to the general
public. At retirement, you hand
your 401(k) account to an insurance company, and they will provide you with a monthly payment
for life. The larger your account
balance, the larger your monthly
benefit. There is just one catch
to this solution --- insurance
companies charge about a 20%
fee for such annuity policies. But
since Wall Street and Corporate
America are already making out
like bandits on 401(k) plans, why
shouldn’t the insurance industry
get a piece of the action, too?
Now however, a large Wall
Street firm is proposing a new
concept as an alternative to expensive insurance policies to
solve Longevity risk. The problem is that this new concept
was invented 350 years ago by a
schemer in France, and has been
outlawed in the United States
since 1906. The concept is called
Tontine.
In February of this year, Pensions & Investments magazine
reported that Mellon Capital
Management Company, a large
investment firm, is developing
a plan design that will permit a
Tontine feature to be added to a
401(k) plan to produce a monthly
annuity payment for life, without
the 20% commission charged by
insurance companies. There is
only one problem to overcome -- Tontines were outlawed in the
United States because they were
prone to corruption and murder.
Tontines were invented for the
French government in 1652 by an
Italian banker named Lorenzo
Tonti. The concept was simple: a
group of people would get together and each would make a contribution to a common account.
Thereafter, each member of the
group received a fixed interest
payment each month for life from
the account. As each member of
the group died, the monthly payments to the remaining members
became greater. The last survivor
received the largest monthly payment of all until he or she died,
at which time the remainder of
the account went to the government.
In theory these schemes
worked just fine, but in real life
they were subject to all of the corruption of any gambling scheme
--- and were open invitations for
group members to hasten the
demise of their fellow members.
That’s why Tontines have been
unlawful in the United States for
the last 100 years.
It is the greatest of ironies
that a Wall Street investment
firm is attempting to resurrect
these ancient, discredited Tontine schemes to solve a problem that didn’t exist before Wall
Street and Corporate America
abandoned defined benefit pensions. It would be laughable if it
weren’t tragic.
Spring 2007
13
hazmat
NHP 2007 Instructor Training Schedule
The National HAZMAT
Program is announcing
its complete 2007 Instructor Training Schedule,
supporting
its
10-year Plan. This is accomplished by offering sufficient instructor training/development courses to bring all active instructors back annually to enhance their skills
and knowledge. The 10-year plan builds
an instructor’s credentials, while ensuring
that necessary refreshers are received to
maintain those credentials.
news
If you or your Instructor are interested
in attending any of these courses please
contact the NHP at hazmat@iuoeiettc.
org or call (304) 253-8674.
COURSE
DATES
Respiratory Protection Competency Training
May 7 - 10, 2007
Teaching Techniques Instructor Training - Intermediate to Advanced
May 14 - 17, 2007
OSHA 500 Construction Industry Train-the-Trainer
May 21 - 24, 2007
Trenching, Shoring and Excavation Train-the-Trainer
June 11 - 14, 2007
Teaching Techniques Instructor Training - Intermediate to Advanced
June 25- 28, 2007
OSHA DSW 5600 Train-the-Trainer
July 16 - 19, 2007
OSHA 502 Construction Industry Instructor Update
Aug. 6 - 10, 2007
Confined Space Train-the-Trainer
Aug. 13 - 16, 2007
Trenching, Shoring and Excavation Train-the-Trainer
Sept. 10 - 14, 2007
MSHA Instructor Trainer
Sept. 17 -21, 2007
OSHA 502 Construction Industry/OSHA 503 General Industry Instructor Updates
Sept. 30 - Oct. 5, 2007
OSHA 500 Construction Industry and OSHA DSW Worker Train-the-Trainers
(Session 2 of Initial Instructor Training)
Oct. 15 - 26, 2007
Why Disaster Site Worker training now?
“Disaster sites shouldn’t be the place for introductions,” says
Larry Demark, training director, IUOE Local 825. This was a lesson learned at the World Trade Center and a host of other sites
of disasters that have occurred where skilled support personnel
and emergency responders worked together. Workers trained
to respond to disasters and to work as a team with emergency
responders are vital to improve rescue chances of victims, and
facilitate the recovery and reconstruction of the disaster site.
•
The IUOE National Training Fund and the National HAZMAT
Program support OSHA’s goal for the Disaster Site Worker (DSW)
Training Program to develop a cadre of workers who are highly
trained to respond safely to natural and man-made disasters.
Training before work at any disaster site is vital. It is essential that
all workers who may be involved at a disaster site have a basic
understanding of safety and health hazards and are adequately
trained. This includes differences in hazards between a disaster
site and a construction site, incident command system, decontamination, and inspection, and donning, and doffing of an airpurifying respirator for their own protection. Workers who complete all of the following courses are issued the OSHA Disaster Site
Worker Training Program Card documenting training expertise.
The 40-hour HAZWOPER course: this is the minimum level
of training for workers engaged in hazardous substance
removal or other activities which expose or potentially expose workers to hazardous substances, including chemicals, biological agents, radioactive materials, and explosives. Both of these courses are typically used to teach
workers on day-to-day hazards associated with normal
working conditions.
•
The OSHA Disaster Site Worker Course #7600: provides instruction relevant to emergency situations, where working
conditions may be drastically different (thus the hazards
as well) from day-to-day operations.
•
The 10-hour Construction Outreach course: provides information/awareness of safety and health hazards that occur on a daily basis on a normal construction site.
The National HAZMAT Program strongly encourages all locals to train workers to the Program Card level, now. This will ensure that the IUOE has that cadre of trained workers to respond
safely to natural and man-made disasters and improve the IUOE
national response capacity. Having this kind of training before
“the disaster” sets IUOE members apart from the rest and puts
them ahead of others. These workers can help ensure the continued protection for workers involved in recovery and cleanup
efforts. This level of training is recommended to build alliances
between Operating Engineers and Emergency Responders to
save lives during disasters.
OSHA Disaster Site Worker 5600 Train-the-Trainer
The National HAZMAT Program conducted an OSHA Disaster Site Worker (DSW) 5600 Train-the-Trainer course November 13 – 16, 2006. Twelve participants from eight IUOE Local
Unions and the Anaconda Job Corps successfully completed
the course and are authorized to return to their Local Unions
and conduct the OSHA DSW 7600 Worker Course. The OSHA
DSW 7600 course prepares heavy equipment operators and
stationary engineers as skilled support personnel to work on
disaster sites, often side by side with emergency responders.
14 International Operating Engineer
CPR/AED/First Aid Training offered
The National HAZMAT Program currently has four American Red Cross
authorized trainers and two American Heart Association authorized trainers on staff. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation/Automated External defibrillator/First Aid can be conducted for local unions as an individual course or as
part of another class, such as the 8-hour HAZWOPER Refresher. The National
HAZMAT Program soon will have instructor trainer status with both of these
organizations. This will enable Master Instructors to be trained as instructors
to conduct CPR/AED/First Aid courses for local union members.
To better serve the IUOE local unions a national account with the Red
Cross has been established. This enables the National HAZMAT Program or
local union instructors to more easily conduct Red Cross courses nationwide
and conduct the training at a discounted rate for materials and equipment.
Instructors also receive the advantage of dealing with the National HAZMAT
Program instead of their local Red Cross chapters. This type of arrangement
is also being negotiated with the American Heart Association.
Courses conducted include:
• Master Instructors at the National HAZMAT Program Training Facility in
Beckley, West Virginia – 11 Master Instructors received CPR/AED/First
Aid training as part of their OSHA Disaster Site Worker 5600 Train-theTrainer course.
• Local 132 at their training site in Ravenswood, West Virginia – 83 members received CPR/AED training as part of their annual 8-hour HAZWOPER Refresher.
• National HAZMAT Program staff received CPR/AED training; First Aid
training is scheduled in coming months. The Program has three AEDs
located on site at the training facility in Beckley, West Virginia.
• Boh Brothers Construction, an IUOE signatory contractor, at their facility in New Orleans, Louisiana – 15 Boh Brothers Construction staff received CPR/AED/First Aid training. Classes are also scheduled for Boh
Brothers’ staff during March 2007.
For additional information on CPR/AED/First Aid courses, contact the National HAZMAT Program at [email protected] or call 304-253-8674.
Building Alliances guide now available
The National HAZMAT Program released on February 21, 2007, the guidance document: Building Alliances Between Operating Engineers and
Emergency Responders to Save Lives During Disasters. The guidance document is produced under an OSHA Susan Harwood Grant and was developed by a steering committee consisting of representatives from IUOE Local
Unions who have successfully formed relationships with emergency response
groups, representatives from emergency response groups including state Urban Search and Rescue Teams, and both hoisting and portable and stationary operating engineers.
The guidance document facilitates how IUOE Local Unions can form proactive working relationships with emergency response groups, focusing on
lessons learned from past experiences. The guidance document is available from the National HAZMAT Program and will be posted on the website
www.iuoeiettc.org.
The guidance document was officially released at the annual State Urban
Search and Rescue Alliance conference held in College Station, Texas, February 20 – 21, 2007. During this conference, Bill Byrnes from IUOE Local 825,
who was an invited speaker, gave a presentation on the alliance formed
between Local Union 825 and New Jersey Task Force 1, one of the successful
relationships discussed in the guidance document.
more • HAZMAT
News > page 19
HAZWOPER TRAIN-the-TRAINER
CONDUCTED AT LOCALS
The National HAZMAT Program
conducted a HAZWOPER Train-theTrainer for IUOE Local Union 150,
November 26 – December 1, 2006,
at their training site in Plainfield, Illinois. The course authorized seven
members to instruct the HAZWOPER
general site worker curriculum.
If your local union, or several
locals in close proximity to each
other, has a need for a HAZWOPER
Train-the-Trainer course, the National HAZMAT Program will provide the
instructors and conduct the Trainthe-Trainer at your location. Each
candidate for the course needs to
have completed the 40-hour general site worker HAZWOPER course
as a prerequisite.
NEW DISASTER SITE WORKER
TRAINING KITS AVAILABLE
The National HAZMAT Program
recently added three Disaster Site
Worker training kits to its training
equipment cache. Each kit consists of hands-on training items to
assist instructors with conducting the OSHA DSW 7600 Worker
Course. Examples of items within
the kits include respirators, chemical protective suits, boots, hard
hats, and industrial hygiene pumps.
The kit will allow instructors to provide real, hands-on training equipment for subjects within the course.
The kits are available to the Local
Unions and should be ordered on
the course proposal form as the Local Union would do with any other
equipment. The course proposal
form is located on the Program’s
website at www.iuoeiettc.org.
NHP CONDUCTS MASTER
INSTRUCTOR COURSES
The National HAZMAT Program’s
Ten Year Plan addresses the challenges of structuring initial and refresher training and continuous
professional development. As part
of this plan the following Master Instructor training courses were conducted at the National HAZMAT
Program Training Facility in Beckley,
West Virginia.
Spring 2007
15
2007 GEB Open session
IUOE: ‘Walking the walk’
K
icking off the 2007 General Executive Board Open Session, IUOE General
President Vincent Giblin noted that “history” was being made by meeting in
Phoenix, being the first time an Open Session was held in a locale other than
Florida. While history may have been made with the location, the accomplishments and objectives discussed during the Open Session will pave the way for a
new history – one that will place the IUOE at the forefront of the labor movement.
“At the end of this week I want each of you to leave here with a sense of
empowerment and that we are setting a new direction for our union,” said
General President Giblin.
Keeping with the “A New Day – A New Way: Together” theme, this year’s
meeting maintained its focus on the IUOE’s key initiatives: Organizing, Political Action and Healthcare, with daily workshops over the course of the week
addressing each in detail.
“Overall, 2006 was good for the IUOE and its members,” said Giblin.
“The success we enjoyed and the initiatives we implemented will serve as a
stepping stone for even more success and innovation in this coming year and
beyond.”
General President Giblin outlined IUOE’s accomplishments over the past
year and provided an overview of the direction the union will take in the
years to come.
During his keynote
address to the more than
300 delegates in attendance, Giblin
emphasized the three standards that
he continues to incorporate into the
daily administration and operation
of the union – involvement, accountability and openness.
On the political front, Giblin
said, “We were a major player on
all levels of the political spectrum
(in the 2006 elections) and that fact
is well recognized. We now have
a reputation as an organization that
doesn’t just talk the talk, but that actually walks the walk. All of us, working together, helped earn that reputation and we
intend to build on it.”
Emphasis was also placed on increased and enhanced training initiatives for IUOE
members in both the construction and stationary fields. Last year’s establishment of the
National Training Fund, to coordinate and streamline the union’s training endeavors,
reiterated the IUOE’s increased effort.
Another key initiative addressed during the opening remarks was the realignment of the
International’s regional structure,
which is scheduled for completion over the next few months.
The realignment led into another
one of the union’s three key issues
– organizing.
Vice Presidents William Waggonner, John Hamilton, Gary Kroeker and General Secretary-Treasuer
Christopher Hanley provided delegates with briefings regarding other
issues of importance.
16 International Operating Engineer
M
embership rolls in the IUOE are growing thanks to the dedicated organizing efforts of our local unions. Even
better, the prospects for continued organizing success are bright, based on the record
levels of construction work projected for the next
many years…and the growing shortage of skilled
operators.
As Jim VanDyke, IUOE chief of staff, told the Open
Session delegates, “we have to take full advantage of
the opportunities afforded by these circumstances to
organize and build our strength in our core industries
and to increase our density.”
While organizing is acknowledged as hard work,
the IUOE is committed to working with its locals
and members to explore reasonable strategies and
even alternative methods. “Organizing is our lifeblood,” VanDyke said,
“so we best insure its
sustenance.”
In point of fact, some
new approaches are being
implemented in the recently restructured Southern
Region. The reasoning is
that the South historically
has been very difficult to
organize in, so why not try
something different.
Changes in the
Cooperative Organizing Grant Program now require locals applying
for a grant or a renewal of a grant to submit detailed
plans, including strategies and timelines for reaching
their stated goals.
ORGANIZING
T
A
ll IUOE members and their families have to cope
the best they can with the still-spiraling costs of
medical care and prescription drugs. That dilemma is evident each time a member gets a wage
increase, only to see most – if not all – of it go to the local union health and welfare fund to maintain – hopefully
– the coverage they have.
The International Union committed two years ago to do
whatever it could to help curtail these rising costs. It established
a Healthcare Initiatives Department under the direction of David
Treanor to coordinate all efforts in this regard. In addressing the
Open Session, Treanor said the IUOE recognized the practical
truth of the adage that there is strength in numbers. Accordingly, the International
began
encouraging its local unions
and their health and
welfare funds to join together
in a coalition to create more
bargaining power.
Last year the IUOE hired
Trivantage Pharmacy Strategies to represent the IUOE
and its coalition of local
health and welfare funds
and to draft a Request for
Proposal to be presented to
several Pharmacy Benefit
Managers.
The end result, after a very lengthy process of consideration
and review of several proposals, was the negotiation last year
of a new pharmacy benefit pricing program that means significantly lower drug prices for our participating health and welfare
funds and their members.
If we are to continue the initial successes in securing lower
prices for prescription drugs, it is essential that we constantly
expand our coalition by bringing more and more local union
health and welfare funds on board, and maybe even look at the
feasibility of forming coalitions with other International Unions
and their local funds.
HEALTH CARE
POLITICAL ACTION
he big news on the political front was the 2006 elections,
which handed Democrats control of both the House and
the Senate for the first time since 1981. In addition, Democratic candidates won gubernatorial and legislative seats in key battleground states.
“This shift in the nation’s political landscape can be accredited, in part, to labor and
the mobilization of more than 13 million union voters,” noted IUOE Political-Legislative
Director Tim James in his opening remarks during the political action workshop.
Following a summary of targeted races and statistics on the impact of union voters,
James focused on IUOE efforts during the election. IUOE’s increased presence in the political arena was evident in its jump from 18th to 3rd largest labor contributor from 2004
to 2006 with an increase of more than 75% in contributions.
James noted the key to IUOE’s political infrastructure is to continue to build a solid
financial base for the EPEC Voluntary Fund and an active, involved membership.
Other speakers included IUOE Assistant General Counsel Elizabeth Nadeau, who discussed legal issues regarding
PAC contributions, and Northeast Region Political Director William McSpedon, Jr., who addressed public-private partnerships and state prevailing wages.
Spring 2007
17
2007 GEB Open session candids
18 International Operating Engineer
HAZMAT News • continued from > page 15
Respiratory Protection Competency Training
The National HAZMAT Program conducted a Respiratory Protection Competency Training Course December 3 – 7, 2006.
Seventeen Master Instructors from 12 IUOE Local Unions successfully completed the course. In addition, two organizations, the International Association of Fire Fighters and New
Jersey Task Force 1, participated in the course. These orga-
nizations have key roles during a disaster and understand
that Respiratory Protection is an important issue. The participants were impressed with the information they received
during the course and the IUOE’s commitment to provide
its Instructors the tools needed to train IUOE members.
OSHA Disaster Site Worker 5600 Train-the-Trainer
M
an-made disasters such as the
attacks on 9/11 or natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina cause security breeches and disruption of critical infrastructure such as
power, often for millions of consumers.
No one knows more about a facility and
how to prevent, mitigate, and recover
a facility and its energy infrastructure
than the IUOE Stationary Engineer. To
expand upon this knowledge, in direct
relation to the disaster, the National
HAZMAT Program conducted Energy/
Homeland Security courses for IUOE
Local Union 701 and Local Union 68.
The course is tailored to the Local
Union’s needs and can vary from three
to eight or more hours in length. The
course covers areas such as facility vulnerabilities, weapons of mass destruction, and use of HVAC systems to control
releases among a number of others. The
course also includes hands-on demonstrations using working scale models of
facilities and simulated agent release.
The course can also be adjusted for a
specific population of Stationary Engineers, for example, those that work in a
public school district.
Jim Coates, Local Union 399 training director and Master Instructor, conducted the Energy/Homeland Security
course for IUOE Local Union 701 January
20, 2007, in Gladstone, Oregon. Nineteen local union members successfully
completed the course.
Jesse Wagner, Sr., Local Union 835
training director and master instructor,
and National HAZMAT program staff,
conducted four courses for IUOE Local
Union 68 January 5 - 6, 2007, in Caldwell,
New Jersey. Successfully completing the
course were 275 local union members.
NHP Te a c h i n g Te c h n i q u e s c o urse held
The National HAZMAT Program conducted a Teaching
Techniques course December 11 – 14, 2006. Twentythree Master Instructors from 10 IUOE Local Unions and
three Job Corp locations successfully completed the
course. This course is designed help instructors develop
education skills when teaching safety and health topics
to workers. The basics were covered, starting with the development
of course objectives and a teaching outline. The course stressed
participation techniques, role playing, case problems, and questionnaires. Techniques for presenting and focusing information was
explained and demonstrated (for example, lecture, flip charts, overheads, PowerPoint, and computer-based content).
Spring 2007
19
HAZWOPER 40- and 8-hour training held
The National HAZMAT Program offers a broad
spectrum of safety and health training to IUOE locals. Upon request, the NHP will schedule a staff
or master instructor to conduct a direct training
course at the local, an employer’s site, or other appropriate locations. Most recently, the NHP conducted the following direct training courses:
• 40-hour HAZWOPER training; 35 students; Local 302
• 8-hour HAZWOPER refresher; 5 students; Local 302
• 8-hour HAZWOPER refresher; Local 25
•
40-hour HAZWOPER training; 7 students; Local 370 •
8-hour HAZWOPER refresher; 23 students; Local 370
•
40-hour HAZWOPER training; 38 students; Local 103
•
40-hour HAZWOPER training; 10 students; Local 400 •
16-hour OSHA DSW training; 14 students; Local 487
•
40-hour HAZWOPER training; 11 students; Local 302
•
40-hour HAZWOPER training; 8 students; Local 302
(pictured in the two photos, right)
(pictured in the three photos, left and bottom)
Master Instructor Teaching Techniques training offered
T
he NHP is offering two new sessions of teaching techniques
for intermediate to advanced Master Instructors at the NHP
in Beckley, WV on May 14-17 and June 25-28, 2007. The program will be provided by the Lippy Group, LLC and is entitled,
“NIOSH Pocket Guide and the DOT Emergency Response Guide:
Old Tools, but New Approaches for Teaching IUOE Members.”
tors may not possess or confidently communicate. This course is
aimed at providing that confidence by allowing Instructors to perform interesting chemical experiments under the guidance of a
chemistry professor who has worked with labor unions previously.
Working in groups, students will demonstrate key concepts from the
Pocket Guide like specific gravity and incompatibilities.
This course will provide trainers with a greater insight into using
the NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards and the DOT North
American Emergency Response Guidebook, as well as Material
Safety Data Sheets, by actually performing experiments and building models of the chemicals that operating engineers encounter
on normal job sites and on hazardous waste sites. The course is
designed to provide master instructors with training tools and techniques they can immediately use in their courses, including experiments and demonstrations that are easy and safe to conduct in
their classes. This is a hands-on course!
Working in groups, master instructors will also be taught to calibrate and use industrial hygiene equipment after choosing the correct sampling media from the Pocket Guide. This will be followed
with a group exercise using the NIOSH CD-ROM to look up sampling
methods for specific contaminants. Asbestos sampling and analysis will be explained by a former laboratory director who will provide
students the opportunity to fiber count through a microscope.
NIOSH intended the Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards to serve
as a source of general industrial hygiene information for workers,
employers, and occupational health professionals. Millions of copies have been distributed since its creation in 1978. Unfortunately,
the Pocket Guide is difficult to use, containing many abbreviations
and condensed technical data for 677 chemicals. It also assumes
an understanding of chemistry that many workers and peer instruc-
20 International Operating Engineer
Significant time will be dedicated to understanding the Pocket
Guide codes to choose proper respiratory protection, gloves and
protective garments. Each student will be provided with a CD
that contains a program for properly choosing Personal Protective
Equipment. Participants will receive lots of useful materials/tools
they can take with them to apply in their courses, including all of
the PowerPoints and exercises used by the course instructors.
To sign up for this course or receive further information please
contact the NHP at (304) 253-8674 or [email protected].
s
cal
ound
the lo
Local 94 receives visit from Hartley House children
ar
Local 94 (New York, NY) members, pictured left with Business Manager/
IUOE Trustee Kuba Brown (standing far right), were paid a special visit by the
children and staff from the Hartley House, which provides educational and
various social services to children and other residents of the Hell’s Kitchen
community on Manhattan’s West Side. They thanked
Local 94 for their generous gift of toys at Christmas. As
a show of their appreciation, the children also brought
several trays of baked goods for Local 94 members.
Local 280’s Johnston retires
Local 280’s (Richland, WA) Business Manager Larry G. Johnston announced his
retirement after more than 35 years of service. He began his career with the local in
1970 as a business representative assigned to the Othello office, where he worked for
12 years.
In 1982, Johnston went to work for the International Union as a representative
until 1993, during which time he graduated from the Harvard Trade Union Program. In
1993, he returned to Local 280 as assistant business manager and was later elected
business manager/financial secretary.
Johnston also served as vice president for the Washington State Labor Council and
as a trustee of the IUOE Western Conference until his retirement in 2007. Throughout
his entire career, Johnston was known and respected as a highly principled, dedicated,
true trade unionist.
Local 15’s Toys for Tots participation recognized
Local 15 (New York, NY) members participated in the Marine Corps’ 2006
Toys for Tots drive, collecting over 5,000 toys for distribution to needy children.
The program is designed to provide Christmas joy and happiness for children
through the contribution, collection and distribution of new, unwrapped toys. In
the photo above, Local 15 officers and business representatives are pictured
with members of the U.S. Marine Corps.
Local 15 Business Manager James T. Callahan, right, excepts an award from Lieutenant Colonel McCobb of the
U.S. Marine Corps recognizing the local for its participation in the 2006 Toys for Tots drive.
Spring 2007
21
MEMBERS’
service
Local 12 (Los Angeles, CA) honored members for their 50 - 60 years of
service. Business Manager/IUOE Vice President William C. Waggoner,
standing center, was on hand to present the pins during the ceremony.
Seated, from the left, are: Juan O. Caranza, Cristobola Palomares, Earl
Local 66 (Pittsburgh, PA) recently recognized members
with 40 or more years of service
during an awards banquet.
Shown here, seated left to right
– with their years of service noted, are: Merle Wilson, 40; Fred
Horner, 55; Albert Holbay, 55;
Donald Morris, 55; Paul Carey,
60; Theodore Baldwin, Jr., 55;
Elden Barnes, 55; Nicholas Panaia, 40 and Ray Grove, Jr.,
50. Second row, same order,
Eugene Wissinger, 40; Glenn
Snyder, 40; Robert Kahl, 40; J.
Veron Parks, 40; John Bibel, 40;
Murdick Bracken, 40; William
Byers, 40; Francis Buffalini, 40;
Oscar Dillon, 40; Alan Huber,
40; Francis Girard, 40; and
Harry Huffman, 40-year honoree. Back row, same order,
McQuillan, Ben Thomas, Tony Cordasco, Charles Butler and Thomas
Ferl. Standing, same order, are: Omar Martin, James Dulin, Dale Rombaugh, William Hicks, Loren Martens, Phil Gianunzio, Jerry Lanhan, Waggoner, Richard Beavis, Jack Herman, R. D. Gutherie and Frank Todd.
are: Dispatcher Vinny LaPaglia; Richard Wingard,
40; Business Manager James T. Kunz, Jr.; Vice President Ronald Sapp; Treasurer Regan Robertson; Busi-
Local 66 (Pittsburgh, PA) honorees are pictured, seated left to right – with their years
of service noted: John Gill, 39; Archie Campbeell, 50; Anthony Cantolina, 50; Richard Cool, 55; Richard Toman, 45; Marvin Gromley, 55; David Glass, 60; Chauncey Taylor, Jr., 55; John Halquist, 55; Gaylon McClintock, 45 and Ronald Davis, 45.
Standing, same order, are: Local 66 Business Manager James T. Kunz; Anthony Podliski, 40; Larry Krause, 40; David Armagost, 40; Joseph Wilson, 35; Samuel Womer, 40;
Louis Gregori, 35; Eugene Mills, 40; Calvin Dixon, 35; Robert Cotter, 35; Larry Tyger,
40; Tom Bisssman, 40; Francis Leigey, 30 and Local 66 President Thomas M. Durkin.
22 International Operating Engineer
ness Representative Kevin Pahach; Secretary Francis Lafferty; Recording-Corresponding Secretary Leo
Petrone and President Thomas M. Durkin.
Local 139 (Milwaukee, WI)
Business Manager Terrance McGowan, left,
presents a 50-year membership plaque and
watch to Paul Gehl, former president of Lunda
Construction Co. Gehl,
a Local 139 crane operator, mortgaged his family’s farms in the
early ‘60s to support the company. Even as
Lunda Construction grew to become one of
the largest bridge-building contractors in the
Midwest, he maintained his union membership and also served as a Central Pension
Fund trustee since 1991.
Local 917 (Knoxville, TN) honored members
during its General Body Meeting. Business
Manager John M. Holliday III, left, is pictured
with 65-year award recipients, from the left,
Glenn Miller, Bill Conner and Harold Stewart.
Receiving his 55-year service
award Business Manager Holliday, left, is Local 917’s Paul
Hinchey.
40-year members pictured, from the left, are James Shults,
Business Representative Harry DeBoard, Holliday, Danny Cole,
William Harnishfeger and Zach Price.
Local 917 members Harold Hall, left, and Vestal Pilkington, right, receive their 50-year service
awards from Holliday.
Local 917 Business Manager John M. Holliday III, center, is pictured with the local’s 35-year award recipients. From the left are
Philip Beasley, Marvin Rogers, Creed Dennis, Sam Haskew, Jimmy
DeVault, Holliday, Floyd Poteet, Steve Armour, Joe Crabtree Jr.,
Clayton Jackson and Larry White.
30-year service award recipients, from the left, Chester (Cody)
Reneau, Charlie Louvin, Holliday, Al Long and Mike Pedigo.
Local 132 (Charleston, WV) retirees Laurence
“Dusty” Mason and Dick Mason were honored
during a recent union meeting. Dusty, second
from the left, was presented with a 60-year pin,
while his brother, Dick, third from the left, received his 65-year service pin. They are flanked
by Local 132 President David Mullins, left, and
Business Manager Ronald Burnette.
Local 37 (Baltimore, MD) held an awards ceremony to present 50year members with service pins. Presenting the awards were Local 37 Business Manager Joe Shanahan, left, and President Wade
Hamel, right. Recipients included, from the left, Tom Scott, Eugene
Anderson, Leon Schoppert, Ellsworth Conrad and Joe Caudwell.
Spring 2007
23
Local 520 (Granite City, IL) Business Manager
Delbert Birkner, standing, presented service pins
to members during a recent banquet. 60-year Local 520 55-year member Merrill Huch, left, and
honorees, seated from the left, are: Howard Business Manager Delbert Birkner.
Williams, Edgar Horton and Dale Nicol.
50-year members, front row from the left, are: Jack Taylor, Lloydd Weeks Sr.,
Dave Downs, John W. Curtner, Walter Rohwedder and Dale Parkinson. Standing,
same order, are: Doyle Heim, Charles H. Ellis, Joseph G. Chapman, Robert Hunt,
Birkner, Paul George, Robert Fechte and August Marquardt.
iuoe photo guidelines
IUOE appreciates the local news stories and accompanying photos we receive for The Operating Engineer.
As a result of the IUOE making the transition from a tabloid
newspaper, with mostly black and white photos, to a fullcolor magazine there are photo submission requirements
that must be met in order to ensure the quality publication
you deserve. In light of the widely embraced use of digital
photography, we offer the following requirements regarding both traditional film and digital photo submissions.
Traditional Film Photography
4 x 6 (or larger) glossy color prints on photographic film
paper (from photo finishing services, such as
your local drug or retail store developers).
Please do not send ink jet, color copier,
or color laser prints – they are not suitable
for publishing purposes.
Digital Photography
A 4.0 megapixel camera or better is recommended
for photos to be published. Printing presses
require a minimum of 300 dpi (dots per inch)
for color photographs-more commonly called “high-resolution” photos. This
means subjects should be photographed
24 International Operating Engineer
45-year members, front row from the
left, are: Joseph Gilmer and Norman
Neff. Standing are James Simmons,
left, and Birkner.
40-year members, front row from the left, are: Vernon
Bogenpohl, Stanley Klein, Vern Owens and David
Compton. Standing, same order, are: David Schuette,
Birkner, Melvin Schicker and Henry J. Gain.
using the highest quality setting on your
digital camera, also known as the
“fine/superfine” or “large” setting.
Images should not be manipulated in any way for size, cropping,
color mode, quality of color, or
sharpness. Download the images
from your camera (only JPEG or TIFF
formats are acceptable) and submit digital photos
on a CD to the attention of the IUOE Communications
Dept. or e-mail them to [email protected] or jbrown@iuoe.
org. Photos submitted must also include a typed description of each photo identifying who is in the picture and
what is taking place (preferably in Microsoft Word format).
We also ask that when staging photos such as service
awards, you group as many recipients into each photo as
possible, rather than submitting separate photos for each
honoree or small group of honorees. By doing that, we
end up with two or three photos instead of eight or nine.
We need your cooperation on this so we will be able to
feature as many locals as possible. We realize that, for
various reasons, everyone may not be able to adhere to
all of these guidelines. However, if you can follow these
recommendations, it enables the IUOE to better highlight
your local’s story and accompanying photos.
Death Benefits paid November 2006
Local 3
San Francisco, CA
Harold Farmer
Irvin G. Froese
Norman Gotberg
Charles G. Grubaugh
Donald Hamilton
Ernest Jones
Thomas Knox
Sid McBroome
E. L. Thompson
Local 4
Boston, MA
Glenn C. Johnson
Ray S. Leavitt
Robert A. Lovely
Local 9
Denver, CO
Richard B. Cline
Emery E. Hooker
Local 12
Los Angeles, CA
Charles N. Coon
Kenneth L. Harriman
Truman McGinnis
Barry Pashby
Gene A. Potter
William Z. Pyke
Gilbert E. Regalado
Ronald P. Schuessler
James R. Slingerland
Herman F. Stapp
Trygve Syverstad
Clarence A. Tappe
Stanley Watkins
Local 14
New York, NY
Ralph Perrotto
Local 15
New York, NY
Guido Volpi
Local 17
Buffalo, NY
Gary A. Offhaus
Charles Ruth
Local 18
Cleveland, OH
Merle Beekman
Larry V. Elwood
Victor J. Huwer
Maurice D. Jefferis
Richard Jones
Melvin Lightner
Carl E. Moyer
Clarence A. Mutton
Donald E. Steinbaugh
Kenneth Stuart
Andrew Vrabel
Local 25
Brooklyn, NY
Joseph Paradiso
Local 49
Twin Cities, MN
Robert F. Bartheld
James A. Clendening
Cecil Cruse
Paul V. Swanson
Adolph Youngdahl
Local 66
Monroeville, PA
Kenneth Brougher
Edward S. Gill
Arthur C. Haibach Jr.
Roy Shook
Local 98
Springfield, MA
James Cowell
Harold F. Hinkley
George A. Hunt
Local 101
Kansas City, MO
Duane Alexander
Richard Erck
Local 115
Vancouver, BC
William P. Belado
Local 30
New York, NY
Melquiades M. Envid
Local 138
Hempstead, NY
Austin Copeland
Peter Kriegel
Nicholas J. Leon
Local 37
Baltimore, MD
Lindsey J. Scott
Local 139
Milwaukee, WI
John A Lindberg
in memoriam...
Local 147
Norfolk, VA
Robert W. Vest
Local 148
East St. Louis, IL
Judd W. Wilson Jr.
Local 150
Chicago, IL
Stanley Drozdz Jr.
John T. Fridstrom
Mark Galovic
Vernon L. Gardner
John M. Goldone
Otto W. Radmer
Wendell O. Suter
Local 181
Henderson, KY
George C. Murch
Local 275
Cedar Rapids, IA
Charles C. Bevins
Local 283
Inactive Local
Donald G. Ross
Local 302
Seattle, WA
Ben Baker
Glen F. Bristow
James R. Foster
Frederick L. Miller
Billy M. Scholten
Harvey R. Williams
Local 310
Green Bay, WI
John Hlava
Jesse F. Savage
Local 317
Milwaukee, WI
Erwin J. Laabs
Joseph E. Lopour
Local 428
Phoenix, AZ
E. G. Bowers
James E. Lochner
Royden K. Strahm
Local 701
Portland, OR
Charles L. Cox
Leroy Gaworski
Bobby H. Wilson
Local 324
Detroit, MI
Edward C. Butler
James F. Colvin
Fred Cronenwett
James R. Dabbs
Harold Harkless
Thomas Jones
William M. Keller
Lawrence L. Konarz
Lloyd Sawitzky
John J. Sharrow
Richard G. Vanells
Local 513
St. Louis, MO
Floyd Vohsen
Local 758
Dubuque, IA
Steve Ressler
Local 347
Inactive Local
Lowell H. Dickey
Martin V. Goines
G. A. Wages
Local 564
Freeport, TX
Cleveland W. Whitten Jr.
Local 375
Inactive Local
Harry Pierce
Local 382
Inactive Local
Forrest Williams
Local 399
Chicago, IL
Paul Lapella
Thomas A. Rich Jr.
Local 832
Rochester, NY
Carl Lewandowski
Local 216
Baton Rouge, LA
Mildred S. Phillips
Local 3
San Francisco, CA
John Q. Clark
Ivar Elstins
Billie Gillespie
Hiroshi Kumasaka
Albertu Lemaster
Thomas Livingston
James W. Mcdonough
Paul Okada
Albert Porter
Richard Reynolds
Richard Wickert
Local 12
Los Angeles, CA
William J. Cordova
Stanley Watkins
Local 98
Springfield, MA
William R. Brackett
Local 310
Green Bay, WI
John Hlava
Mahlon J. Retzlaff
Local 4
Boston, MA
Joseph W. Roberge
William J. Welch Jr.
Local 6
Inactive Local
Wayne Smith
Local 17
Buffalo, NY
Robert R. Herman
Edward F. Snyder Jr.
Kenneth Swain
Local 18
Cleveland, OH
Herbert R. Azbell
Roy Dearmon
Local 66
Monroeville, PA
Eugene Bailey
James A. Putzlocker
William A. Riggs
Local 68
Newark, NJ
Herbert Anderson
John J. Ellex
Local 71
Death Benefits paid January 2007
Local 1
Denver, CO
Edwin E. Proffit
Local 3
San Francisco, CA
Robert Boyer
Nicholas Castillo Jr.
Nick Gavrilko
Dean Gustin
Van A. Heaps
John F. Helms
Kay M. Hubbard
Clyde Keeter
Joe Krpan
David Lyndall
Joseph L. Parkinson
Carl Peters
C. E. Roath
Rodney Romans
Marvin L. Wilcox
Lyle T. Woolley
Local 4
Boston, MA
Frank S. Carideo
Timothy Duggan
Henry C. Lane
Rance A. McEachern
Local 7
Inactive Local
Ossie Surratt
Local 9
Denver, CO
Riley L. Bear
Harold W. Cox
Lester L. Herlyck
Robert A. Mickle
Local 12
Los Angeles, CA
Donald W. Apgar
Jesse Bittner
G. O. Branscum
Fillmore Irwin
Floyd Redden
Charles E. Todd
Local 14
New York, NY
Michael T. Depalmo
Harold W. Smith Jr.
Local 15
New York, NY
Frank E. Bucci
Warren Nelson
Patrick J. Reynolds
Stephen Seal
John Siciliato
Gerald Weitzer
Local 17
Buffalo, NY
Stephen Mancuso
Raymond G. O’Connor
Larry D. Turner
Charles H. Wasmund
Local 18
Cleveland, OH
Joseph C. Amata
Albert D. Barnett
Robert H. Bassett
Charles Bayes
Lloyd Beal
Ernest Becher
Harold R. Boles
Harold L. Brewer
Louis Cipriano
Local 139
Milwaukee, WI
John A. Lindberg
Local 148
East St. Louis, IL
Paul Reed
Local 150
Chicago, IL
Placido Bordignon
Ralph G. Freeman
Martin J. Kramer
Bill D. Ray
Louis Ripa
Dominic A. Sabatino
Chester Grob
Cleo Kitchen
Robert G. Mautz
Leonard W. McDonald
Gene R. Myer
William Perkins
Henry T. Tackett
Local 19
Inactive Local
John Eby
Local 25
Brooklyn, NY
James Zipperer
Local 37
Baltimore, MD
Gordon Biddinger
George Frankenberry
Thomas F. Harrison
Local 39
San Francisco, CA
Vincent J. McGarry
Herbert Willard
Local 49
Twin Cities, MN
Harvey W. Abbe
Local 950
Milwaukee, WI
Thomas Scheinoha
Kenneth Tebbe
Local 542
Philadelphia, PA
Louis F. Mazzola
Local 77
Washington, DC
Karl R. Diedrich
Local 15
New York, NY
Domenick D. Caporusso
Local 917
Chattanooga, TN
Robert Mills
Local 825
Little Falls, NJ
Henry Herzberg
Local 9
Denver, CO
Emery E. Hooker
Paddy M. Partin
Local 49
Twin Cities, MN
Cecil Cruse
Gordon M. Hanson
Richard Johnson
Local 649
Peoria, IL
Robert L. Gresham
Local 912
Columbia, TN
Felix M. Hickman
Kenneth P. Belcher
Ford Hickey
Hulen Peoples
Local 2
St. Louis, MO
Donald B. Mast Sr.
Curtis L. Mathis
Local 14
New York, NY
Anthony Luciano
Local 647
Wichita, KS
Ray E. Dunkin
Local 865
Thunder Bay, ON
W. Angeloff
Local 653
Mobile, AL
G. C. Byrd
Clarence L. Wildey
Robert Yeager
Local 106
Albany, NY
Dominic Tessitore
Local 612
Tacoma, WA
Ted E. Bartlett
Harold Cornelius
Edwin R. Rortvedt
Local 826
Inactive Local
John M. Taylor
Local 410
Inactive Local
James H. May
Inactive Local
John F. Hynes
Local 37
Baltimore, MD
John L. Simons
Local 545
Syracuse, NY
Harold Sherman
Local 825
Little Falls, NJ
Roy J. Cadorin
Albert Douglas
Local 965
Springfield, IL
John E. Duffy
Robert L. Johnson
James E. McQueen
Wade R. Morgan
Charles Potter
Death Benefits paid December 2006
Donald S. Divers
Wilbur L. Goldsmith
Kenneth R. Pratt
John Wagner
Richard D. Williams
Local 520
Mitchell, IL
Robert C. Bogenpohl
Joe Lacroix
Hulen Peoples
Local 545
Syracuse, NY
Harold Sherman
Local 347
Inactive Local
Joseph J. Tamburine
Local 564
Freeport, TX
J. H. Holler
Local 406
New Orleans, LA
Oscar M. Crisler Jr.
Albert T. Prince
Local 612
Tacoma, WA
Harold Cornelius
Local 428
Phoenix, AZ
James E. Lochner
Local 450
Houston, TX
C. D. Morse
Local 520
Mitchell, IL
Howard Anderson
Carlton Grafstrom
Knute K. Knutson
George H. Otto
Lawrence A. Sherwood
George R. Voytasovich
Local 61
Inactive Local
Clifford H. Hall
Local 66
Monroeville, PA
Merle E. Rahl
Local 68
Newark, NJ
Anderson C. Meador
Local 71
Inactive Local
Gladson Osborn
Local 649
Peoria, IL
Larry Vanfleet
Local 660
Inactive Local
Grady F. Malone
Local 701
Portland, OR
Madison Leblanc Jr.
Local 94
New York City, NY
Jerry Lyons
Local 95
Pittsburgh, PA
Harvey S. Kappeler Jr.
Arthur C. Kercher
Frank A. Naccarato
Local 98
Springfield, MA
Edgar J. Theroux
Local 101
Kansas City, MO
Willard H. Loumaster
Eldon Nickell
Floyd E. Yeager
Local 77
Washington, DC
Roy K. Rose
Local 103
Indianapolis, IN
Alva Hines
Richard N. Mills
Dale Sparks
Keith Younts
Local 87
Inactive Local
Stanley E. Adkins
Local 106
Albany, NY
John W. Davenport Jr.
Local 891
New York, NY
Joseph Fernandez
Local 912
Columbia, TN
Joe F. Skillington
Carroll W. Spencer
Local 926
Atlanta, GA
Wilbur H. Winkles
Local 950
Milwaukee, WI
John Golata
Local 965
Springfield, IL
George F. Bigham
Melvin F. Fathauer
Arthur H. Pallante
John L. Peregrim
John E. Redmond Sr.
Kenneth Roblee
Elmer Tourtellot
Local 115
Vancouver, BC
Dale Bohn
Robert J. Eftodie
John E. Elliott
Frederick Faulkner Jr.
Robert R. Lewko
James A. Murphy
John Nagy
August E. Orth
Peter W. Popoff
George Szach
Local 132
Charleston, WV
Umber E. Dotson
Robert L. Fish
Lowell T. Hunt
Billy F. Hunter
Glen Kalt
Raymond E. Laney
Glen H. Ramsey
Dan Sydenstricker
S. A. Turman
Spring 2007
29
in memoriam...
Dallas Young
Local 139
Milwaukee, WI
Ernest Aeschliman
Louis L. Albers
Nyle R. Bailey
Lynn S. Bakke
Darell Kistner
John A. Lindberg
John H. Ruhland
Laverne A. Stegen
Local 148
East St. Louis, IL
John May
Local 150
Chicago, IL
Peter C. Heibel
Martin J. Kramer
Lewis A. Martin Jr.
Gordon J. McKinnon
Walter R. Perlick
Louis Ripa
Charles Schumacher
Nora S. Wilkins
Local 181
Henderson, KY
William E. Demunbrun
James E.Gish
Robert E. Henderson
Monroe Renner
Samuel A. Robison
Sam H. Saylor
Robert L. Styres
James V. Whitton
Local 234
Des Moines, IA
Alvin Brown
Donald Roberts
Local 283
Inactive Local
Zada Wendler
Local 286
Renton, WA
Lawrence De Koster
Local 302
Seattle, WA
Roger H. Conn
Ola Fagerheim
Darrel H. Hobson
Charles W. Lippitt
Ansel W. Lopeman
Gino J. Nonis
Jewell A. Melton
Lawrence A. Meyer
Richard A. Prain
Leon Randall
Mario Reo
Kent Stadig
Ronald K. Titler
Gerald Turek
Local 347
Inactive Local
Richard C. Bartosh
Local 310
Green Bay, WI
Walter Jameson
Clyde E. Krueger
Local 351
Phillips, TX
M. J. Boyett
W. A. Ford
Local 312
Birmingham, AL
Raymond Cooper
Local 370
Spokane, WA
Chris B. Baker
Oreste Bosso
James W. McFarling
Jack Statton
Local 317
Milwaukee, WI
Leonard J. Downer
Roy Hull
Aloyse N. Krass
Arnold C. Kuhnwald
Raymond J. Radovich
Leonard Wilczewski
Local 318
Marion, IL
Lewis R. Jordan
Local 320
Florence, AL
Glenn L. McFall
Local 324
Detroit, MI
Alva S. Adrian
Andy Ammerman
Donald Bethuy
Mike D. Czarnecki
Ralph Fanelli
Moody Leach
Local 375
Inactive Local
Roland G. Aamold
Local 381
El Dorado, AR
A. B. Gadberry
Local 399
Chicago, IL
James J. O. Doherty
Daniel O’Donnell
Thomas A. Schuh
Local 400
Helena, MT
Ross C. Christy
K. F. McKenzie
Local 406
New Orleans, LA
G. G. Davis
Death Benefits paid February 2007
Local 2
St. Louis, MO
Alonzo Peters
Local 3
San Francisco, CA
Len R. Benson
Johnny Brown
J. F. Church
Sam Ciapponi
Donald Davis
Alvin L. Gates
W Carl George
Everett Herndon
Joe Hopkins
John P. Magnasco
John C. Miller
Victor Newquist
Douglas N. Norman
Cyril R. Petersen
Glen Prater
Albert Pruzzo
W. A. Rogers
M. D. Rushing
Roy J. Sperfslage
Charlie O. Stone
Local 4
Boston, MA
Harold A. Campbell
Robert L. Graves
Local 9
Denver, CO
William McDowell
Local 12
Los Angeles, CA
Dave Argo
Cecil W. Baird
Jerry Blair
Benito M. Castaneda
Joel A. Craven
Don L. Crawford
Roger D. Creighton
Marion A. Ferrare
George B. Godsil Jr.
Melvin J. Grandinette
Everett C. Griffin
Sherman Harris
Darrel G. Hatton
Jack R. Hindman
Carl R. Hollis
Edward J. Holmes
L. G. Jenkins
Jerry Jetton
Horace Johnson
Walter J. Jones
William D. Jordan
William G. Leverenz
Alphonso Maddalena
Gordon A. Mchenry
Henry Mendez Jr.
Paul Miller
L. G. Mitchell
Leland A. Monroe
William Mullis
Sam Pearson
Howard J. Poore
John M. Self
E. A. Songer
W. D. Stewart
E W Thomson
James A. Walker
Clyde T. Wilson
Local 14
New York, NY
Raymond Berven
John E. Boyd
Thomas O’Connor
Local 15
New York, NY
Donald W. Makofske
Local 17
Buffalo, NY
Anthony Cardinale
James E. Morrison
Thomas G. Rash
Edward L. Rhow
Local 18
Cleveland, OH
Emilio Fabrizi
Ronald E. Ford
Nick Gimben
Millard Hardy
Sam Klepacz
Harley McClure
Harold Miser
Robert G. Nickschinski
Thomas Reisinger
Wayne Sheller
Duane O. Terrill
Ronald G. Townsend
Harry E. White
Local 37
Baltimore, MD
Clyde E. Riggleman
Local 39
San Francisco, CA
Karl E. Jaenecke
Local 49
Twin Cities, MN
John Blair
Bernard Braun
Marvin S. Elg
Leslie Hause
Clyde Jorde
Rance A. Norton
Carl G. Zishka
Local 66
Monroeville, PA
Leroy E. Butterfield
Michael Rice
Andrew Rotunno
Earl Zaney
Local 70
St. Paul, MN
Glenn W. Jacobson
Local 77
Washington, DC
John C. Dyke
Joseph W. Russell
Local 87
Inactive Local
A. E. Carter
Local 95
Pittsburgh, PA
Frank A. Naccarato
Local 98
Springfield, MA
Walter J. Klemyk
Local 101
Kansas City, MO
William T. Cummins
Walter Hale
30 International Operating Engineer
Roger E. Moore
Walter Stratz
Local 407
Lake Charles, LA
Ben Chandler
W. L. Patterson
W. S. Tanous
Local 428
Phoenix, AZ
Oliver Waddle
Local 450
Houston, TX
George T. Cook
Local 478
Hamden, CT
Benjamin K. Brown
Daniel D. Carty
Mathew Kiczyinski
Local 513
St. Louis, MO
John J. Colligan
Bill R. Jaycox
William K. Litzinger
William N. Mayfield
Louis F. Null
Merle Sparks
Local 515
Inactive Local
William Harvey
Local 520
Mitchell, IL
Joe Lacroix
Local 525
Inactive Local
Orville K. Scott
Bart A. Waits
Local 542
Philadelphia, PA
Norman Beaver
Charles K. Creasy
John E. Hepner
James C. Hupp
Charles E. Magill
Joseph W. Murray
John Potter
Charles D. Searfoss
Ray H. Shollenberger
Michael Tomascik
George Tyson
Local 545
Syracuse, NY
William R. Ellis
Robert K. Giacobbe
Randall A. Travis Jr.
Local 547
Detroit, MI
John H. Lacey
Louis Papp
Local 564
Freeport, TX
Haskell E. Nix
Local 587
Inactive Local
Fred Harders
Local 589
Inactive Local
Ray Midlick
Local 609
Seattle, WA
Robert L. Johnson
Local 612
Tacoma, WA
Marshall C. Boulet
Local 624
Jackson, MS
Local 106
Albany, NY
Theodore F. Delucia
Local 305
Superior, WI
Clayton E. Bernacki
Local 115
Vancouver, BC
Joe Graham
Sidney Grosskleg
Everette A. Lucius
M. G. Person
J. P. Robertson
Ronald W. Shortts
Local 310
Green Bay, WI
Clyde E. Krueger
Local 139
Milwaukee, WI
Rudolph Borman
Chester L. Byom
Lynn B. Nelson
Jerry O’Brien
Joseph A. Pettera
Andrew M. Snyder
Local 320
Florence, AL
Ottis H. Smith
Local 150
Chicago, IL
James T. Berggren
Patrick J. Geary
Junior T. Gilbert
Sherman V. Nischan
Neil Purcell
Karl Schmitt
Richard Thomsen
Local 181
Henderson, KY
Ralph B. Morman
Frankie Wade
Local 234
Des Moines, IA
Robert Smith
Local 283
Inactive Local
Zada Wendler
Local 286
Renton, WA
Wayne E. Bruns
Richard E. Robinette
Local 302
Seattle, WA
Robert L. Cimball
George G. Martin
Local 317
Milwaukee, WI
Nick Crivello
Lambert Winnemueller
Local 324
Detroit, MI
Harold L. Bacheldor
Maurice E. Claerhout
Mike D. Czarnecki
Donald Noonan
Theodore H. Prevo
John T. Pushies
George M. Yax
Local 351
Phillips, TX
R. F. Stiles
Local 370
Spokane, WA
Virgil L. Fellows
Lee Jinks
Joe D. Yates
Local 399
Chicago, IL
Thomas F. Doody
Local 406
New Orleans, LA
Whirlie O. Bergeron
Thomas Cockrell
Local 428
Phoenix, AZ
George H. Markham
Local 463
Niagara Falls, NY
John F. Barrett
Local 478
Hamden, CT
John D. Jordan
Warren Setzer
Local 647
Wichita, KS
William E. McGuire
Local 649
Peoria, IL
Kenneth D. Himes
James J. Jeffers
Harry Wilson
Local 660
Inactive Local
Grady F. Malone
Local 701
Portland, OR
William D. Geib
Everett Hathaway
C. L. Higgins
Daniel L. Lane
E. H. Marks
Daniel Uhrich
Local 714
Inactive Local
John T. Vanmeter
Local 793
Toronto, ON
Edward Benoit
Merlin Broome
Edward G. Brown
Carl G. Peters
George Selin
Local 825
Little Falls, NJ
George J. Burg
George E. Daum
Joseph A. Rybak
Local 826
Inactive Local
Jerry Cockrell
Michael P. Denote
Local 513
St. Louis, MO
Clay Barnhart
Peter M. Walsh
Local 520
Mitchell, IL
James D. Pevril
Local 537
Inactive Local
William A. Tackenberg
Local 542
Philadelphia, PA
Edward J. Brzostek
Ernest J. Collins
William J. Gongloff
Alexy Konko
August J. Kreuzer
Jacob I. Mays Jr.
Thomas F. Taffyn
Local 545
Syracuse, NY
William C. Hutchison
Robert L. Warren
Local 564
Freeport, TX
James O. Schoonover
Local 609
Seattle, WA
Kenneth Newsham
Local 612
Tacoma, WA
George N. Hodge
Paul C. Townsend
Local 649
Peoria, IL
Don Conner
Henry E. Taylor
Local 660
Inactive Local
Ernest H. Peters
Local 701
Portland, OR
Jack O. Barrowcliff
Lavern W. Erkenbeck
Royal C. Mills
Local 841
Terre Haute, IN
Robert W. Bates
Charles R. Cox
Bennett Cross
William G. Davis
Lyman Durham
Local 882
Vancouver, BC
K. M. Rough
Local 912
Columbia, TN
Robert Chaney
Local 917
Chattanooga, TN
Herbert D. Huff
Earl S. Loudy
Local 926
Atlanta, GA
R. W. Bradford
Fred W. Connelly
Robert C. Riggs
Local 955
Edmonton, AB
Geheart Krahn
Local 963
Vancouver, BC
William A. Heebner
Local 965
Springfield, IL
Melvin F. Fathauer
Dale P. Sherrill
Local 967
Inactive Local
Ransom J. O’Neal
Thomas H. Holmes Jr.
Walter M. Wright
Local 721
Halifax, NS
Hugh Rudderham
Local 793
Toronto, ON
Donald A. Bennett
Merlin Broome
Local 825
Little Falls, NJ
Benjamin Cresci
Anthony Pepitone
William Smallwood
George Underhill
Local 832
Rochester, NY
Arthur C. Holbrook
Local 841
Terre Haute, IN
Francis Wilson
Local 882
Vancouver, BC
Alexander Grant
Local 912
Columbia, TN
Felix F. Uzell
Local 925
Tampa, FL
Oscar O. Worley
Local 955
Edmonton, AB
Hank Kosolofski
Local 963
Vancouver, BC
Thomas L. Barber
Local 965
Springfield, IL
John Allsopp
Making a real difference
f or
workin g
T
hirty years ago, I would have
never believed that I would end
up as business manager of Local
400 and an elected state representative. If I could have looked ahead back
then, I would have paid more attention to
people and issues that would have helped
me in my current career. One can never tell
what will ultimately be important and of
value in your life.
For me, it has been a great honor serving in the legislature for the State of Montana the last seven years and at the same
time serving as business manager for Local
400. I always believed that my life has been
much better because of my 30 years in the
Operating Engineers, which provided me
with a good job and good benefits. And I
could always count on previous business
managers to help myself and the other
members when times got down and dirty.
It is difficult for me to relate just how
important it is to serve concurrently as state
representative and business manager. It increases my effectiveness to do each job at
a higher level. One complements the other
in ways that are really difficult to understand.
For instance, when a member calls me
with a union problem, such as unemployment, worker’s comp, consumer problems,
or healthcare concerns, I often swing into
my state representative mode to address
people
the issues. While agencies may have ignored me as business manager, they are
hard pressed to ignore a state representative. As business manager I have gone as
far as to encourage workers to file for unemployment, then actually sit in at a hearing and, to be honest, I have never lost a
case yet -- and I know I wouldn’t be saying
that if I wasn’t a state representative.
On the other side of the issue, when
I am talking to business lobbyists, I often
swing into my business manager mode by
stating, “if I help you, how is that going to
benefit the workers?” This does not only
apply to the Operating Engineers, because
I am able to help other unions where we
combine our effort to achieve such goals as
attaching prevailing wage to any renewable
energy legislation in the State of Montana.
Our unions and labor groups hire lobbyists all across the country to advance our
goals. It’s something we all invest in because
it is necessary to stay competitive in the labor market. But I believe we are missing a
golden opportunity. That opportunity lies
in union members holding elected office. It
is far cheaper and has a greater potential
benefit to labor.
If you go back 40 years, labor put a
great deal of effort in fielding our own candidates and it paid off in spades. What has
happened since is we are investing in other
candidates that we hope will represent our
issues, and on many occasions we are sadly
disappointed.
In my opinion, we need to start electing people to all levels of government who
actually have a solid labor background, not
just belonging to a union for the summer or
while they went to school. Unions across
the country need to start recruiting, training, and financing our own members to run
for elected office in conjunction with other
unions’ members. Teachers’ unions have
been very effective in this effort and the
results are clear. They hold elected offices
across the country because of this and they
are able to significantly help their members.
Building trades unions need to respond by
taking a page out of the Teachers’ book and
follow suit.
Jim Keane, Montana state representative
POINT view
of
We will get from government only what
the elected officials will give us. If we don’t
have our union members sitting in those
elected seats, how can we expect our issues
to be brought forward? Just like many of
you, I have always loved working outside
and building projects. It gives us all a great
Jim Keane, Local 400 business manager
deal of satisfaction and accomplishment.
I must admit that working in the halls of
government to the benefit of my union
brothers and sisters has given me that same
great feeling.
I know there are many of you out there
who feel that running for elected office is
beyond your capabilities, but that is probably the same thing you said to yourself
when you started working as an operating
engineer. So use your skills, think about it,
ask help from your friends, get involved in
the political process and help make a difference in working people’s lives.
Editor’s note: Jim Keane
has led two lives for the past seven
years. Since September 2002, he has
been business manager of IUOE
Local 400 in Helena, MT. Prior to
that, he served the local as both
president and District Executive
Board representative while working
in the field as an instructor at the
Anaconda Job Corps Center in
Montana. As if that weren’t enough
to keep a fella’ busy, he has been
taking off his hardhat for at least 90
days every year for the last seven to
serve as an elected representative
in the Montana Legislature. But no
matter what job Brother Keane is
serving in, you can always be sure he’s
looking out for the best interests of
his members and all working people.
Spring 2007
31
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GOODJOBS I SAFEJOBS
Workers MeMorial Day•april 28
.indd 1
M
ore than three decades ago, Congress passed the Occupational Safety
and Health Act, promising every worker the right to a safe job. Unions
and our allies have fought hard to make that promise a reality, winning protections that have saved hundreds of thousand of lives and
prevented millions of workplace injuries. Nonetheless, the toll of workplace injuries, illnesses and deaths remains enormous. Each year, thousands of workers
are killed, and millions more are injured or diseased because of their jobs.
Our fight for safe jobs has gotten harder, as the Bush administration, acting
on behalf of corporate interests, has refused to address pressing problems.
Instead, the administration has moved to roll back and weaken protections.
Dozens of important safety rules have been withdrawn. Voluntary compliance
has been favored over issuing new protective standards and enforcement.
Many employers, in a race to the bottom in the global economy, have been
pushing to cut wages and benefits and loosen protections. With fewer and fewer
workers having the protection of unions, more workers are afraid to speak out
and raise job safety concerns, fearing retaliation and firing.
On April 28, the unions of the AFL-CIO observe Workers Memorial Day to remember those who have suffered and died on the job and renew the fight for safe workplaces. We will fight to make workers’ issues a priority and to keep and create good jobs
in this country. We will fight for the freedom of workers to form unions and, through
their unions, to speak out and bargain for safe jobs, respect and a better future. We will
demand that the country fulfill the promise of safe jobs for all workers. It’s time.
32 International Operating Engineer
afl-cio
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
IUOE Safety and Health Depar tment
Emmett Russell, Director
1125 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 778-2672
3/14/07