IUOE News Spring 2014

More documents

Recommendations

Info

District One there are many obstacles and challenges to overcome —but in spite of these challenges, their skills, passion and persistence readied the ship for operation. Local 115 currently has six members working on the FRPD 309 full time, and not only is everyone new to the ship, many have taken on new duties and responsibilities. Brother Dennis Whitford is the Dredging Superintendent, Brother Lu Veneziano is working as the full time welder keeping the maintenance up and the ship in operation, while Brothers Malcolm Whitford, Rylan McKimm, Ryan Bergeron and Mike Enever are the ‘Drag Tenders’ (pipe operators). Primarily they are assigned to fill the hopper with sand; this may sound easy, but is very technical, with the operators working on the bridge surrounded by computer screens, switches and gauges providing critical information. Although each person has a specific task on board, if the vessel breaks down for any reason it’s ‘all hands on deck’ with the entire crew working together to solve the problem and get the ship back into operation as quickly and safely as possible. The ‘pump ashore’ capability adds a new aspect to the operation (the old Fraser Titan simply dumped the sand). While this new process is more efficient for moving the sand from the hopper to the depots on shore for sand sales, this was originally the work of the Columbia. Dredging for the season will be coming to an end (due to the annual fisheries’ closure of the Fraser River) from March 15 to June 15; the shutdown gives the crew an opportunity to get caught up on their ships’ maintenance. As for bargaining, progress has been good. I am currently in bargaining with Brandt Tractor. Lafarge Asphalt Technologies (McTar) have negotiated and ratified a first Collective Agreement which includes OE Pension, Benefit, Dispatch, retro activity for the monetary items, and language that the members never had before. Great job to Brother Bob Higgs for his determination at the bargaining table, and congratulations to Scott Oswald and all our new Brothers. Pitt River Quarries & Depots have come to a tentative settlement as well. The agreement was ratified and represents the terms and conditions for the Quarry, the Depots, and the Portable Crushing Crews. Thanks to Shop Stewards Howard Skinner and Frank Gormly on this one. Meetings are ongoing with Bantrel/Bechtel, the Building Trades Coalition, Canadian and BC Trades, and Construction Labour Relations, regarding the planned BG Gas and Petronas LNG plants on Lelu Island. If Bantrel is awarded the contract it could provide millions of hours of work over an estimated six year period, and result in permanent positions at the plants as well. Rest assured your representatives are working hard to maintain the standard terms and conditions of our Heavy Construction Agreement against competitors who have labour relations with alternative organizations that allow for working conditions “flexibility”. The Washington State Crane Operator Mobility Pilot Project is now underway with employers in British Columbia and members in Washington State registering with the BC Association for Crane Safety. The project focuses on streamlining the certification process for Washington State crane operators to fill the gap if B.C. experiences a shortage of certified crane operators. With the process in place, Operating Engineers in Washington State will be able to register with the BCACS, obtain their certification, and be dispatched to our contractors in the province if no one can be found locally. See you all at the next General Membership Meeting in Burnaby on March 15, 2014 at 9:30am. The crew from WesternOne Equipment in Port Coquitlam. 12 News March 2014
“Tireless effort” is what makes us the best at what we do Don Swerdan, Member Representative Happy New Year! First off, I’d like the membership to be aware of some recent organizing successes. The tireless efforts and hours logged by Brothers Rob Duff, Bryan Railton, Brett Chapman and Stewart Miller have resulted in Urban Wood Waste Inc., which has two Lower Mainland locations, being recently certified. Welcome to these soon-tobe members, and kudos to all the Brothers involved in this campaign! Proposal meetings have been held with the crew and the negotiation of a standalone Collective Agreement will commence in the very near future, with an eye to bettering the wages, working conditions, and benefits the employees currently have. The other success was Hyland Precast Inc. on Vancouver Island. Once again, as a direct result of the efforts and hours put in by Brothers Rob Duff, Bryan Railton, Curtis Harold and Todd Jones, Hyland Precast was ultimately certified. Welcome to these also soon-to-be members, and to all the Brothers involved in the organizing drive: great job! At the time of writing this article, Brother Harold is in the process of setting up meetings with the crew and discussions with Hyland Precast. You’ll notice that in both of these instances I reference the ‘tireless efforts and hours logged’ by the OE Organizers and Members Representatives. This is worth explaining. The actual hours these Brothers work during the course of a campaign is staggering. In most cases, every Organizer or Member Rep can easily spend hundreds of hours on a single organizing drive, with no guarantee of success, thanks to the current legislation of our labour relations code. The Organizers and Members Reps must make contact or follow up on a lead, meet the crew sometimes individually at various locations, secure a phone or contact list where possible, then contact the employees on the list, create and distribute information on the benefits of OE membership, in most cases set up and attend many meetings, answer hundreds of questions, distribute and collect Union Membership This shows the substantial level of fear and confusion that can be created by an unprincipled employer, and can weigh very heavily on the employee District One Application cards, ensure the application for certification is exactly as prescribed by law, make the application, contact legal counsel for their input and guidance... As I said, the amount of work involved is staggering! But these steps only get the OE to the point of the acceptance and time stamping of the application for certification. You might think that the Organizers’ and Members Representatives’ involvement in the organizing drive would be over at this point; the truth is, however, that nothing could be further from reality, thanks in no small part to B.C.’s labour legislation which makes the following 10 days absolutely critical in the overall campaign. The Labour Relations Code states that where the Board receives an application for certification, that application’s vote “must be conducted within 10 days from the date the Board receives the application.” As you can appreciate, this 10 day window allows unscrupulous employers (fortunately, this does not include every employer) to unduly influence employees —sometimes on a daily basis—to reject the OE’s initiative to represent them at the ballot box. In many cases, the Organizers and Members Reps spend 10 days ‘putting out fires’ by regularly meeting with the crews and answering their questions, addressing any concerns they may have, clarifying issues, and ensuring they have the correct information and know where they stand. In many cases, unfair labour complaints are filed during all these proceedings, which (in order to be properly heard and await determination) require a great deal of evidence to be gathered by the Organizers and Members’ Reps, distracting them from their organizing goals. This shows the substantial levels of fear and confusion that can be created by an unprincipled employer, and can weigh very heavily on the employee. This also requires innumerable additional hours to be logged by the Organizers and Member Reps in their efforts to ensure the employees enjoy the right to vote in an fair environment, free of undue influence. Organizing is the lifeblood of this Union and is of such critical importance to our continued success that we constantly ask you, as our membership, to speak to the non-union workers you may encounter or work with, and forward any contact information to the OE Organizing department or your Member Representative. Assure them that we are here to help in every way and we respect the work they do, their career goals, and even their confidentiality. At the end of the (very long) day, our Organizers and Members’ Reps are ‘Simply the Best.’ News March 2014 13
Page 1 and 2: News Evergreen Line leads BC’s 20
Page 3 and 4: Careful strategy and planning will
Page 5 and 6: Safety Project Labour Agreements ar
Page 7 and 8: Our economy depends on ongoing deve
Page 9 and 10: Bargaining and agreements are alrea
Page 11 and 12: With projects coming, everyone shou
Page 13: Steady growth and our industry infl
Page 17 and 18: Feature Article Evergreen Line goes
Page 19 and 20: Feature Article Heavy lifting of co
Page 21 and 22: Contractors and members are keeping
Page 23 and 24: A long winter shows the importance
Page 25 and 26: In praise of the Steward Who’s th
Page 27 and 28: Benefits Plan Union Orientation at
Page 29 and 30: Training Association Mobile Crane L
Page 31 and 32: Training Association Brother Luke H
Page 33 and 34: Member Recognition Welcome to 215 n
Page 35 and 36: Contact Details Local 115 District

IUOE News Spring 2014

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?