April 2018 Communication

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Hello Everyone,

This is the monthly communication for April 2018. The next general meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, April 4th, 2018. The meeting will be held at the Local Lodge Union Hall inside Building 4313 on Aberdeen Proving Grounds. Same time, 5:15PM. This building is located across the parking lot from the CAC Card office.

There is one motion submitted to expend funds above one hundred ($100) dollars for this month. That is to spend one thousand one hundred dollars ($1,100.00) for a new laptop computer, printer, and accessories for the chief stewards to use to prepare for negotiations.

The local lodge was recently informed that a member’s family lost their home in a fire. We will pass the hat after the meeting seeking volunteer donation from individuals. No local lodge funds will be solicit or use for this purpose, only donation from individuals will be collect. If you want to make a donation of any type , please contact a steward.

I expect the by-laws committee to report out a set of changes to our local lodge by-laws. Those changes would include changing the meeting space for the general meeting to the local lodge building, changing monthly pay to local lodge officers, changing the budgets for stewards and chief stewards, and changing the language in the by-laws to better define expenses that can and can not be paid out. This would be the first reading of the by-laws changes. The motion must be reviewed and approved by the International President’s office. Also, the motion must be read as is two more times at the general meetings. So this matter will take some time to be finished, this month we are just taking the first steps.

I also want to congratulate the local lodge members that work the C-12 aircraft contract at Phillips Army Airfield on Aberdeen Proving Grounds. Their new CBA has some nice improvements and will lock in good wages and benefits for the coming years. Congrats to our Business Representative Billy McIntosh for his leadership on this new contract.

Preparations for the upcoming CBA negotiations for our two largest contracts, ATSS and DCSS continue. Again a popular topic! For ATSS, Chief Steward AJ Begunich has published a list of dates to meet with small groups to hear members thoughts and ideas for the next contract. For more information see the local lodge website, and then choose the ATSS tab to find the list and determine what meeting includes your job category. If you have questions please speak up! Thank you.

Respectfully and Fraternally,

Bill Harkum
President, IAM&AW Local Lodge 2424

March 2018 Communications

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Hello Everyone,

This is the monthly communication for March 2018. The next general meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, March 7th, 2018. Starting in January we began meeting at the Local Lodge Union Hall inside Building 4313 on Aberdeen Proving Grounds. Same time, 5:15PM. This building is located across the parking lot from the CAC Card office.

There are four motions submitted to expend funds above one hundred ($100) dollars for this month. The first is another order for T-Shirts for one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500.00). The second is to pay the Aberdeen American Legion Lodge up to four hundred dollars ($400.00) to end our use of their facility for lodge meetings. Third is a request for donation of three hundred dollars ($300.00) from the International President’s Office of the IAM&AW to support the Transportation Communication Workers Union (TCU), which merged with the IAM in 2012. The fourth request is for two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) to support the George Lisby Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) event in March with the Harlem Wizards Basketball Team (similar to the Harlem Globe Trotters).

I expect the executive committee to forward a budget for 2018 to the general meeting. I also expect the executive committee to approve of two new committees, the chief stewards grievance committee and the by-laws committee. These committees are needed to do some of the work necessary before we break from normal lodge general meetings in four months.

When I last communicated to you in January I made an error. I incorrectly stated that members in Letterkenny Pennsylvania were having issues with fixing work that was done by non-union labor. That problem was actually for members in Fort Indiantown Gap Pennsylvania. I apologize to both groups for the error. But we still need to support our Brothers up in Pennsylvania because the issue continues, and we as a union do not want to allow our Brothers to be broken by management. These units need to know that they have over 900 Brothers and Sisters with them when they face their management that is eager to play word games.

Speaking of word games, our Brothers and Sisters in two Aberdeen locations that work for contractor Wolfcreek, just went through a fight over supplemental insurance and fringe pay. The problem had been months in the making and is somewhat complicated, but here is the bottom line. The company began taking more than $27 each paycheck to cover some supplemental insurances that had not previously been deducted. The issue was who does the fringe pay belong to, the employee or the company? Many contractors receive an hourly fringe pay rate that covers benefits, but over the years our union has fought for the ability of the union member to receive any money left over that was not used for benefits. That helps members who get benefits elsewhere, and boosts the take home pay of many members. I believe that Wolfcreek was trying to do the right thing and ensure that their employees had some basic coverages. But who pays for it? Well the company tried to collect it from every employee although not every employee wanted or needed the coverage. But the issue worked out in our favor, because the company discussed the situation with our Business Representative, Billy McIntosh, and agreed to communicate with our members about what insurances they would buy or not buy with the paycheck deductions, and gave our members the chance to opt out and get a refund. Thank you to our alert union members and stewards on the Wolfcreek contract for making the Business Representative aware of a problem. This is why it is important that we work together to help the most people.

Now I want to discuss what I said about upcoming CBA negotiations for our two largest contracts, ATSS and DCSS. It seems to be a popular topic! Every couple of days I get a new call or question about what this means to a specific group of members that want to ensure that their concerns are top priority. First I want to remind you of what I have said several times – we have to stick together! I have asked for members to show solidarity with the union by wearing a blue shirt on working Fridays. It doesn’t have to be a union t-shirt, doesn’t matter if it is dark blue or light blue – just as long as it’s blue. We want to show management that we are together! If not, management gets to divide and conquer in negotiations. We show solidarity to make the point that we want what we are asking for.

Second, we need more participation in preparations. It is great that members are speaking up about what is important to their groups, but as a whole union we need to make a compelling case that can’t be picked apart by management at the negotiations table. The ATSS and DCSS contracts are negotiated separately, but we have common goals. For members on the ATSS and DCSS contracts you will soon see a schedule of meetings by groups to discuss your matters with your stewards. If your group is not on the schedule, reach out to the chief steward for your contract.

Third, we need to stick together! I know I already said it, but here is what I mean. We all talk about these things in small groups. Each of you knows the members around you better than anyone. If you talk about these negotiations coming up, stay positive and be honest. Deal with facts. Reject rumors. And communicate with those around you and your stewards. If members around you do not understand the communications – let us know. But there is a difference between not understanding the communication being given out and wanting to keep asking the same questions different ways if you do not like the message. There are nearly six hundred members on the ATSS contract and over one hundred fifty members on the DCSS contract. That means we are seeking the best deals for nearly eight hundred individual people. We have to keep the overall goals for each CBA in mind. Our take home pay has lost ground due to higher health insurance costs and overall inflation of prices. Many of our jobs have seen mission creep where what we are responsible for today is not written in our job descriptions. Many of us have lost vacation time covering for government shut downs, snow days, late openings, and company picnics. And many of us have seen there are gaps in the CBA language that we hoped the companies would do better with. The tighter we are as a group – the better we can demand solutions. We need courage to hold the line and not break at the first sign of trouble. So if you have the courage now and want your specific group of co-workers to be a priority at the negotiations table, then you also need the courage to participate in the preparation process. And you need the courage to hold the line when the real fight starts when we go to the negotiations table. If you believe that your work situation can be better, then it is worth the effort to fight for it!

Respectfully and Fraternally,

Bill Harkum
President, IAM&AW Local Lodge 2424

Local Lodge 2424 Government Shutdown

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Local Lodge 2424 Government Shutdown

Hello Brothers and Sisters,

This is the first informational update on the Federal Government Shutdown that started January 20th, 2018.

Item #1: Members should refer to their company management and supervisors for the latest information on return to work dates and times. Local Lodge 2424 covers nine separate contractor workforces and some of the Federal Government workforce at APG. Some of those workers are not affected, but many are affected by this shutdown. This is a point of controversy that I will detail later in this email. But only your employer can issue a furlough notice, or the return to work notice.

Item #2: If you are furloughed, you may be entitled to unemployment compensation. Unemployment is based on the state you work in, not the state you live in. There are pros and cons to filing an unemployment claim. Those will be detailed later in this email. Unemployment officials may require a furlough notice letter. A verbal notice is not valid in many cases (which may be why many of us Contractors were sent text messages). There is controversy as of Monday morning if these furlough notices will be issued.

Item #3: If you are using unemployment you are required to check in with your union hall for work once a week, or make three attempts at applying for a job. The local lodge has no knowledge that work is available to any of the skill sets of our members for the week of January 21nd through January 27th. This item will be updated weekly via the local lodge website and facebook page. This should meet the requirement of weekly check in for those using unemployment.

Item #4: Rumor control. I will detail which Union officers and stewards are working using Union funds during this shutdown. In short none. But here are the exceptions so that you understand the rumor control.
A. The local lodge employs one full time employee, Ms. Rosemary Moss. I have made the decision that she will work fulltime without interruption during this shutdown. She is needed to keep the union hall open during this shutdown, update these communications on Facebook and the local lodge website, handle phone calls, and carry out the normal work that continues. The union hall has one computer available to any member that wishes to use it for work searches or union activities. As long as the Government allows access to the union hall building, we will continue to offer those services.
B. Our Business Representative, Billy MacIntosh, and District 1 Organizer, Andy Powell, are employees of the International President’s office of the IAM&AW. They serve other contracts and workers in private industry that are not affected by this shutdown. Their employment is determined by the International President, not at the local lodge office.
C. Some of the Federal Work force is working as of Monday, so the Federal Workforce Stewards are operating based on the terms of their contract. The latest update is they will be furloughed too, shortly.
D. The elected officers of the local lodge are paid monthly under the by-laws of our local lodge. That includes me, the President, the Vice President – Greg Hanner, the Recording Secretary – Jorge Brodo, the Secretary/Treasurer – Henry Russell, the Conductor/Sentinel – Tom Burkindine, and Trustee – Derrick Oxendine.
We were paid for the Month of December on January 12th. They will be paid again in February for January service, and I see no need to deduct any pay. I am paid $150.00 for the month; most of the others receive $100.00 or less for the month. They still perform their functions for meetings and execution of the local lodge business regardless of the shutdown.
E. The Chief Shop Stewards and stewards for each contract have the ability to apply for lost time funds for time they carry out union business instead of their normal job duties. I will not be approving any lost time claims at this point. If you can’t work, they will not work using union funds. If this shutdown continues for weeks there may be a need to allow some lost time to be covered in the event there are arbitrations or grievances that have timing deadlines that need to be carried out. And some contracts (CBAs) have steward time paid by the employer built into the CBA. If the company management determines they need to use that clause to meet with a steward or carry out some business between the company and the union, I will not see an issue with that. But again, as far as using Union funds to be paid when that option is not available to membership – that will not be allowed.

UNEMPLOYMENT DETAILS:

The State of Maryland set up a webpage to deal with unemployment compensation issues for this shutdown. The link is here:
https://www.dllr.state.md.us/employment/uifedshutdownlead.shtml

The State of Pennsylvania also set up a webpage. The link is here:
http://www.uc.pa.gov/Pages/AlertDetails.aspx

State of Maryland Federal Contractor specific information is listed here:
https://secure-2.dllr.state.md.us/NetClaims/Welcome.aspx

Pros and Cons of Unemployment:

Unemployment in Maryland has a maximum benefit of $430 a week. Any income you receive is deducted away from that amount. Many of us Federal Contractors will get a paycheck later this week. You can start your unemployment claim this week, but the income you get from your paycheck will probably wipe out any benefit the State would offer. But it would count as your first week of unemployment. Every worker is entitled to 26 weeks of benefits. So, if this is your first week of unemployment, the clock starts running the first week you claim. And it appears the benefit clock continues to run even if you return to work (This is unconfirmed information and we cannot get an update as of the date of this letter, so please contact the unemployment office for your specific situation). So, an example would be that if you filed unemployment this week and next week, and then went back to work week 3 – the 26 week clock keeps running in the background. At week 26, your benefit for the year is exhausted – even if you have been back to work for 23 weeks. So, if later that year, if we go through this again, or you already know there is a chance your employer may lose the contract or lay you off – your benefit may not be there. We don’t know whether this shutdown will continue for one day or several weeks, so be careful with your decision.

Also there is the point of what other income may reduce your benefits. Here is what is listed on the State of Maryland website:

13. What income must I report and when should it be reported? What effect will this income have on my benefits?

Any income must be reported. The Division of Unemployment Insurance (DUI) staff will make a determination based on the Maryland Unemployment Insurance Law regarding whether the monies will have an effect on your weekly benefit amount.
When you file your initial claim or reopen your existing claim, you must report full or part-time wages earned during that week from regular employment, self-employment, odd jobs, etc. regardless of whether you were paid during that week.
You must also report pensions, annuities, holiday pay, vacation pay, severance pay, bonuses and special payments that you have received or will receive. Commission payments must be reported during the week in which you receive the commission.
When you file your weekly claim certification, you must report all gross wages (all wages earned before taxes and other deductions) earned during the week in which the work was performed regardless of whether you were paid during that week. This includes wages earned for permanent and temporary work, part-time and full-time work, self-employment and odd jobs. Commission payments are handled differently. Commission payments must be reported during the claim week in which you receive the commission payments. The first $50 in earnings will not be deducted from unemployment insurance benefits. However, you must report all earnings, even if under $50. Any earnings over $50 per week will be deducted from your benefit payment on a dollar for dollar basis. Earnings are considered payment, in any form, for any work or service performed, including self-employment, tips and odd jobs.
In addition, DUI must be notified if you receive a back pay award or, if once you begin receiving benefits, your monthly pension amount changes.  When you return to work, you must report the wages earned during the week you first work, regardless of whether you have been paid.
If you do not report these payments as instructed, you are committing unemployment insurance fraud. If you are found guilty of fraud, all fraudulently acquired benefits must be repaid with interest, and you will not be permitted to receive any future  unemployment insurance benefits for a one year period from the date the fraud issue is determined. In addition to these administrative penalties, you can be fined up to $1,000 or imprisoned for up to 90 days, or both.

• Any week you have earned wages including full-time, part-time, temporary, self-employment, tips or odd jobs. You must report these monies when earned.
• However, commission payments must be reported during the week you are actually paid and all earnings must be reported on the MWE-REX WORK VERIFICATION LOG.

Who is Shutdown and who is Not?
Some Brothers and Sisters are working. Many are not. Why and why not? I became aware today of the controversy within the DoD on how this issue was going to be handled. Most notably are the guidance memos that were published January 18th by the Comptroller of the Treasury for the Pentagon, and then the “Union talking points” memo published at the same time. It was decided last week that any DoD work that already had funding approved would be allowed to continue operations regardless of government shutdown, and most work would continue. Then today on Monday that changed. It appears that leaders above the Pentagon level decided to make this shut down hurt more. So a talking points memo is circulating today which is why some people at work today are being told to go home, but others will still stay open. The memos are attached below.

Excerpt from Comptroller of the Pentagon Memo dated 18 January 2018.
Link is here: http://comptroller.defense.gov/

Contracts:
Contractors performing under a fully funded contract (or contract option) that was awarded prior to the expiration of appropriations may continue to provide contract services, whether in support of excepted activities or not. However, new contracts (including contract renewals or extensions, issuance of task orders, exercise of options) may not be executed, nor may increments of funding be placed on incrementally funded contracts or to cover cost overruns, unless the contractor is supporting an excepted activity. No funds will be available to pay such new contract or place additional increments of funding on contracts until Congress appropriates additional funds.

The expiration of an appropriation does not require the termination of contracts (or issuance of stop work orders) funded by that appropriation unless a new obligation of funds is required under the contract and the contract is not required to support an excepted activity. In cases where additional funding is required and/or oversight, engagement, or inspection by Federal employees who have been furloughed is critical to successful performance under the contract and the contract is not required to support an excepted activity, the issuance of a stop work order or the termination of the contract may be required.

Union Talking Points Memo
DRAFT ANNEX F
Talking Points with Unions

NOTE: AS A RESULT OF EXECUTIVE ORDER 13812, PRE-DECISIONAL INVOLVEMENT WITH UNIONS IS NO LONGER REQUIRED. HOWEVER, YOU MAY USE THESE TALKING POINTS IF YOUR LOCAL PRACTICE IS EARLY COMMUNICATION WITH YOUR UNIONS.

· As many of you are aware, annual funding for the government is about to expire.

· The Department remains hopeful that a government shutdown will be averted. The Administration strongly believes that a lapse in funding should not occur and is working with Congress to find a solution.

· There is still time for Congress to prevent a lapse in appropriations; however, as you are aware, we are required to prepare for all contingencies, including the possibility that a lapse could occur.

· A lapse would mean that a number of our activities would close down due to a lack of appropriated funding.

· While military personnel would continue in a normal duty status, a large number of our civilian employees would be temporarily furloughed.

· To prepare for this possibility, we are updating our contingency plans for executing an orderly shutdown of activities that would be affected by a lapse in appropriations.

· Supervisors and managers are beginning to informally tell employees they would be subject to furlough.

· Should shutdown be warranted, generally, employees who are not excepted from the furlough should come in and sign their furlough letters, then depart for the day. Employees may also receive their notice through agency email.

For DoD/Component-Level Union Meetings:

· Once approved, the plans will be posted to the DoD website.

· The Plan will include a broad description of the excepted activities in DoD.

· Local activities will identify excepted activities and employees consistent with the DoD plan.

· The Secretary knows that the uncertainty of the current situation puts our civilian workforce in a difficult situation.

· Should a lapse occur, it could impose hardships on many employees and disrupt important national security projects.

For Field-Level Activities

· The DoD Contingency Plan will identify excepted activities. We will follow that plan.

· Excepted and non-excepted employees will be notified of their status by this Friday afternoon.

· Since we won’t know about a lapse until the last minute, employees will receive their official furlough notice after the lapse has occurred.

· We recognize the uncertainty of the current situation puts our civilian workforce in a difficult situation.

· Should a lapse occur, it could impose hardships on many employees and disrupt important national security projects.

Sincerely and Fraternally,

Bill Harkum
President, Local Lodge 2424

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Hello Everyone,
This is the monthly communication for January 2018.  The next general meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, January 3rd, 2018.  We will no longer be meeting at the American Legion Post in downtown Aberdeen.  Starting in January we will meet at the Local Lodge Union Hall inside Building 4313 on Aberdeen Proving Grounds.  Same time, 5:15PM.  This building is located across the parking lot from the CAC Card office.  This change will be reflected in changes to our Local Lodge By-Laws, which will happen over the next few months. Nominations for International Union Officers will happen on Saturday January 20th, 2018.  The hours will be between 6AM – 8AM and 6PM – 8PM.  The location will still be at the Aberdeen American Legion Post.
There are no motions submitted to expend funds above one hundred ($100) dollars for this month.  But it is customary for the general meeting to pass a motion in January of each year to pay normal and customary bills each month, which can exceed one hundred dollars in many cases.  These expenses include taxes, salaries, lost time and expense reports, office expenses, and affiliation dues.
I expect the executive committee to approve and forward a budget for 2018 to the general meeting.  We did well in 2017 following our budget, but we exceeded the budget goal for voluntary donations.
Now I want to discuss this coming year, 2018.  This will be a contract year for our two largest groups within this lodge.  ATSS and DCSS should begin and conclude negotiations before the end of 2018 to bargain for new Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA).  Union leaders have been planning for this for months, but the next few months will move us into action.   District 1 Lodge and Business Rep Billy McIntosh are arranging several negotiations training classes soon. The training will be available to all stewards within our local, but specifically for the negotiations committees that will be forming soon.   The respective chief stewards are the points of contact for these committees.  These committee members will go into negotiations with the latest knowledge of their rights at the bargaining table, how to get the pertinent facts and data about our workforce’s economic impact, and know what actions to take to influence the outcome for our members.
The prime contractor for these CBAs is Jacobs Technology with associated sub contractors.  Jacobs Technology is a division of Jacobs Engineering Group.   Here are some economic facts about Jacobs.  In August 2017, Jacobs Engineering Group announced a merger with CH2M Hill Ltd companies, putting Jacobs 56,000 employees together with CH2M’s 20,000 employees.  Jacobs agreed to acquire CH2M for 3.27 Billion dollars, of which they paid 60% in cash, meaning Jacobs had 1.962 Billion dollars in cash at the time of deal.  Jacobs will pay for the other 40% of the merger with stock, which means if you currently hold any Jacobs stock, it is being diluted by issuing more stock.  Does that mean it is worth less, not necessarily at this point, it simply means that there are more shares available for sale today then there was before the merger.
For the business year of 2017 Jacobs earned 545.75 million dollars in profit from 10 Billion dollars in revenue.  As I said earlier, Jacobs had nearly 2 billion dollars in cash to begin the merger with CH2M, but at the time of the November 2017 filing Jacobs still has 774.151 million in cash on it’s balance sheet.  Some of you have heard that some corporations, like AT&T are offering cash bonuses to employees after the Federal tax cut package was passed and signed.  If Jacobs were to offer the same deal to its now 76,000-member work force, it would cost 76 million dollars, which would still leave the company with slightly under 700 million dollars cash on hand.  The point here is that Jacobs is not financially stressed or cash poor by any measure. In fact Jacobs has announced it bought another company named Blue Canopy for an undisclosed amount after the CH2M merger and issued a fifteen cents dividend to stockholders.
From reports just filed with the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC), we can see that on November 29th, 2017 Jacobs CEO, Steve Demetriou, gained 55,529 shares of Jacobs stock at $64.83 per share.  That’s just under 3.6 million dollars.  So it appears that Jacobs’s priority is to buy up other companies, reward stockholders, and reward company executives.  Where does the workforce fall on this priority list?
In this merger, ATSS and DCSS are part of a new business unit called ATEN (A-10 is what Jacobs is calling it).  This unit is responsible for over 3 Billion dollars in revenue right now each year for Jacobs, and post merger with CH2M the ATEN unit could be worth up to 8 billion annually.  In Jacobs’s own SEC reports it states that the new ATEN division is dependent on Federal Government contracts for 88% of that division’s revenue.  I wonder if the economics packages presented to our negotiators will represent the same value listed in the SEC reports.
Now that is a lot of data about Jacobs, but we have many Brothers and Sisters that do not work for them.  There are other issues facing many members from various contracts.  Our brothers in Letterkenny Pennsylvania are being told their previous work responsibilities are being reassigned to non-union workers, only to be told later it is their responsibility to fix the work that the non-union workers did incorrectly – but for less money.  Members of Wolfcreek contract are arbitrating a grievance where the US Government allegedly told the Wolfcreek management what job actions to take on which workers, something that clearly breaks the rules.  But the point of the focus on these two large CBAs that we will begin to negotiate is that we set the standard of what is important to the well being of all our members.  We gain the leverage for other CBAs based on the success of these major ones.  So it is time for all of us to get up to speed on these issues and be involved.  There is strength in numbers.  There is strength for the companies not letting you know what those real numbers are – or there is strength in our Brothers and Sisters knowing the value of the work they bring to the table.  So let’s begin this year by building support for what is to come!
 
Respectfully and Fraternally,
Bill Harkum
President, IAM&AW Local Lodge 2424

2018 Dues Increase

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December 15, 2017

Re:  Union Dues Increase

To The Members of Local Lodge 2424:

This letter is sent to announce that the Executive Committee of Local Lodge 2424  recommended and the members present at the monthly General Meeting voted on December 6th, 2017 to raise monthly dues by one dollar ($1.00) per month.   This will take monthly dues to $80.07 per month.  For most members the increase will take effect in the first paycheck after January 1st, 2018.

For members with dues collected bi-weekly the new rate will be $36.95.  These members currently pay $36.49 bi-weekly, so this will be an increase of $0.46 on each paycheck.  For members with dues collected bi-monthly the new rate will be $40.04.  These members currently pay $39.54 bi-monthly, so this will be an increase of $0.50 on each paycheck.  Members who pay dues monthly will see the full amount, $80.07, deducted on every paycheck, which is the full $1.00 increase.

The increase in dues were in part to cover the new per capita tax rates of the International Grand Lodge and District 1 Lodge, which increased by ninety cents ($0.90), per member, per month.  For 2018 the Grand Lodge per capita tax is increasing to a monthly rate of $34.37 per member.  District 1 Lodge per capita tax is increasing to a monthly rate of $22.05 per member.  Our Local Lodge also pays one dollar ($1.00) per month, per member, to the District 1 Lodge for a Centralized Account fee.  The total per capita rate from the Grand Lodge, District 1 Lodge, and accounting fee totals $57.42 per member each month.

Our Local Lodge portion of this monthly dues increase is ten cents ($0.10), per member, per month.  This makes the local lodge cost of dues $22.65 per member.

Overall, the Local Lodge is financially healthy and has the resources on hand to meet the needs of the members.  For the first time in years we operated with a budget for 2017, and were successful with those cost controls.  Financial reports are given at each general meeting of the Local Lodge, the first Wednesday of each month.  Feel free to contact a steward or my office if you have questions.

 

Fraternally,

 

 

Bill Harkum

President, Local lodge 2424

IAM&AW, District 1

District 1 Officer & Steward Appreciation Night

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On November 1st a small delegation of Officers and Stewards traveled to Scranton PA, to represent Local 2424 at the annual District Officer & Steward Appreciation night. There were many heartfelt speeches given by those who keep this union running but the highlight of the evening was the attendance of International President Robert Martinez, Jr.

Intl President Robert Martinez, Jr (center) , District 1 Directing Business Rep Tony Armideo (right) and Business Rep Billy McIntosh (left)

President Martinez shared his vision of the future of the I.A.M. A vision that includes changing and growing to meet the challenges of the future. He spoke about the importance of being involved in not only political battles on Capitol Hill but those for the State, and Local Legislatures. He talked about improving the education program and increasing how many members can benefit from it. Mostly he was there just to thank the officers and stewards for the time and effort they spend in the name of fairness, dignity, and justice on the job.

 

 

October 2017 Communication

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Hello Everyone,

This is the monthly communication going into October. The next
general meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, October 4th.

A request has been submitted for one thousand dollars ($1000) for an
ad in the program for District 1’s stewards’ appreciation night in
November. Another request has been submitted for one thousand dollars
($1000) for the education fund for the Winpisinger Center. I expect
that we will also have a motion to give three hundred dollars ($300)
for the IAM member emergency fund for hurricane relief for IAM members
in the Houston/ Southern Texas area and Florida. Additionally, I
expect that motions will be made to cover costs of three delegates
attending the Maryland State AFL/CIO convention in Reisterstown this
November. Also I expect to have a motion to cover the costs of the
stewards and officers that wish to attend the stewards’ appreciation
night. Each should be around one thousand dollars.

I expect the Executive Board to make recommendations for delegates for
the Maryland AFL/CIO convention. The members will vote on the board
recommendations at the local lodge general meeting.

Last month I wrote about health insurance and it seemed to spark some
questions and interest. Not all of our members have language in their
collective bargaining agreement (CBA) to have health insurance outside
what your company offers. But if you are interested in exploring what
is possible, talk to a steward on your CBA. It may not currently be
available and there may be other issues at work that prevent that
option, but talk to your steward.

I also encourage you to look at and work on your health insurance
options now, so that during open enrollment period you know what
options work best in your situation. In many cases you can look at
the healthcare exchanges and compare to your company’s plans. Ask
questions now. I encourage you to plan ahead.

In closing I want to remind you that we are now fourteen months away
from the next election of local lodge officers. Our By-laws state
that candidates for officer positions must attend at least half of the
general lodge meetings one year prior to the election, which means
that if you want run for a position you have to start attending
meetings now. In an established organization, like our local lodge,
change comes from within. Hurling complaints and insults doesn’t
change much, but putting in work does. Step up and get involved! It
is the best way to affect the change you want to see.

Respectfully and Fraternally,

Bill Harkum
President, IAM&AW Local Lodge 2424