www.goiam.org
Friday, March 8, 2002
The
latest round of negotiations with Lockheed-Martin concluded Friday after
nearly 30 hours of continuous bargaining. The meetings were conducted
under the auspices of the Federal Mediation Conciliation Service during
which the company presented its last, best and final offers to the
various negotiating committees.
IAM Negotiators forced major improvements to the company's original wage
and benefit package. The respective negotiating committees will present
the new terms to the membership for a vote on Sunday, March 10th.
Lockheed members should contact their local representatives or check
their local lodge's website for additional information, including time
and location of the Sunday meetings.
Senate Sends
Economic Stimulus Bill to Bush
An overdue
recession relief bill, including a much-needed extension of unemployment
benefits is on its way to the White House after the Senate voted 85-9 to approve
the legislation.
The final vote follows three months of partisan bickering that held up any
additional assistance for the millions of unemployed Americans whose 26 weeks of
jobless benefits were rapidly running out. More than 1.5 million workers
exhausted their UI benefits since the 9/11 attacks.
The measure would extend unemployment benefits by 13 weeks and allow for
additional extensions in states with high unemployment rates. The bill does not
include all of the large tax breaks for business and wealthy individuals sought
by President Bush and the House Republican leadership.
Canale Tapped for UAL Board Seat
The IAM
announced Wednesday that Stephen R. (Randy) Canale will replace John Peterpaul
as the IAM representative on the UAL Corporation board of directors. Peterpaul
will step down officially on May 16, 2002 after 8 years on the UAL board.
Canale will continue to serve as president of District 141, administering
contracts for 30,000 United employees including Ramp and Public Contact
employees. As the IAM representative on the UAL board, Canale will represent the
shareholder interests of all IAM-represented employees at United, including
15,000 mechanic and related members of IAM District 141-M.
“This appointment will place an elected IAM official on the UAL board – one who
is responsive and responsible to the membership on a daily basis,” said IAM
International President Tom Buffenbarger. “It means a more aggressive
involvement by employees in the direction of United Airlines.”
Canale will serve on the UAL board for two years and then be replaced by the
president of IAM District 141-M. Scotty Ford is the current president of
District 141-M. The position will be rotated between the district presidents
every two years.
“Randy Canale’s experience as a union
official and his proven ability to communicate with the members makes him an
excellent choice for the UAL board of directors,” said GVP Robert Roach, Jr.
“John Peterpaul is owed a debt of
gratitude for over forty years of dedicated service to the Transportation Labor
Movement,” added Roach.
US Airways Names New CEO
The US
Airways Group board of directors named former Continental Airlines executive
David N. Siegel as president and CEO of US Airways. Current US Airways CEO
Stephen M. Wolf will retain the position of chairman at the airline and serve in
a non-executive capacity.
“US Airways is facing many challenges,
and we look forward to working with Mr. Siegel to resolve them together,” said
Transportation GVP Robert Roach, Jr. “The IAM worked with Mr. Siegel previously
to reach the first agreement for Continental Express Flight Attendants.”
Prior to his appointment as president of Continental Express, Siegel developed
and implemented the route and fleet restructuring plan that was considered the
reason for Continental's operational and financial turnaround. He is currently
CEO of Avis Rent a Car System, Inc.
“No other
segment of America’s transportation system is forced to meet its capital and
operating needs without substantial government assistance,” said Edward Wytkind,
Executive Director of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO, in
testimony before the House Railroads Subcommittee. “Operational self-sufficiency
is the wrong answer for Amtrak.”
Wytkind testified on behalf of 12 AFL-CIO rail unions, including 10,500 IAM rail
workers and 800 IAM members at Amtrak. The first step in turning around the
nation’s troubled passenger rail system, according to Wytkind, is to end the
mandate for Amtrak to operate subsidy free. “No other national passenger rail
system in the world operates subsidy free. Congress must put an end to this
double standard.”
Canada to Limit Airport Security Debate
The IAM and the
Canadian Labor Congress (CLC) blasted the government of Canada for its decision
to exclude the airline workers and their representatives from decision-making
roles on a national aviation security board. The move reverses a previous
decision to include front-line employees in the policy–making debate.
“Tell me who knows better about what’s going on at an airport than the ground
crews, the ticketing staff, the pilots and flight attendants and the people at
the security checkpoints?” asked Ken Georgetti, president of the Canadian Labor
Congress, representing a coalition of Canadian labor unions, including the IAM.
"The membership of the Machinists Union
have again been slapped in the face by a government not prepared to listen,”
said Dave Ritchie, IAM General Vice President, Canada. “Instead, they continue
making the same mistakes over and over and covering them up with shortsighted
band-aid solutions.”
The Canadian government created the
Aviation Security Advisory Committee in response to pressure from Canadian
transportation unions to include airline workers in the debate over new airport
security measures following the events of September 11. Since its formation, the
government has repeatedly ignored the input of the committee and implemented
changes without regard to the concerns of airline workers.
“The government cannot have a vision or
long-term strategy to deal with aviation security without the participation of
frontline workers. Working together will ensure a vibrant and safe air transport
industry in this country," said Ritchie.
More than 120
local and district lodges have already signed up for the IAM’s free web site
service known as Microsites. The program is rapidly catching on and has
the potential to become the most significant IAM communications breakthrough in
years.
Taking advantage of technology that allows a non-expert to build and maintain a
simple website, the program provides the training, tools and free server space
for lodges to quickly and easily update their site with information about local
activities and events.
The latest feature of the program is a Microsites Resource Center, with
articles, content and suggestions for inclusion in the locally maintained
websites. Local or district lodges interested in having a basic website, without
the cost and hassle of traditional websites, should contact the IAM
Communications Dept. at 301-967-4520, for additional information or an
application form. The program is open to any local or district that does not
already have a website.