Full Agenda Marks IAM Legislative Conference
Hundreds of election year delegates to the 2004 IAM Legislative Conference are taking the fight for jobs and justice into the halls of Congress this week, inspired by opening day remarks from IP Tom Buffenbarger, GVP Bob Thayer, Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD), AFL-CIO President John Sweeney and IAM Legislative Director Rich Michalski.

“We live in a changed America,” said Buffenbarger, who described the relentless assault on working Americans under the administration of George W. Bush. “The toll is plain for anyone to see: 3 million jobs destroyed since 2000 and a trade war that has people scared to death about the future of their country.”

GVP Bob Thayer catalogued the extent of the jobs crisis and its impact on workers in heartland states. “The fear of job loss is pervasive and employers are exploiting that fear,” said Thayer. “As a nation, we can’t allow this to continue.”

A longtime IAM ally, Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) ripped into the Bush record on education, tax cuts and the right to collective bargaining. “If you look at any indicator, working people are worse off under this president,” said Hoyer, who urged delegates to seize the opportunity before them this election year.

AFL-CIO President John Sweeney thanked the IAM for its efforts to hold China accountable to labor rights standards and for making ‘Jobs’ and ‘Buy American’ two of the nation’s top election year priorities. Sweeney described the current U.S. president as “a serial promise breaker” who fell short of his 4-year old campaign promise to create 5 million jobs “by about 7 million jobs.”

IAM Legislative Director Rich Michalski briefed delegates on issues they will discuss with legislators this week, including: stalled rail negotiations for nearly 8,000 IAM rail workers; the Air Force Tanker Modernization; efforts by the Dept. of Defense to strip federal employees of collective bargaining rights and unfair “free trade” agreements such as FTAA and CAFTA, that threaten even more American jobs.

Health Worries Haunt 9/11 Workers
Hundreds of workers who toiled in the wreckage of the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to a report presented to the American Psychiatric Association in New York.

Workers who were injured and those who saw the injured or dead are in the worst shape, according to the online study. Forty-seven percent of injured workers reported PTSD symptoms, with only two in five receiving treatment. Many of the workers are stoical, explained Thomas Greiger, one of the study’s authors. “It’s an experience they lived through, and they think it’s an experience that they’re just going to have to live with.”

The examination of psychiatric and emotional fallout among 9/11 workers comes in the wake of ongoing efforts to treat widespread respiratory damage among workers at the World Trade Center site. Medical screenings by the Mt. Sinai Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine in New York, found that almost half of the police officers, firefighters, emergency technicians and construction crews suffered from respiratory or mental health problems. The IAM supported the efforts by Mt. Sinai to help the rescue and recovery workers, donating all proceeds from its “Everyday Heroes” documentary to provide testing and treatment for the workers.

Midwest Territory to Host ‘Dawgs’ Rally
The IAM Midwest Territory will hold its 4th Annual Midwest "Hawgs for Dogs" motorcycle run on Saturday, June 19, 2004. Registration for the all-Harley event will take place from 7:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. at the Wilwerts Harley Davidson located at 145 N. Cresent Ridge, in Dubuque, IA. Following the run, a dinner and party with drawings for cash and prizes will be held for all participants and attendees. All pledges collected during the run will be given to the Guide Dogs of America (GDA).

Since it’s founding in 1948 by a blind Machinist, GDA has helped more than 2,000 blind and visually handicapped men and women free of charge.

Launch Vehicle Techs Approve New Contract
IAM members who service the launch vehicles that propel satellites into space have ratified a new 3-year agreement with Lockheed Martin Astronautics. The 500 members of Local 610 ply their high tech trade at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida and Vandenberg AFB in California.

Highlights of the 3-year pact include a $1,500 signing bonus and wage increases of 4 percent in the first year and 3 percent in the second and third year. Pensions for IAM members increased from $50.00 per year of service to $60.00 per year, retroactive to Jan. 1, 2004. The contract was approved by 91 percent of those casting ballots.

Aerospace Coordinator John Crowdis and Western Territory GLR Don Whitaker led the negotiations with valuable assistance from District 166 Business Rep. Johnny Walker.

Series Examines Ohio Role in Upcoming Election
The Washington Post published the first installment of a four part series on the critical role certain states will play in the upcoming Presidential election. The first segment is titled “Battleground Ohio” and examines issues that will shape the outcome in that state.

In the past 100 years, Ohio has voted for the eventual winner of the election almost every year and no Republican has ever been elected without carrying Ohio.

Post reporters visited Morgan County and Monroe County, who are on exact opposite ends of the political spectrum – but both knee-deep in the current economic crisis. The Post also explored the impact unemployment numbers will have on the election.

The article features Ohio voters growing dissatisfaction with Bush’s handling of the economy, pointing the University of Cincinnati’s Ohio Poll, which indicated that less than 4 in 10 adults in Ohio approved of Bush’s handling of the economy.

The Post article is available at:
www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A63192-2004May3.html