Thursday, August 18, 2005


IAM and AMICUS Ink Partnership Pact

Leaders of the IAM and AMICUS, the largest manufacturing union in Great Britain, met at the William W. Winpisinger Center in Southern Maryland on Aug. 11, 2005, to sign an agreement with the potential to impact millions of workers on both sides of the Atlantic.

“This agreement with AMICUS will produce tangible benefits for the members of both organizations, who are routinely penalized by the effects of globalization and the transfer of jobs around the world,” said IAM President Tom Buffenbarger.

“It’s time for a global union strategy that ignores the geographic and political barriers that have separated us in the past.”

The agreement calls for coordinated organizing and collective bargaining and is similar to one reached two years ago between IAM and IG Metall, the giant German metalworkers union.

Delegates at the 2004 Grand Lodge Convention in Cincinnati unanimously passed a resolution calling for cooperation with other unions in terms of collective bargaining and organizing.

The accord was hailed by AMICUS General Secretary Derek Simpson as a great expression of international solidarity between two great unions.

“We organize workers in the same sectors and in many companies that operate on both sides of the Atlantic,” said Simpson.

“It is vital that we join forces to stop businesses from playing British workers off against American workers in a race to the bottom. We have to work together to combat the negative impact of globalization on workers worldwide and this agreement will enable us to do just that.”

IAM-Boeing Negotiations Continue

Talks for a new agreement covering 18,500 IAM members at Boeing facilities in Portland, Oregon, Wichita, Kansas and across Washington State moved into the fourth day of round-the-clock bargaining on Thursday.

Earlier this week, both sides agreed on contract language and funding for the IAM/Boeing Joint Programs, including the Education Assistance program, which has helped thousands of active and laid-off members.

In addition to ongoing meetings between Boeing and the various IAM subcommittees, IAM representatives at the Head Table, including Aerospace Coordinators Dick Schneider, District 751 President Mark Blondin, District 70 President Steve Rooney and District 24 President Bob Petroff continue to meet with company representatives.

However, they have yet to receive hard figures from Boeing on key issues of pension or health care. Based on the membership surveys; pensions, health care costs and job security are among the top issues.

Additional updates and information about the IAM’s August 21 Truth Rally at Angle Lake Park in SeaTac, Washington is available at www.iam751.org.

Local 1781 Scores Organizing Win

An intense organizing effort by Local 1781 in San Francisco, California culminated in the certification of 164 Aircraft Cabin Cleaners from AirServ Corp. as the newest members of the IAM Transportation Department.

“Local 1781 president Carl Finemore and Organizing Committee members Derek Knox, Danny Lebron and Roberto Mendez have repeatedly shown their commitment to organize workers from service companies operating at San Francisco International Airport,” said Transportation GVP Robert Roach, Jr.

This organizing victory followed a similar campaign a year ago when Local 1781 organized Scientific Concepts’ janitors at the airport. Both victories are part of a broader multi-union initiative to organize all workers at the airport.

Meetings between the new IAM members and representatives from District 141 and Local 1781 for the election of a Negotiating Committee are set to take place on Sept. 7.

Labor Day Toolkit

As Labor Day 2005 approaches, IAM members and their families can take action to stop the ongoing assault on America’s workers. The AFL-CIO is calling on American families to fight back and demand the nation’s decision makers “Reward Work, Respect Workers.”

Visit http://www.aflcio.org/aboutus/laborday/ and take action this Labor Day. The AFL-CIO provides a wealth of information on Labor Day as well as a number of ways for you to get involved. Visitors can send e-cards, play games and download a Labor Day 2005 Toolkit that offers fact sheets, action ideas, sample letters to the editor, a news release and clip art.

President Bush Explains His Social Security Plan

President Bush has made a string of public appearances to promote his plan to privatize Social Security. But after months on the road and dozens of appearances, public support is less than when he started. One reason could be his explanations. At the Tampa Convention Center in Florida, the President responded to an audience member’s question about the $600 billion in transition costs to private accounts (from the official transcript released by the White House):

Q. … How is it the new plan is going to fix that problem?

THE PRESIDENT: Because the -- all which is on the table begins to address the big cost drivers. For example, how benefits are calculate, for example, is on the table; whether or not benefits rise based upon wage increases or price increases. There's a series of parts of the formula that are being considered. And when you couple that, those different cost drivers, affecting those -- changing those with personal accounts, the idea is to get what has been promised more likely to be -- or closer delivered to what has been promised.

Does that make any sense to you? It's kind of muddled. Look, there's a series of things that cause the -- like, for example, benefits are calculated based upon the increase of wages, as opposed to the increase of prices. Some have suggested that we calculate -- the benefits will rise based upon inflation, as opposed to wage increases. There is a reform that would help solve the red if that were put into effect. In other words, how fast benefits grow, how fast the promised benefits grow, if those -- if that growth is affected, it will help on the red. Okay, better? I'll keep working on it. (Laughter.)

Local 1238 Makes Gains in New Contract

The 57 IAM members at Adams Company in Dubuque, Iowa, recently ratified a new three-year labor agreement. The members at Adams Co. work in machining and maintenance and produce custom gears and shafts.

According to IAM District 6 Business Representative Wayne Laufenberg, the new three-year contract includes a substantial wage increase of more than 12 percent and IAM Pension increases in all three years of the agreement. In an important language change, vacation can now be taken in one-day increments. Accident and Sickness benefits also increase $10 each year of the new contract.

"This was our new shop committee's first contract negotiations,” said BR Laufenberg, who praised the IAM shop committee at Adams Co. “It was their hard work and determination that allowed us to bring this proposal back to the membership.”

IAM Midwest Territory GVP James E. Brown praised BR Laufenberg and the new IAM shop committee at Adams Co. saying, “We appreciated their dedication and hard work in an effort to secure the wages, benefits and working conditions our members deserve.”

Momentum Builds for Free Choice Act

The Employee Free Choice Act (H.R. 1696 and S. 842) picked up six new co-sponsors, bringing the total number of co-sponsors to 201 in the U.S. House and 38 in the Senate.

The bipartisan bill will greatly boost fairness in the workplace by reforming the nation's basic labor laws to require employers to recognize the union after a majority of workers sign cards authorizing union representation.

It also would provide mediation and arbitration for first-contract disputes and establish stronger penalties for violation of the rights of workers seeking to form unions or negotiate first contracts.

Click here to send a message to your Senators and Representative to support this important legislation.