Industrial Sector meets in Las Vegas

Conference is major learning event for lodges

INDUSTRIAL SECTOR OPERATIONS held its 2014 conference at the Mirage Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas July 29-August 1, drawing more than 200 participants. The conference is the largest learning event held for industrial lodges, with delegates attending from across North America.

The three-day meeting included half-day plenary sessions with speaker presentations followed by break-out segments for industry- and topic-specific educational content.

Participants listened to guest speakers from government, organized labor, investment and finance, education, law and other areas. Director of Industrial Sector Operations Tyler Brown coordinated and emceed the event.

Conference highlights

International President Newton B. Jones discussed three major initiatives currently underway by the Brotherhood, including the addition of new organizers, the new Bank of Labor/IBB Member Preference card, and the Boilermakers code and creed. The Bank of Labor later held a focus group to explain the Member Preference card in more detail and obtain feedback from delegates.

NLRB General Counsel Richard Griffin Jr., the conference keynote speaker, explained the duties of his office and discussed several areas of the National Labor Relations Act that are being evaluated for possible administrative improvements. Among these areas are employer claims of “inability to pay” during contract negotiations, injunctive relief for terminated employees during organizing campaigns, and successorship protections to prevent new owners from failing to rehire workers covered under the collective bargaining agreement as a way to break the union.

Dina Titus (D-NV 1st) addressed the conference from Washington, D.C., through a video message. She spoke about her strong connection with the Boilermakers union and offered a tongue-in-cheek welcome to Las Vegas, noting that in Las Vegas, visitors can ride the largest Ferris wheel in the world, get married at a drive-through wedding chapel, breast feed in public, and “carry not one, but two concealed weapons.”

Two leaders from the global labor union community spoke about challenges facing workers around the world and the connection that all workers have in seeking fair pay, safe working conditions, and other rights. Former ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda and IndustriALL Deputy Secretary General Kemal Özkan praised the Boilermakers union for participating in and supporting the mission of global unionism.

Member of the Canadian Parliament Pat Martin, a unionist representing Winnipeg (Manitoba) Centre, made a compelling argument about the need to elect union candidates rather than just “union-friendly” candidates. He recalled a situation in which a politician who was heavily backed by unions failed to support a critical union issue and instead responded favorably to the interest of business. Martin asserted that more candidates from the Labor Movement are needed to make certain that labor issues receive the support they deserve.

Ed Smith, CEO of Ullico, the union-dedicated finance and insurance company founded in 1924, gave a fiery speech in which he castigated anti-union multinational corporations, including Wall Street banks, for their greed and indifference to working people. Smith, who serves on the Labor Advisory Board of Bank of Labor (BOL), cited the Boilermakers union, which has majority ownership in the bank, for its outreach to organized labor. BOL has begun offering services to the broader Labor Movement and will soon open a facility near the AFL-CIO in Washington, D.C.

Elise Bryant, a prominent labor educator, communicator, and activist, entertained and inspired delegates, leading the conference in song and challenging Boilermakers to test their knowledge of union history through a group assignment.

Lori Wallach, of Public Citizen’s Global Trade Watch, presented an in-depth discussion of so-called “free trade” deals that have failed to live up to their promises and have caused great harm to American workers. Wallach said proposed new trade deals like the one with countries bordering the Pacific Ocean (the Trans-Pacific Partnership) would further harm U.S. workers by opening up unfair competition to third-world countries such as Vietnam, which pays workers paltry wages. She also stressed that trade deals allowing foreign corporations to sue governments and override their laws pose a threat to the sovereignty of nations and their citizens.

Dan Schlademan, director of “Making Change at Walmart,” a United Food and Commercial Workers campaign to win fair treatment for Walmart employees, described the extraordinary wealth of Walmart owners and their refusal to offer decent wages and benefits to their employees. He said the six heirs of the Walmart fortune “are richer than 42% of Americans combined.” Schlademan noted that Walmart received $24 billion in profit during 2013. He said if the company used just $3 billion of that profit it could offer a substantial increase in wages and benefits to its workers. Schlademan encouraged delegates to participate in rallies for change at Walmart during “Black Friday,” the day after Thanksgiving sales event when retailers traditionally offer their largest discounts of the year.

Other speakers during the plenary sessions included, from Government Affairs, D-PA Bridget Martin and D-LA Cecile Conroy; Bank of Labor Senior Vice President Bill Arnold and Vice President of Commercial Lending Joe Schoonover; Membership Manager Stephanie Joyce; U.S. Director of Health and Safety Mark Garrett; and from the Communications Department, Director Mike Linderer and Web Master Tim Canon.