Industrial Sector meets in Las Vegas

More than 200 delegates gather for second conference

THE INDUSTRIAL SECTOR conference held at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas Aug. 16-20 surpassed attendance at the inaugural event last year, attracting 222 delegates from across the United States and Canada.

The conference included plenary meetings for all participants as well as 42 break-out sessions that focused on specific areas and industries. Thirty-six speakers addressed the delegates. They spoke about building the union, pensions, health care, FMLA, labor law, safety, legislative issues, bookkeeping, conducting audits, Boilermaker history, and other topics.

The conference featured presentations by labor officials, educators, attorneys, and government officials representing the Department of Labor, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Railroad Retirement Board, and the National Labor Relations Board.

Also presenting were Blake & Uhlig, the Boilermaker National Funds office, a consultant for the Boilermakers National Pension and Welfare Funds (Canada), and International staff.

Conference gets high marks

ISO EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Jim Pressley said the conference received high marks based on feedback forms completed by delegates. “Participants indicated that they liked the facilities at Caesars Palace, the quality of the presenters, and the variety of content that was available.

“While we were happy with how well the first Industrial Sector Conference turned out last year, I think this year’s event was even better,” he said. “Attendance at the various presentations was phenomenal; delegates showed they came to expand their knowledge and sharpen their skills.”

Pressley said he was impressed with the participation and support of Canadian members. “International Reps Richard MacIntosh and Kent Oliver did a great job of coordinating the Canadian presentations, and a substantial number of Canadian members attended.”

Pressley also praised Canadian International Vice Presidents Joe Maloney and Ed Power, “for their generous support of the conference reception.”

IVP Fairley calls for rebuilding manufacturing base

IN HIS OPENING remarks at the conference, IVP Warren Fairley gave a sobering assessment of American manufacturing and why the U.S. economy has faltered.

“In the last 10 years we’ve lost 5.5 million manufacturing jobs; we’ve closed 50,000 manufacturing facilities,” he said. “At the end of 2009, manufacturing employment was close to the same level as it was in the 1950s. Simply put, our system is broken.”

Fairley said he recently received three pieces of mail that, taken together, demonstrate the problems faced by American manufacturers. Two letters announced layoffs at American crane manufacturers. The third letter was from the Department of the Navy announcing that it had just signed a $29 million contract with Korea to build cranes.

“Until we decide in the United States that we are going to make things again, and until we decide that we are going to hold the government accountable for the way they spend our money, the economic security of our citizens will always be at risk,” he said.

The news has been dismal for U.S. shipbuilders as well, Fairley said. He is currently negotiating a plant closure agreement involving the Avondale shipyard, near New Orleans, where Local 1814 (Bridge City, La.) members are employed by Northrop Grumman. And two commercial shipbuilders — NASSCO and Aker — have announced layoffs. Those shipyards employ members of Local 1998 (National City, Calif.) and Local 19 (Philadelphia), respectively.

While the situation is bleak, Fairley expressed optimism that U.S. manufacturing can recover. “I know we have a long way to go, but we can get there. We absolutely have to get there. It’s going to take business and labor moving beyond differences to promote shared goals. Right now the goal we all should share, the goal we must share, is getting our economy moving again and getting America building things again.”

“Light fires,” says Elaine Bernard

KEYNOTE SPEAKER ELAINE Bernard, executive director of the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School, stressed the importance of motivating members to become activists. Her presentation was titled “Lighting Fires vs. Putting Them Out.”

Bernard said that most members in unions today were not part of the organizing effort that created their union. Instead, they “discovered” that they were in a union by virtue of getting a job with an employer that was party to a collective bargaining agreement. That situation leads to a view by many members that the union consists of labor leaders and staff and acts mainly as an “insurance policy” for when something goes wrong. If unions are to increase their power and influence, members must take an active role, she said. They need to “experience” the labor movement.

Bernard challenged delegates to think back to when they first became active in the union and to try to create similar experiences for their members to become activists — in other words, to “light fires” for them.

Phee Jung-sun calls for international collaboration

PHEE JUNG-SUN, the Materials Sector officer for the International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine, and General Workers Unions (ICEM) discussed the importance of global solidarity and the challenges workers face in dealing with transnational companies.

He said large, multinational companies are difficult to negotiate with because of their power and the difficulty unions have in getting specific operational and financial information about them. The goal of union networks like ICEM is to develop global labor standards and to persuade transnational companies to sign a “global framework agreement” in which those companies indicate their acceptance of general principles regarding worker rights.

Jung-sun said that while the economic crisis has hit the United States hard, many other regions of the world are affected by the loss of jobs, too. Workers everywhere are affected by the changing nature of companies, he observed, including the increased use of contract workers and ownership by investment firms that care more about return on investments than the future of the company or its employees.

He thanked the Boilermakers union for becoming involved in ICEM, noting that Intl. Pres. Newton B. Jones serves as chair of the ICEM Materials Sector and IVP Warren Fairley serves on the Materials Sector Committee. He also praised the Boilermakers for helping to spearhead the North American Cement and Building Materials Union Network (NACBMUN) to coordinate bargaining with the Steelworkers, Mine Workers, Laborers, and Teamsters. This network is an example of global cooperation that has already paid off; pressure from NACBMUN and ICEM convinced LaFarge to return to the bargaining table, as described in a story in January-March 2010 Reporter.

BRS President calls for broader vision, activism

W. DAN PICKETT, President of the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen, drew parallels between his union and the Boilermakers, both of which were organized more than 100 years ago. “Both of our fine organizations have been successful in attaining [better working conditions, wages, and benefits]. It is a constant battle to retain and expand what we have, and we must never ever give up the fight. All of the things that we have achieved we have achieved through solidarity.”

Pickett said that for the labor movement to regain its place “our vision must be broad enough to see all workers in the same way that we see ourselves and our fellow workers.” He said hostile media continue to define what organized labor is, noting, “If our vision is to be heard above the noise of our opponents…we must learn to stand together again.”

Pickett urged individual union members to become activists and to promote labor in their homes, at their churches, and other places where they interact with people. He said labor must define itself and the good it does, rather than allowing our enemies to define us.

Union looks ahead to next conference, convention

At the conclusion of the 2010 Industrial Sector conference, ED-CSO Jim Pressley reminded delegates about the 2011 Consolidated Convention, which will also be held at Caesars Place next July. He noted that every 15 years, the convention coincides with the election cycle for local lodge officers, so that those elections and the election of delegates to the convention will occur in the same year. That will be the situation in 2011.

Pressley said all lodges will receive correspondence later this year regarding any election schedule changes that may be necessary. He also advised that the next Industrial Sector conference will be an abbreviated meeting held just prior to the convention at Caesars Palace.