Unions Standing Strong

“The most important thing in industry is the person who does the industry, which is the worker. That can never change. Labor is the only source of wealth. There is no other source, except land, the raw material.”

—Eli Siegel

Unions Today

These words of Eli Siegel, written many decades ago, still stand strong today. Unions provide the glue that binds business and workers into symbiotic relationships. While American unions date back to the nation’s earliest days, the influence and impact of such associations has changed over time. Unions generally fall into one of two categories: a craft union, where members have specific professional skills; or an industrial union, composed of people who work in the same industry, regardless of their profession.

As America has moved from an industrial society to one based on service and technology, the nation has become less reliant on unions. But this does not signify a reduction in their value. As the following pages will illustrate, unions in the U.S. are making an impact on the quality of life that modern workers have come to expect.

Thought Leaders Forum
Union leaders speak out on upcoming events, ideas, and challenges

Aggressive Goal Set to Increase Training by 25%

John J. Flynn, President, Int’l Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (BAC)

Our long-standing commitment to training allows union masonry contractors—in partnership with the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers—to meet the demand for skilled masonry craftworkers. Working together, through collectively bargained contributions to the International Masonry Institute, we have created an on-going mechanism to fund apprentice programs and other training opportunities for the masonry industry, as well as to promote the use of masonry materials.

We train thousands of masonry craftworkers annually and our goal is to increase that number by 25% to meet projected demand. Together, we have demonstrated a commitment to providing rewarding careers in our industry and building bright futures for masonry craftworkers in the 21st Century.

No other group in our industry has made a comparable investment of resources or can match the numbers of new craftworkers graduated by our training programs each year.
www. bacweb.org

Labor/Management Cooperation Benefits Us All

Joan Baggett Calambokidis, President, Int’l Masonry Institute

IMI is often referred to as a “virtual corporation” because contributors can pool their resources and spread development costs for training programs and technical services over a broad base and still have a local delivery mechanism for services and training. It allows the local unions of the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (BAC) and their employer counterparts to benefit from training and professional education that would normally be reserved for only the largest corporations.

This strategic alliance benefits the craftworkers and contractors by providing the highest quality training and education programs at the most affordable price delivered when and where they are needed.

It benefits designers, construction managers and general contractors, by providing technical assistance, cost/benefit analysis and other services that will help deliver jobs on time and on budget.

In other words, it’s our investment but it pays dividends for the entire industry. www.imiweb.org

Change is Necessary to Stay Competitive

Joseph J. Hunt, General President, International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers Union

Construction labor unions must change out of necessity. The practices that labor leaders employed 20 or 25 years ago are not working in today’s marketplace. Instead, we must work hand-in-hand with our contractor partners, looking for true ways to make them competitive so that they remain union contractors.

Through IMPACT, the Ironworker Management Progressive Action Cooperative Trust, union ironworkers and contractors are already seeing the benefits of a more efficient and cohesive ironworking construction industry. When employers using union ironworkers provide a better service to owners, those owners, in turn, will continue to use our labor. This keeps our contractors competitive and we are able to grow market share.

The Iron Workers International Union has taken another step to grow market share in the rebar sector. Our recently launched Local 846 is a national local focused solely on rebar. Local 846 now counts 25 signatory contractors, 547 active members working in 20 states, and another 67 pending applications. In six months, the Local expects membership to double as organizing efforts escalate. A similar concept is in the works to recapture the pre-engineered metal building market.

For more information, please visit. www.ironworkers.org or www.impact-net.org.

Whatever it Takes!

John J. Dougherty, General President, Operative Plasterers’ and Cement Masons’ Int’l Assn of the U.S. and Canada (OPCMIA)

As general president of the plasterers’ and cement masons’ union, I am resolved that our union will not simply survive but grow, and we are taking the necessary steps to do so.

In areas where our union’s presence is limited, we are offering all contractors highly competitive agreements to get into the market. These agreements enable contractors to surge ahead of their competitors by providing wage scales that rival nonunion prevailing wages as well as higher productivity, value and mobility. We’re working out such agreements for the southern states right now, and once signed, their mobility clauses will enable them to use our skilled cement masons and plasterers in a multitude of states. Whether the contractor takes his key men with him or employs them from the local union hall, supply is guaranteed and so too is the workmanship. Couple this with our Code of Conduct that strengthens membership accountability standards (another sign we’re listening to contractors), and you have an unbeatable combination.

In response to increasing levels of construction activity and a shortage of skilled labor in many regions, our union is organizing and recruiting aggressively, training relentlessly, and striving to improve our productivity for contractors. After tripling our organizing staff last year, hundreds of experienced journeypersons as well as apprentices were brought into our ranks. The new field representatives also work closely with our contractors to ensure the lines of communication are always open. Unrivalled in quality and comprehensiveness, our apprenticeship programs ensure our plasterers and cement masons are not mere “hands,” but highly skilled craftsmen proficient with the newest methods, materials, and tools. Our curriculum guarantees national standards that build community trust and boost contractors’ market share. And that, in the final analysis, is the bottom line—raising the productivity gains of our contractors, and improving their profitability margins so their business succeeds. Simply put, we are willing to do whatever it takes.

We strongly encourage all concrete contractors to speak with Michael Gannon, and all plastering contractors to contact Daniel Stepano at our headquarters.

The OPCMIA is here to stay! And we believe in teamwork. www.opcmia.org

IMPACT Develops Labor-Management
Programs to Grow Ironworker Market Share

Joseph J. Hunt, General President, International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers Union, IMPACT Labor Co-chair

William W. Brown, President, Ben Hur Construction Co., IMPACT Management Co-chair

IMPACT, the Ironworker Management Progressive Action Cooperative Trust, was formed in 2003 with the primary goal of helping union ironworkers and their signatory contractors expand market share. In less than three years, IMPACT has developed several programs to assist local unions and their business partners reach that goal.

IMPACT is a joint labor-management trust formed under Section 302 (C) (9) of the Labor-Management Relations (Taft-Hartley) Act. The Trust is governed by a 22-member board of trustees made up of an equal number of labor and management representatives from ten regions across the country. In addition to the trustees, each of the ten regions has its own executive committee and a regional advisory board to pinpoint issues specific to that geographic area.

In 2005, the first RAB meetings were held, creating a unique forum for union ironworkers, employers and owners to come together, debate and seek solutions for challenges facing the union construction industry and ironworkers specifically. The discussions were lively and frank at the advisory board meetings. A diverse range of topics was raised, including recruiting younger members, women and minorities, improving training, particularly for foremen, competing with the nonunion sector and guidance on financial issues such as prompt pay and pensions.

“The labor market has changed,” says Joseph J. Hunt, general president of the Ironworkers International Union and the IMPACT labor co-chair. “In today’s market, contractors are our partners and we must help them remain competitive so that they remain union contractors.”
William W. Brown, president of Ben Hur Construction Co. and the IMPACT management co-chair, agrees that “true partnerships between labor and management are vital for both groups to succeed.”

Among the programs that IMPACT offers its members is a National Substance Abuse Program that surpasses the drug-testing requirements of many owners and contractors. Once tested, eligible participants are pre-qualified to work on jobsites with substance abuse testing requirements. Standardized procedures and a shared eligibility pool enable a member’s current test to serve as a valid pre-employment test for one or more contractors. The program is administered by an independent third party that coordinates all program testing, enforces the program requirements and provides a 24-hour online database. IMPACT pays all costs, including new hire, annual, random, post accident and for-cause testing.

The Substance Abuse Program has attracted the attention of other unions and organizations. Several elements of the plan were used by the AFL-CIO Building and Construction Trades Dept. as it negotiated a drug testing program with the Construction Users Roundtable. Also, the state of Ohio recently directed its Bureau of Workers Compensation to accept IMPACT’s Substance Abuse Program as a comparable program. Ohio is one of the few states that mandates all state-funded jobsites be drug-free workplaces.

IMPACT also offers its members a comprehensive safety insurance program, including workers compensation and general liability insurance from three major carriers. By working closely with the insurance carriers, IMPACT contractors can receive lower insurance rates for recognition of workplace realities such as better training and drug-free work sites.

Workers compensation reform legislation, including passage of enabling legislation for collectively-bargained workers comp (CBWC), is a top concern of contractors. IMPACT has developed a Lobbying Guide to Workers’ Compensation Reform that highlights the success of programs throughout the country to improve the delivery of medical benefits to injured workers and lower workers compensation costs to employers. The guide provides a step-by-step plan for establishing a CBWC program.

Training programs also are offered through IMPACT and the National Training Fund of the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers. New programs were launched this year to train ironworker foremen and shop foremen. Numerous pilot training programs are scheduled throughout the country. IMPACT and the National Training Fund also initiated a standardized core curriculum for all local unions for mixed and specialty local apprenticeship programs. This standardized curriculum will help develop journeyman ironworkers across North America who will all complete their apprenticeship programs with similar knowledge and skills.

In 2005, the American Council on Education evaluated all of the ironworker training courses and signed articulation agreements with Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana and the National Labor College in Washington, D.C. Now, ironworkers can complete their associate or bachelor’s degrees through online courses.

Another advantage of IMPACT membership is access to two project tracking systems that provide local unions and contractors with up-to-date information on thousands of commercial, industrial and maintenance projects. This data allows them to bid work ahead of the competition. One of the systems details scheduled and unscheduled outages and shutdowns at powerplants and generating units. This was particularly valuable to users in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Through its laptop program, IMPACT ensures that every ironwork local union has the tools to use the tracking system.

For more information about IMPACT, please visit us at www.impact-net.org or call (800) 545-4921.