Council 2 Convention
Photos & Highlights
AFSCME In Motion
2005 AFSCME Women's
Convention
General Membership Meeting News
Bargaining Unit News
Council 2 Convention Photos & Highlights
AFSCME
35th Convention Photos & Highlights
Click! Broadband Techs Picket TPU
Campus
July 11, 2011
Early on the morning of Monday, July 11th, twelve brave souls from Click!
network's Broadband Tech group staged an informational picket in front of
the TPU campus on S. 35th street. They greeted TPU employees as they
arrived for work, protesting the protracted 2 year long labor dispute over a
few remaining contract negotiations issues, including shift differential
pay, fair market wages, benefits takeaways and Click's inability to come to
agreement on these issues in a timely manner.
 The gathering was peaceful, with the
exception of a demand emailed from Click! manager Terry Dillon to the guard
shack nearby, demanding that we move away from the employee entrance, out to
the public sidewalk. Director of Public Utilities Bill Gaines didn't
seem to have a problem with our being there, and stopped by to learn more
about the issues and talked with the picketers.
The Broadband Techs will follow up the picket with a visit
to the Public Utility Board at its meeting on Wednesday.
The Broadband Techs voted to join Local 120 in the summer of
2009, only to face one obstacle after another at the hands of Click!
management, from forcing a unit
clarification hearing, to a
merger election, and now protracted contract negotiations, all spanning
the better part of two years. With City negotiators doing their best
to draw out bargaining for as long as possible, the Broadband Techs had
finally had enough, and called for the informational picket, in an attempt
to break the stalemate.
Update November 14, 2011:
Broadband
Services Technicians voted to accept the City's Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU), which upon ratification by the Utility Board
and City Council will officially bring the 8 new members under the
main Local 120 City of Tacoma bargaining agreement. The MOU
provides for overtime pay, clarification of standby pay language,
PTO/Sick Leave-Vacation conversion rights, retroactive restoration
of longevity pay to August 30, 2010, withdrawal of take-home
vehicles for employees on call, abolishment of the old
'quarter-step' wage scale, replaced by an 8 step pay range,
placement in Appendix A of the main contract, and a one-time lump
sum payment of $600, to compensate for the removal of the take-home
vehicles. No pay adjustments were included.
This vote brings to an end a 2 1/2 year process that included 12
months of bargaining, a unit clarification hearing with PERC, a
merger election, and a card signing campaign that began in the
summer of 2009.
Officers Elected for 2011 - 2012
At the December 6, 2010 General membership meeting
the following officers were elected to serve for the 2011 - 2012
term:
John Ohlson - President
Angelo DeFazio - Vice President
Dian Seider - Secretary Treasurer
Celeste Suliin Burris - Recording Secretary
Wayne Withrow - Sergeant at Arms
Joyce Seeger - Trustee
Local 120 General Membership
Meeting
4th Monday of Even-numbered Months
At the Pierce County Annex, 2401 S. 35th St.
Conference Room A
Solidarity and Dignity, Food, Drink, Door prizes
Bring Your Co-Workers
 Jerry Beckendorf Scholarship Recipient
Congratulations to Myranda Morris, daughter
of Chet & Cynthia Morris, who was selected as one of the Jerry
Beckendorf Community Service Scholarship recipients for 2009.
Chet is a Local 120 member, and works for
the Tacoma Pierce County Health Department.
Myranda is going to the University of Puget
Sound to study biology, preparing to become a surgeon.
The Jerry Beckendorf Community Service Scholarship encourages
future generations of union activists and volunteers by recognizing
outstanding student volunteerism
Bonney Lake Unit Elects New Policy Chair
Keith Proctor was recently elected as Policy Chair
of the Bonney Lake bargaining unit. Keith also attended shop
steward training along with several Bonney Lake members in May.
The AFSCME Council 2 50th Biennial Convention
was held on
June 3 - 5, 2011 at the Westin hotel in Seattle,
Washington.
Pictured above are the Local 120 delegates to the
50th Biennial Convention, from left:
Joyce Seeger, Donna Sigo, Rhonda Perozzo, Matt Santelli,
Michelle Smith, Laurie Bischof, Celeste Suliin Burris.
Back Row, from left: John Ohlson, Wayne Withrow,
John McNaughton, George Hermosillo, Manie Pinckney, Dian Seider.
Local 120 Delegates Attend 2005 Council 2
Convention
Delegates from Local 120 recently attended the
Council 2 Convention in Spokane. Convention business included
a variety of issues including constitutional amendments, resolutions
and State Executive Board elections.
Pictured above from left: Local 120
President John Ohlson, Dan Simkin (Tacoma Print Shop), Local 120
Recording Secretary Celeste Suliin Burris, Bill Strand (Bonney
Lake), Karen R. (TPC Health Dept), Local 120 Sgt. At Arms Wayne
Withrow, Samol Sanders (Tacoma Print Shop), Robert Jensen (Tacoma
Fleet). Not pictured: Loralee Armstrong, Joyce S.
Over 300 AFSCME Delegates from across Washington
State attended the 2005 WSCCCE Convention in Spokane.
DON'T GO IT ALONE - The U.S.
Supreme Court let stand an appeals court decision that reinforces
non-union employees' rights to request that a co-worker accompany
them to management interviews that might result in disciplinary
action. These are called "Weingarten" rights, after a 1975 Supreme
Court decision that authorized employees to have a union
representative present during such interviews. Extending this right
can help workers deal with management efforts to ward off organizing
campaigns by the use of intimidation.
Report on the 2005 AFSCME Women's
Conference
By Celeste Suliin Burris
I recently attended the annual
AFSCME Women’s Conference in San Jose, California.
One workshop I attended was about Collective Bargaining in the 21st
Century. Much was about the attempted take-backs, such as charging
more for health benefits while delivering less, as well as tactics
that management uses to "divide and conquer" members. We broke up in
small groups, and I discovered in my group women that worked in
prisons, child care providers, and an SAP programmer (who was amazed
that anyone at the table knew what that was!) We all had common
problems, such as the continuing lack of respect that managers show
to negotiating team members at the bargaining table. We talked about
methods to influence the outcome, such as publicity, email lists,
and communication committees.
The other workshop I attended was on the erosion of retirement
security. One thing I learned was that in fixed benefits retirement
plans, more than 99% of the income goes to the retirees, with less
than 1% spent on administration. In the average "defined
contribution" plan, an average of 10% of the money going into the
plan goes to administration and broker fees.
In some plans, as 17% of the money goes to overhead, leaving less
than 85% to be invested and earning profits. Many public employers
have been raiding the retirement plans for years to balance the
budget, and now as the "baby boomers" retire, they want to change
the plans. We are lucky in Tacoma that the Retirement plan is not
controlled by City Management. I know that one idea floated in the
Charter review was to abolish the independent Retirement Board, and
give the resources to HR or Finance. Thank heavens that went
nowhere.
The day began early on Saturday with an 8 AM Continental Breakfast.
We had several speakers. The most moving I found was a member from
New Orleans, LA.
Michelle Baker's father was dying, so she did not leave town in
time. He died the day of the hurricane, and she had to walk in water
up to her neck to get to a shelter. She lost her home, but
fortunately her family was safe. Then she lost her job, as the
school she was a custodian at was destroyed.
The Mayor of New Orleans has laid off more the 50% of the City's
workforce. The City is bankrupt, and in a true Catch-22, has laid
off its welfare workers and unemployment counselors. Those laid-off
workers are getting no help and no unemployment benefits, and many
are still in shelters.
AFSCME International sent out teams within 48 hours, going through
the shelters searching for members and their families. Ms. Baker and
her husband were sitting cold, hungry and thirsty in a shelter when
she saw a familiar green T-Shirt.
The disaster team was able to get her family to lodgings in Texas.
Now she is trying to re-build her life, but there are thousands of
AFSCME members in the same fix. I was very moved. I had previously
donated through CRS, but I sent some money through the AFSCME
website at:
www.afscme.org/katrina/index.html
In the afternoon, we had a question and answer session on the role
of AFSCME in the 21st Century. Many chairs seemed to be interested
in Organizing and Political Action, but I spoke up and said we still
needed to devote substantial resources to negotiating, giving the
example of the City of Tacoma Bargaining Unit, who are still working
under the 2003 contract.
Several members spoke from the floor on the importance of keeping
dues affordable. It was also pointed out that (at a Women's
Conference where we were told that 57% of AFSCME members were women)
six of the seven individuals sitting on the stage were men.
Sunday Morning, the focus was on Political Action. A number of women
who held elective office in the San Jose area spoke on what could be
done in the political arena, and how individuals could get started.
Included were a 28 year old San Jose City Council Member and an
older woman on the School Board.
We were let out before noon to check out and catch our planes.
Like all AFSCME conferences I've attended, it was well worth the
time. The conference proceedings will be up shortly on the AFSCME
web page at:
www.afscme.org/about/women.htm
There are also a number of other resources available on that page.
General Membership Meeting
Local 120 2005 Officer Elections
At the December 6th General Membership meeting, the
following officers were re-elected:
-
President - John Ohlson
-
Vice-President - Loralee Armstrong
-
Secretary-Treasurer - Dian Shearer
-
Recording Secretary - Celeste Suliin
Burris
-
Sergeant At Arms - Wayne Withrow
-
Trustee - Karen R.
Local 120 Sent Delegates To 35th AFSCME Convention
Local 120 Delegates attended the 35th
AFSCME Convention in Las Vegas. Click
here for details
Mayor Baarsma Speaks Out For Unions
Tuesday, January 15, 2002
(LOCAL 120 ENDORSED) Mayor Bill Baarsma attended a Utility Board/City
Council joint study session.
A PowerPoint presentation was given, updating Board and Council members
on an IT Project.
Approx. 30 min. had passed without any comment, when the following
slide was shown:
UNIONS
Communicate with Managers & Employees
Negotiate impacts as appropriate
At that point, Mayor Baarsma stated "I
would like to comment on the Union issue".
[paraphrased]: he said "...the City should allow the Unions to
participate in the process where outsourcing is considered as an
option and give the Unions an opportunity to bid against the
contractors."
He then leaned over to City Manager Ray Corpuz and stated "that would
be consistent with Re-inventing Government, right Ray?"
WHAT A REFRESHING CHANGE!
City of Tacoma
6/27/06 - Local 120 President John Ohlson reports
that over 60% of Management Analysts in the Information Technology
department have signed authorization for representation cards, and
we will be filing a petition with PERC immediately. Election
to be held within 3 - 6 weeks.
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