During the past decade we have seen almost all of our employers sell their timberland or their mills.  The attached slide show offers some suggestions as to why.

The bottom line is that seeking short-term profits as encouraged by federa; tax policy makes it less competitive to be an integrated forest products company.  Unfortunately nothing in public policy or the tax code takes into account the other benefits of having integrated forest products firms.  When all that matters is return to investors based on the last quarter other values get lost.  As citizens we all suffer from this approach.  We, as woodworkers, just suffer more directly and more quickly.

Ask the Swede

By J Hill

One non-union worker asks, “Won’t I be bargaining from zero?”

What this worker really wants to know is. “can I lose what I now have?”  Management will tell you the law does not guarantee that you will keep what you have.

The reality is different.

The benefits you now have were put in place by the company.  This is what the company thinks it needs to keep you working and doing a good enough job to make them money.  If they thought you would work for less and make them just as much money as today what is stopping them from paying you less or taking away your benefits?  The answer is nothing.

Thus, you are now working for what the company wants you to work for, under the conditions the company wants you to work under. With the benefits the company wants or has to give you.  Those economic and social forces in place today that set your current working conditions do not change just because you fight for and win the right to form a union.

What does change is your power.  That is your ability to demand different benefits, different holidays, different overtime language, or a grievance procedure.

There is one last fail safe against you losing what you have.  That is you.  After you win your union election, form your bargaining team, and get you first proposed contract you must vote to accept it.  This means that everyone in the bargaining unit will be given a ballot and will vote to accept or reject the proposed contract.    Common sense tells you that you will not vote for a contract that is worse than your current situation.

This is why first contracts often take longer to bargain.  It is also why in the end, first contracts that are voted in by the members offer more protections, and more total compensation than were in place prior to the workers forming a union.

By standing up to the company and demanding better hours, wages, and working conditions you are creating a better future for yourself, your family, and your community.

Workers Win Seat on Natural Resources Board in Washington State

HB2893,recently signed by Governor Gregoire, creates a position on the State's Natural Resource Board for a worker represented by a union wood worker.  The DNR is responsible for managing state forests in Washington.

According to ADBR, Steve Fluke, who led the charge for the District in this lobbying effort,” It is extremely important for the job security of every woodworker in Washington that the union has a voice and a vote to determine how public forest lands are managed.  Decisions made by this Board will not only impact our jobs, our families, and our communities but also our children's future and their jobs as well."

Congratulations to Steve and all the woodworkers who helped make this victory possible.

$24.8 Million for IAM Members at United Airlines

To ensure that IAM members would share in any success derived from their contributions to the company’s restructuring, District 141 negotiated profit-sharing language into the agreements with United Airlines. That strategy paid dividends recently when United Airlines disbursed profit-sharing checks to 16,875 IAM members at the carrier. IAM members shared more than $24.8 million, with an average of $1,471 per member.