L.U. 586 (em,i&o), OTTAWA, ON, CANADA—All people working in the electrical trade in Canada must be licensed by the government of the Province in which they are working. A good mark gives the apprentices an Interprovincial Journeyman’s License, which is accepted in all Provinces.
We in Ottawa are very proud of our apprenticeship program. Our in-house courses prepare our apprentices for the college courses that the government mandates they take. There is a yearly contest among all the apprentices in Canada.
In the last six years we have produced three exceptional apprentices in our local:
First: Wayne Anderchek—1999-Gold Medal for Ontario and Fourth in Canada. 2000—Gold in Ontario and Silver in Canada. 2001—Silver in Ontario.
Second: Dave Powell—2002—Sixth in Ontario. 2003—Gold in Ontario and Gold for Canada.
Third: George Kardaras—2004—Gold Medal for Ontario and Fourth Place in Canada.
The local offers our heartiest congratulations to these apprentices for a great job well done.
L.U. 596 (i,o,u&t), CLARKSBURG, WV—After many years of service to Local 596 as president and assistant business manager, August “Nick” Pinti is retiring in July. His plans to spend more time with his grandchildren and travel with his wife, Judy. Nick, we say thanks for the years of service and wish you and Judy the very best.
After a very slow winter for work, the summer of 2005 looks a little more promising. Many projects are still in the planning stages. Local 596 Bus. Mgr. Darwin Snyder, president of the North Central West Virginia Building Trades, has signed project labor agreements with many of these large planned projects. The $950 million coal fired Longview Power Plant to be built in the Morgantown area is one of these projects. The $82 million expansion of Monongalia General Hospital in Morgantown should start later this year, and the expansion of Ruby Memorial Hospital is ongoing. There are many more projects still to bid in the Morgantown area with West Virginia University and West Virginia University Hospitals. The new $265 million United Hospital Center to be built in Harrison County is still delayed in the courts.
Local 606 brothers really get the job done:
from left, Nathan Lemons, Luis Sanchez,
Brad Burlington, David Giles, William Murden,
Joe Canfield, Marlon Johnson, Luis
Dechoudens, Tom Jackson, Terry Petty and
Jason St. Gelais.
L.U. 606 (em,es,i,rtb,spa&u), ORLANDO, FL—More and more condominiums are being built in central Florida. That is why Florida’s oldest contractor, Olson Electric, and Local 606 have taken the challenge for innovative work changes so we can compete against the nonunion in this market. The reward is that Olson Electric has been awarded several Metro West condominiums. This means more work for our members.
The Code of Excellence program has been initiated by the contractors and IBEW. Through everyone’s positive attitude, this program will help us get back some of the markets we are struggling in.
Our deepest sympathy goes to the families of Bros. Kenny Shaof and William Haney. They will be genuinely missed in our Brotherhood.
L.U. 648 (em,i,spa&u), HAMILTON, OH—Our annual fish fry was a big success again this year with over 120 people attending. We all enjoyed 100 pounds of fish, covered dishes, desserts and good brotherhood. A big thanks goes out to our fish fryers: Dick VonStein, Mark Arminio, Larry Jerdon and Rick Hoffman.
Spring is here and the work picture is getting a little better. We have projects going on at AK Steel, Miami University, several schools and other various projects.
Local 648 mourns the deaths of two of our local brothers. Andy Phillips, a 55-year member, passed away Dec. 16, 2004. Baxter Calhoun, a 43-year member, passed March 20, 2005. These brothers will be sadly missed.
L.U. 654 (i), CHESTER, PA—It seems that with the arrival of spring hiring has picked up somewhat, affording many of our members the opportunity to shake the winter blues and get back to work. Although most of our calls have been for relatively short durations, the number of calls has helped to get members moving off the book.
The renovations to the meeting room are progressing nicely, thanks largely to the volunteer work of many of our unemployed members and the time devoted by Pres. Paul Mullen, Dennis Nilan and Jeff Campbell to oversee the project. Thanks to everyone who has contributed to the process of preparing the hall for catered events.
Local 654 honors Bro. Robert Kearns for acting swiftly in late December when he used his quick thinking and safety training to respond to a brother in need—most likely saving his life. The injured brother is still recuperating from damage to his hand. We also would like to welcome home Bro. Shawn Quinn from his prolonged duty in Iraq. The hardships endured by these two and the respective heroism associated with each of their circumstances serves to keep things in perspective for those of us experiencing a temporary lack of work.
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