International diplomacy and union busting at the U.N.

Going after shoddy solar installations in Mass.

North of 49°
British Columbia Utility Locks Out Workers

Au nord du 49° parallèle
Une entreprise de distribution de services publics de la
C.-B. met ses employés
en lock-out

International Executive Council meeting minutes

Federal sector union
member notice

IBEW and Building Trades Flourish at California Ports

Located side by side in San Pedro Bay, the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach together comprise the sixth-busiest port complex in the world.

Even while they vie for business, the sister ports have jointly welcomed a never-fading wave of ships stacked with containers from Asia to fill America's craving for consumer goods. But when it came to relationships with building trades unions, their hospitality was always divided.

L.A. was union-friendly. When port commissioners there looked to upgrade or expand the port's infrastructure, they called upon union building and construction trades.

Long Beach was off limits for union contractors. Vehemently nonunion outfits like Helix Electric held sway with that facility's commissioners and the city's mayor and city council at the port.

Today, a decade of grassroots work by Los Angeles Local 11 and other unions to build political influence and support in Long Beach to successfully promote the skills and social responsibility of organized labor are finally being rewarded. The port, which moves $155 billion in goods and supports about $15 billion a year in trade-related wages, is teeming with members of the building trades, including IBEW members.

"I think both ports now understand that union contractors give customers a well-developed product, a great deal of experience and a commitment to see that the owner has great success with the design and intent of their projects," says Mike Gasper, an area superintendent at Dynalectric and 34-year IBEW member.

The current phase of the Middle Harbor project, part of a 10-year, $4 billion investment at the Port of Long Beach, includes a two-year project labor agreement that will employ 60 electricians at its peak. The project is designed to help Long Beach vastly increase productivity and decrease environmental damage.

"This is a monster job. Everything is robotic," says Craig Shaw, a 13-year IBEW member and a foreman for Dynalectric, who splits his time between Los Angeles and Long Beach.

New 12-kilovolt robotic cranes will replace existing ones that operate on 5 kilovolts. Cranes and robotic vehicles will reduce the amount of time to unload and reload a container ship from four days to one. To maximize utilization of Long Beach's 800 acres, union electrical contractors are helping to build a five-story warehouse that will accommodate rows of cargo containers stacked vertically.

Hill and Chilia: President's Economy Tour Needs Powerful Follow-up

Boston Member Honored for Actions after Marathon Bombing; Federal Workers Alliance, IBEW Challenging
Furloughs

End of An Era?; The Oldest Contractor?; The Blame Game; Dangerous Trend, or Lifesaver?

Robert W. McAlwee

Note: In Memoriam will return in the October issue.

Member Brings Light to a Darkened Yard