just wanted to say Thank You

The Forum is six months old now. We started with only 16 members that followed me over from that union hating rat hole. We are now up to 70 members and growing everyday! I just wanted to say thanks to all the members that have regestered and please post away! Its the content of the forum that builds a following. I'm gonna try and post something everyday. Please tell your friends about this site. We're all brothers in this trade and no matter what side of the fence your on. We're all here to share knowledge and experience and we happen to have plenty of that here!

Ed Mings joins the Dark Side today.

Welcome Ed!!

i would like to extend a very big welcome to any new member or those of you that are just thinking about it. Please sign on and feel free to ask any question about utility/contractor work you may have. Many of us here have over 20 years and would be happy to help anyone looking to get into the trade or for those of you who have been started on your way - all we can do to help you along, we will.

Ken

Oh, Ed Mings is an IBEW IO Rep. He can certainly set you straight on IBEW and union matters.

I'm glad to be here and I will do my best to try and keep all of you up on all the news as much as I can. By all means if you have questions please fire them to me I might not have the answer at the moment but I will try to get you one as soon as I can.

I have a question.....Dear Mr ed_m, HOW THE HELL DO WE KICK OUT THE UWUA AND GET THE IBEW IN HERE???

Cordially yours,
Frustrated UWUA member former proud L.U. 17 hand

To MI-Lineman

There are only a couple ways. The first is to ask them to release your group to go to the IBEW and the other is decert and wait out your time and then get 17 to come in and hopefully win an election or voluntary recognition. It is unfortunate your having this big of an issue with who represents you? We do not condone leaving one union to go to another we would rather see people fight to win what they feel they are not getting. Either way this is not a good situation. I wish I could wave the magic wand for everyone but that is not the case. I would try to get the representation you want by going up the ladder just like we here at the IBEW do start locally then to the district office and then to where ever your IO is.

Hey MI,

Why was there a change in the first place and when did it happen? Was there a raid or just a failing of Local 17 to listen to the members? I was in the 17 office years ago and was treated really well as a tramp. Never worked there though. Couldn't get a work permit at the time.

Let me see what I can find out? I do not remember how that transpired.

Whoa Whoa, 17 never lost this area! Consumers has always been UWUA. Actually if we were to switch it would probably be 876 that would get us. Ya we have major issues here and the biggest obstacles are the "State Council" we have and the fact every dam work group is under the same contract and we "Whinemen" are no longer the majority so I'm sure you all can guess what happens come contract time! It's an old argument and I was just stirrin the pot.

I actually tell my fellow hands it would be a lot easier to fix the problems here than to try and change!! I try and do my part.

Keep on keepin on Mr. ed! I'd like to see the IBEW make some huge positive advances for it's members to use as an example at our meetings!!

I hope things change for you guys, one CBA is sometimes good but from your remarks it appears that some are very unhappy. With that said when I said I would check out what transpired I meant how the whole detroit edison and the organizing started when who and where. Not to see why UWUA was there. I remember a time must have been at least 20 years ago or more things were stirred up and IBEW and UWUA were at odds then over units. I will say this usually who goes out and gets the organizing done gets the members. You are right some times that does not happen. I like change some people do not. If you stay and fight and change that is good. The easiest thing to do is quit fighting? The IBEW has made changes and I do not work in the Utility Department so I'm not in the loop as to anything that you could use to your advantage. If you want to let me know some of your issues I will gladly see if there is anything we have done to stop the same issues? I work in the Construction Department and we try not to step on our fellow brothers toes. Let me know some of the problems and I will see if we have encountered the same or similar it would be hard to believe we have not had similar issues.

On another note I would like it if those out there could keep me up on where the non-union may be working and who they are working for also what kind of work they are doing? If there is a different spot for this please let me know where and I would be glad to say something there, our own members are the best eyes and ears we can have! Thanks

Sorry, if there was confusion it was my fault. I would guess Local 17 is a Construction local and I'm a Tramp hand. However my home area many of the locals represent both.

I worked in Ontario for a bit way back, 'bout the same time i was talking to Local 17 in Detroit. Ontario was a bit of a confusing mess as far as unions go and got worse. The construction local (maybe it was 177) ended up breaking away and the "cold lineman" went to the Laboures Union and the Hot Hands went with the Powerworkers Union (I think). Powerworkers Union were CUPE (Cnadian Union of Public Employees). Now a lot of Utilities are other unions including United Auto Workers. I think 353 still operates.

A Tramp does get a totally different perspective from a utility hand or a construction hand that works out of one local. I think I may have worked out of a dozen halls and belonged to 5 separate locals in my time, not including the British Electrical Union.

Thanks all.

You did not hurt my feelings by asking the question what heppened. I just wanted to see how years back everything happened before I give an answer. You are exactly right a lot of LU have dual juridiction I, O, U, CATV and so on. There are other unions that do represent the utilities some are laborers, Operating Engineers and even Teamsters, not just power houses either but even lineman. Seems strange that 35 + years ago the labor organizations probably would have went in together to organize and not go wall to wall like today. They would have carved out sections that each would represent, not now there is more fighting going on than we care to talk about.

ed_m wrote:I hope things change for you guys, one CBA is sometimes good but from your remarks it appears that some are very unhappy. With that said when I said I would check out what transpired I meant how the whole detroit edison and the organizing started when who and where. Not to see why UWUA was there. I remember a time must have been at least 20 years ago or more things were stirred up and IBEW and UWUA were at odds then over units. I will say this usually who goes out and gets the organizing done gets the members. You are right some times that does not happen. I like change some people do not. If you stay and fight and change that is good. The easiest thing to do is quit fighting? The IBEW has made changes and I do not work in the Utility Department so I'm not in the loop as to anything that you could use to your advantage. If you want to let me know some of your issues I will gladly see if there is anything we have done to stop the same issues? I work in the Construction Department and we try not to step on our fellow brothers toes. Let me know some of the problems and I will see if we have encountered the same or similar it would be hard to believe we have not had similar issues.

On another note I would like it if those out there could keep me up on where the non-union may be working and who they are working for also what kind of work they are doing? If there is a different spot for this please let me know where and I would be glad to say something there, our own members are the best eyes and ears we can have! Thanks

Look into all the REAs spending their FEMA money from the ice storms in Iowa. Union contractors couldn't come close to competitive bids against the rats. It's been said that the requirements to even bid is to be a "local contractor". Chain Electric BOUGHT a dozen houses in Harlan Iowa and rented a few dozen apartments thru a "thrown together" holding company to meet this standard. How can this be cost effective? I don't have first hand information on this, but I was told this by a reliable source with no reason to lie to me. 3 years worth of rural distribution, right in my hometown. This is going on all over the state.

I will definetly look into this FEMA issue and what may be going on. Where is Chain Electric from? If you know? Thanks

ed_m wrote:I will definetly look into this FEMA issue and what may be going on. Where is Chain Electric from? If you know? Thanks

Hattiesburg, MS

I remember them coming into SLTC with their dog and pony show. The rep was saying each crew operates as their own company; the crew foreman defines their own budget--and when working for Chain they will not only teach you line work they will also teach you how to be a business man

ed_m wrote:I will definetly look into this FEMA issue and what may be going on. Where is Chain Electric from? If you know? Thanks

chain electric is the rattiest of the rats.... the first to step in and fill in for labor disputes and lockouts. crappy safety record and scab labor.
The only lineman that work for this rat outfit are scum that could never be employed with real contractors and utilities.

The "chain gang" crossed our picket line in 09.....Can we spell SCABS?

they spend to much time defending the incompetent

dead-end wrote:I spend too much time showing my incompetence

Fixed it for you.

Nice BC!

The boy is coming of age!

Nicely done BC!

Wasn't Red Simpson doing that years ago - making each "foreman" his own business??

To attempt to shed liability in the inevitable accident happening Red Simpson was isolated from liability. It didn't work well. I also remember here in BC in the RAT heyday that a company called Altec - the forerunner of the present day Quanta owned Altec - tried a "bonus" program. It lead to jealousy amounts the crews and numerous accidents. That all came to a head when an apprentice was killed in 1992 and the RAT Altec eventually ended up organized, well of sorts. It was nearly 15 more years before some semblance of union back - no where near what it was but much better.