Local 412's Monthly News Letter, July 2008
			REPORT FROM BUSINESS MANAGER THOMAS MONTANO International Representative, Phillip Lord will officially retire July 1 and Special Representative Bill Eden will assume his duties over the Southwest Pipe Trades. In fact, Mr. Eden will be in on August 8 for an Officers orientation and will be attending our Union meeting that evening. I will notify all the Officers of the details as soon as I receive them. As I reported before, Sithe Global/Desert Rock filed a lawsuit against the Federal EPA over the non issuance of a decision on the EPA permit. Earlier this week the EPA entered into a consent decree with the court stating they would issue a decision by the end of July.  Sithe/Global is fairly confident the decision will go their way. If so they are anticipating appeals and lawsuits to follow immediately and another 9 months of litigation with construction to begin the 2nd quarter of 2009. We’ll see! Eunice will slowly start to pick up through the summer months. There are still no written contracts on the Aluminum Welding; however HY-Tech has been awarded most everything else. The owner did delete 5 huge chillers out of the scope of work deciding it was better to go with big roof-top units. We lost a lot of piping with that decision. We have received over $52,000 in grants from the UA for the purchase of the specified welding machines and related equipment and tools. We are in the middle of a small remodel at the Training Center to accommodate these machines and the related training.  These grants do not include what the UA has agreed to pay for our 16 week “accelerated welding school”. We had our first meeting with the LANS officials regarding the decision not to renew the KSL contract and what LANS was looking for going forward. They are not looking at changing anything substantive in the contracts. The items they mentioned to us were more on clarifications, creating or resurrecting and adaptation in the Safety language, the Sub Contracting language and the Scope of Work (overlapping) LANS Techs/Crafts. I proposed to the Company that the easiest and simplest way to make this work was to sign a “Letter of Ascension” and to begin negotiations after the first of the year. That way there would be no issues with any of the Trust Funds, all the CBA’s would remain in place with no changes to terms and conditions and the transition would be smooth. They agreed to it as long as their legal department would let them put something in writing to that effect with the understanding that we would be willing to work on the issues as I stated before. That is where we left the meeting with our next meeting scheduled for July 17. With the housing and light commercial market at an all time low, a large number of the non-union contractors have entered into the commercial field normally dominated by our signatory contractors. I have had a few requests for “targeting money” on some projects but have been reluctant to offer any to this point due to the fact we were still controlling the market. If I see that trend starting to change, or if other contractors such as Ashcraft start picking up these jobs I will reconsider our position. The Construction Industries Commission was informed that the Journeyman Plumbing, Gas and Refrigeration tests have been reviewed, modified and are ready for implementation. We are now asking that our apprentices, applicants and anyone else, who needs to take their test, go do it! Again thanks to David Montano, Bob Eichhorst and all the other “subject matter experts” who took the time to help review and make these tests relevant and fair I will be reassigning the Business Agents with their respective areas changing a little. George will be taking over Lonnie’s area, while Danny Beavers area will not change keeping Northern New Mexico and Intel. Jerry Vaughn will keep Southern New Mexico and will now take over the NEF project in Eunice. Ray Sanchez will have Albuquerque and the Eastern part of the State to include Clovis, Portales and Tucumcari. The New Mexico Federation of Labor conducted its COPE convention on the 27 and 28th of June.  This is where the Labor Unions in New Mexico decide on what candidates we will endorse in the General Election. I have assigned myself, Lonnie Dame, Dan Glass, Chuck Schumann, Scott LeFevre, Don Morgan, Dan Rivera and Sammy Maes from the Metal Trades Council to represent Local 412 at the convention. Be assured there will be a lot of political information coming in the next few months. Like I mentioned at the beginning of my report, we our experiencing some of the biggest demands for manpower we have ever seen. The contractors are calling for men because they need you. We are in demand. However, what comes with that is our responsibility to show up to work. One of the biggest complaints we have heard over the past few months is the “excessive absenteeism”. You have been referred out, to do a job. These contractors have deadlines which up to this point we have been able to meet. If we start to fail on this, there are several non-union contractors chomping at the bit to replace us in a heartbeat. We have the capability to out-perform the competition and we have done so. But we cannot get to the point to where we get complacent and think they can’t do it without us. We can be our own worst enemy. Please make the extra effort to show up to work and be on time. We all, as a brotherhood, depend on each other.

 

	REPORT FROM BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE R. DANIEL BEAVERS Allow me to begin this month with the Intel Site. JBH has laid off 40 or so members from Base Build over the past couple of weeks. They should begin calling for some Tool Install within the next 2 to 3 weeks. Yearout has begun calling for the C-4 project and should continue to do so for the next several weeks. Continuing with the Intel site there are a couple of issues which have arisen but are not exclusive to Intel. #1 is absenteeism. One 25 man crew at the Intel site had 700 hours of what would have been productive time lost due to execessive absenteeism. We will not continue to be successful at Intel or any job with that type of absenteeism.  We must come to work every day and perform to the best of our ability if we want to continue to be successful. #2 is the issue of solicitation. It has been brought to my attention on more than one occasion. If it continues I will be left with no alternative but to start filing charges. We have a hiring hall in place to ensure fairness for all members not just a chosen few. At Los Alamos we met with Betchel/LANS a couple of weeks ago and it went very well. I believe we will be able to come to some type of agreement and have a seamless transition from KSL to LANS and possibly gain work which has been lost to LANL Techs over the past several years. I would like to close by wishing each and every one of you and your families a safe and happy 4th of July.		REPORT FROM BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE LONNIE DAME This will be my last addition to our newsletter as Business Agent so please excuse me if I ramble on a bit.  The work prospectus is good for the entire 4-Corners area and should continue that way for some time to come.  Our local contractors are bidding and being awarded work throughout the northwestern area of New Mexico.   National Maintenance Agreement contractors are also very successful in the area and Local Union No. 412 has maintained its’ place as one of the top man hour producing locals, under those agreements, in the entire UA.  I must say that the past twelve years have been “one hell of a ride” as I look back on them.  It has been probably the most gratifying period of my life next to being married to Kerry and raising two great kids.  The births of both of my children were “paid for” by our Health and Welfare Fund.  My family has been my main support group and to them I will be forever grateful.  The support that I have received from the members of this Local Union has been truly phenomenal and I can’t thank everyone enough.  How lucky I have been to be a part of such a wonderful organization.  Again, my deepest, heartfelt thanks to all of the members of UA Local Union No. 412!!!!  I will be retiring but definitely will not be going away.  I plan to take part in union activities and urge all members to do the same.  Activists are what make unions work. I would also like to urge all “active” members to work all of the hours afforded them and to participate in our 401K to the maximum of their abilities.  Unforeseen events can change your life dramatically, just as they have changed mine, and you must be prepared.  Thank God for the Union!!  Without our pension plans I would be way up the creek and without the proverbial paddle. I must also say thanks to the contractors and their representatives with whom I have had dealings.  Even with controversy and sometimes some unpleasantness we have all come through it with a feeling of mutual respect. Thank You also to Business Manager Tom Montano and the entire administration for their help and understanding during some rough times.  Thank You to the absolutely wonderful ladies who work and have worked in our office.  I know for a fact that they are the ones who make things work and they should always be treated with the utmost respect and courtesy. Thank You to the Coordinator, staff and instructors, past and present, working at our training facilities. Good Luck to all of the officers about to be sworn in.  I ask all of them to remember that the most important person in this Local Union, or the UA for that matter, is the person on the Out of Work List, period. I have had the good fortune to have had jurisdiction in the most beautiful area imaginable.  I believe that the area will be in good hands with Brother George Riley.  George understands the complex culture in the area and will do well.  Good Luck to him and I hope that he will enjoy the support from the area members that I have always had.  He will definitely have my support.  The transition period should be relatively painless. I suppose that is enough rambling, there is so much I would like to say but for once I am totally at a loss for words.  THANK YOU LOCAL UNION No. 412!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!		REPORT FROM BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE JERRY VAUGHN The manpower situation is currently holding steady.  B&H Mechanical all of their school projects in Ruidoso, Columbus, and Chaparral are currently ongoing and have no manpower needs at this time.  Donner Plumbing is the contractor for the Federal Courthouse in Las Cruces. They have a crew size of 15 and will be in need of manpower this month of at least 10 more.  C.D. Mechanical has plumbers at NMSU, and on a project in Hatch, NM plus a small project at White Sands, and work in and around Las Cruces.  Enoch Mechanical has projects at Gadsden, Lordsburg and in Silver City. They are currently at full capacity at this time.  U.S. Engineering in El Paso is near completion at the Thomason Hospital Chiller project, with 2 plumbers who will finish in about 2 weeks.  At this time there is no official word on the next phase of the upcoming chiller projects.  Yearout will be at the Fort Bayard Hospital but is waiting on the excavation work to finish and will start at the end of August. There will be a need for manpower at the City Hall project in Las Cruces on this around mid-August.  I hope everyone has a safe Fourth of July and remember this country as a democracy is now 232 years old as well as our United States Navy.

 

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