Craftsman Article - June 2018

Brothers and Sisters the heat is on! Not only is it hot from the Texas summer weather, the companies in Texas have ratcheted up the heat on their employees. At Channel 4 our members are dealing with management that respects them about as much as Oncor workers are respected. We have met numerous times for contract negotiations at Fox 4 and the attitude of management is, there is a long line of people waiting at the door to take your jobs if you don’t like the way you are being treated and what you are being paid. Sound familiar Oncor employees? The fact is your services play a critical role in your Company’s success. A major problem with the two companies mentioned above is they do not care as much about their product and employees as they do their profits. Fox 4 and Oncor are making huge profits. We are scheduled to meet and negotiate at Fox 4 on June 26th.  The Union Negotiating Committee will report the results of that meeting to the members as soon as possible.

I just returned from San Diego, California, where I was visiting IBEW Local 465 which represents the workers at San Diego Gas & Electric (Sempra Energy owned). It did not take long to realize how good a working relationship IBEW Local 465 and SDG&E have. I attended meetings the company and local union had during my stay. It was very encouraging to hear words during the meetings like partnership, team, respect, and safety. The cool part about it was I could tell they meant it. Safety is just a word at Oncor. The Apprenticeship Program at Oncor is a joke! Oncor does not have a certified Department of Labor Apprenticeship Program. Oncor’s training program is so bad they send Apprentices out to work on trucks alone and call it training as a part of their program. Oncor has a new CEO, Allen Nye. The Union is hopeful that Mr. Nye will be open to dialogue with the local union leadership regarding the safety of the employees and the public. I will reach out to Mr. Nye in order to forge a new relationship between the Company and the IBEW.

IBEW Local 69 has Unit Meetings scheduled for the month of July. The following is the schedule for meetings in July.

July 3 – Tuesday – Waco – 5 pm – George’s – 1925 Speight Ave.

July 5 – Thursday – Corsicana – 5 pm – Chili’s  

July 10 – Tuesday – Brady – 5 pm - The Locker – 109 N Church St.

July 11 – Wednesday – Eastland – 5 pm – Mary’s Restaurant – Strawn, TX.

July 12 – Thursday - Odessa – 6:30 pm – Elegante Hotel – 5200 E University

July 17 – Tuesday - Wichita Falls – After Work – Oyster Bar – 4214 Kell Blvd.

July 18 – Wednesday - McKinney – 5 pm – Hooters - 1775 N Central Expy

July 19 – Thursday - Sulpher Springs – 5 pm – Muddy Jakes – 229 Main St. 75482

July 24 – Tuesday - Dallas – 5 pm – 1408 N Washington Suite 210

July 26 – Thursday – Ft. Worth – 5 pm – Oyster Bar – 4750 Bryant Irvin Rd.

I look forward to seeing everyone that can attend a meeting.

Congratulations go out to FSR, Don Gray and his family. Don’s daughter, SaVanna Gray has been awarded a $500.00 scholarship from the Texas State Association of Electrical Workers to attend college and continue her education. Pretty work Don!

Until next time may God bless you, your family, and our local union.

May 2018 - Craftsman Article

Brothers and sisters, summer is upon us. Take every precaution to remain hydrated and never get too hot. Many times Crew Leaders are focused on completing the job at hand. You are the only one that knows when you absolutely need to cool off. If you need to take a minute to cool off, by all means let your Crew Foreman know and take the necessary time to cool off before continuing work. Once someone has suffered from a heat stroke or heat exhaustion it is difficult to bounce back from.

IBEW Local 69 President, Ross McAuley, and I attended the 2018 IBEW 7th District Progress Meeting in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The meeting began on May 16th, with Oncor Representatives in attendance. The meeting is designed to promote the relationships between the IBEW and Management. Unfortunately, while we were at the “progress meeting”, we learned that the Company has not made a decision on two employees in Taylor, Texas, that have been on Crisis Suspension for weeks regarding safety violations. Oncor Electric Delivery is the only Utility I can find that places employees on “Crisis Suspension” for weeks or even months, for things ranging from safety violations to personal matters that occur at your home. This type of cruel and unusual punishment only occurs at Oncor. If you know of another Utility that inflicts this type of warped punishment on their employees please, let me know. I have not had the opportunity to address this issue with Sempra to ask if they condone this type of Management behavior. Also, Oncor is back to telling stewards they can’t speak or take part during an investigation involving bargaining unit employees. This is false and a clear violation of the law. The Union is preparing to file a charge at the NLRB regarding Oncor silencing stewards during investigations.

Our brothers and sisters at Fox 4 began contract negotiations on May 8th. We met with the Company and negotiated on the 8th and 9th. Proposals were exchanged and the usual posturing occurred. I believe it is too early for me to write about any progress since we really haven’t seen a lot of progress. The parties are scheduled to meet on May 23rd and 24th to continue negotiating. If you are a member at Fox 4 that has issues or proposals you want addressed contact one of the following Negotiating Committee members; John Gnann, Greg Duenn, Michael Kamm, or Bobby Reed.

 Many of us will be taking summer vacations with our families. Have a great time while on vacation this summer. Please do not forget about safety. Safety should be at the forefront on the job and at play.

Until next time may God bless you, your family, and our local union.