AUGUST 2007 LABOR’S VIEWS

Service awards to members of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners for the month of August were presented to: 
Thomas Atkins 30 years
Robert Burns 30 years
Keith Lewis 30 years
Charles Miner 30 years

Congratulations!

The Union is sponsoring a cook-out at the Defenders’ game on August 18. All Union brothers and sisters are invited as well as their family members and guests. Tickets cost $20 for members of Local 1302, but that money will be refunded when you attend the game. Spouses and non-members will pay $23 per ticket while children 4 – 13 years old pay $13, and those 3 and under are free. Each child receives a $20 voucher which can be spent in the gift shop. There is also an additional event for children beginning at 4:05 that day. Check our website for details. The cook-out is prepared by the staff at Dodd Stadium, and there is a private picnic area where we eat. I encourage all members to consider participating this year. The value is exceptional for any Union member who brings a young child. What a nice way to spend a summer evening! See Steve Adams, Frank Tagliatela, Mike Malone, John Lamay, Bob Tardif, or Charlie Miner for tickets. 

Electric Boat has changed the company which had previously been used to provide service awards. For that reason, some people have not received the catalog from which to order. I have been assured that everyone who has earned a milestone award will be receiving his or her catalog. Please be patient. If the catalog is more than a month overdue, let me know.

Overtime was zeroed out in the beginning of July. If at anytime you have questions about overtime hours (whether it be about no-shows, paid hours, refusal hours, or total hours), don’t hesitate to contact me. I will remind members once again to poll for overtime, and when you are asked to come in, you need to report to work so that you are not charged for a no-show. Members who may be interested in working SRA jobs at the sub base need to keep in mind that the people who are selected for those jobs are chosen from the overtime list. Chances are, if you have been charged with no-show hours, you will not be picked to go to the sub base. 

On a related issue, Ken Delacruz has informed the locals that EB is bidding on three SRA jobs. Hopefully, if we are awarded these contracts, the work will take place at the sub base, and it has the potential to keep our work force intact through 2008. 

New seniority lists are out. If you would like to see a copy, please ask your area steward. 

Recently the Company posted openings for four De Con Techs. Those openings were filled by two boilermakers, one machinist, and one clerk. These tech jobs went to the various locals in order to get us in compliance with the terms of our current contract. The next opening which arises will be awarded to a carpenter.

As I write this article in the second week of July, the Company has hired nine new carpenters, and they are in the process of hiring another thirty-one. I encourage those of you in our local to assist new hires whenever you can. 

Reminder: If you want to change shifts, you must submit a shift change form. Our department tries to accommodate requests that are made, and we never know when the next group of people may be offered a different shift. A current shift change request list should be posted on all of our area bulletin boards. If you submitted a form, check to make sure that your name and your request are listed.

In the month of September, we will be polling our senior members for the NSSF job at the sub base. We poll these people annually, and if any of our members in the shipyard have more seniority than our current members at the sub base, they will have the right to work at the sub base in place of a less senior member.