Tribal Sovereignty, Convention Awards & more
IN THIS EDITION:
- Celebrating the Third Indigenous Peoples' Day with a Call for Tribal Sovereignty
- Come to the Biennial Convention Awards Night — Tues, Oct. 26
- Maine AFL-CIO Endorses Raegan LaRochelle for Augusta State House Seat
- New England Logging Cooperative, Jackson, Golden, Meet with U.S. Labor Secretary
- New "Degree without Debt" Study: Union Apprentices Achieve Near Wage Parity with College Graduates
- MSEA-SEIU 1989 & AFSCME 93 Ratify New Contracts with Mills Administration
- Building Trades Busy on New Limerick Construct Project
Celebrating Third Indigenous Peoples Day with a Call for Tribal Sovereignty
Earlier this week, Mainers celebrated the third annual Indigenous Peoples’ Day by calling on Governor Janet Mills and the Legislature to restore tribal sovereignty for Maine’s four indigenous tribes — Penobscot, Passmaquoddy, Houlton Band of Maliseet and Aroostook Band of Micmacs — who have lived on this land for 12,000 years. The Maine AFL-CIO has endorsed tribal sovereignty legislation, LD 1626.
At a press conference and virtual rally on Monday morning, Penobscot Nation Tribal Ambassador Maulian Dana said that if state elected officials don’t pass LD 1626 — which would give Maine tribes the same rights as the other 570 federally recognized tribes in 49 states over a range of matters including taxing authority, land use, natural resources, criminal justice and more — “Indigenous Peoples’ Day” will feel like “another broken promise.” She said that tribal sovereignty isn’t just about policies, resources and federal funding, but also about protecting native culture and identity and their relationship to the earth.
“Genocidal acts weren’t something that happened a long, long time ago. They echo through the generations. There’s pain, there’s trauma,” said Dana. “Being able to have our sovereignty recognized and respected makes us able to heal from intergenerational trauma. We don’t bring this up to put blame or shame on anyone. We bring it up so we can walk forward together.”
Federal legislation ensures tribes have inherent rights to govern themselves. However, under Maine law, the Wabanaki tribes are excluded from those guaranteed rights and protections. The Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980 also currently restricts the tribes from purchasing much of their formally dispossessed land. 151 federal laws benefiting Indian Country have been passed that the tribes in Maine have not benefited from because the law.
You’re Invited to the Maine AFL-CIO Biennial Convention Awards Night — Tuesday, October 26th!
Union members and allies are invited to attend the Maine AFL-CIO Convention Awards Night on Tuesday, October 26, at 6pm. The Tuesday evening portion of convention will feature a panel of recent worker organizing and contract victories. This year’s convention will be honoring the following award recipients:
Solidarity Award – Maine Medical Center Nurses, Maine State Nurses’ Association/NNU members, for organizing a worker led campaign to win their union, fight for a first contract and improve safety and staffing for everyone.
Working Class Hero Award: John Martell, retired President of the Professional Firefighters of Maine (IAFF), for years of work fighting for safe working conditions and good jobs for fire fighters and first responders and safe communities for all of us.
Working Class Hero Award: John Napolitano, retired Business Manager of Plumbers & Fitters UA Local 716 and long-time President of the Maine Building Trades, for years of work supporting good quality jobs, world class apprenticeships and safety for construction workers.
President's Award – Suzy Young for stepping up and committing so much time, energy and passion to help laid off workers access unemployment benefits during the pandemic.
Edie Beaulieu Award – State Senator Craig Hickman (D – Winthrop) for his commitment to working class people and unions, for his deep understanding of the intersections of race and class, and his constant invitation and pushing for all of us to move toward collective freedom.
Shop Steward of the Year: The Maine AFL-CIO will also be recognizing a shop steward of the year at this year’s convention. You can see the criteria and nominate a steward here: https://maineaflcio.org/steward
Click here to register to join the Tuesday Oct 26 evening awards banquet email. After registering, you’ll get information to join the event.
We would also like to have every affiliated union represented at the convention, where we will elect a new executive board and make important decisions that will guide the organization for the next two years. If you are interested in participating from your union, contact your union president or business manager. A convention mailing was sent out to affiliated Presidents.
Maine AFL-CIO Endorses Raegan LaRochelle for Augusta State House Seat
Working people who live in Augusta have an important special election coming up on Tuesday November 2nd. If you live in House District 86, please consider voting for Augusta City Councilor Raegan LaRochelle in the special election for an open State House of Representatives seat. The executive board of the Maine AFL-CIO voted to endorse Councilor LaRochelle after our Legislative & Political committee evaluated her responses to our candidate survey and interviewed her about her commitment to key labor issues. LaRochelle has made it clear that she supports strengthening collective bargaining rights, fair wages and other policies that ensure working people get a fair shake. Her opponent did not return a response to our survey.
In you live in House District 86 (part of Augusta), please vote for Reagan LaRochelle on November 2 or you can request an absentee ballot electronically using the Secretary of State’s online absentee ballot request service.
New England Logging Cooperative (IAM), Jackson, Golden, meet with U.S. Labor Secretary
Last week, Senate President Troy Jackson (D-Aroostook Cty), Congressman Jared Golden and members of the New England Loggers Cooperative (IAM), met with U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh at the Maine State House to discuss the challenges facing loggers and wood-haulers in northern Maine. The misuse of cheaper foreign labor by employers in the northern Maine woods has undermined loggers and wood-haulers in the North Woods.
“For years, Maine loggers and wood-haulers have raised the alarm about the misuse of foreign labor by large landowners and trucking companies. It seems clear that this practice violates federal law by adversely affecting the wages, working conditions and job opportunities for folks trying to make a decent living in the Maine woods,” said President Jackson. “The fact that Labor Secretary Walsh took the time to meet with us today and talk directly with those harmed by this injustice really means a lot. I’m hopeful that it will lead to further action by the federal government.”
“I appreciate the Secretary of Labor meeting with me, Senate President Jackson, and Maine loggers and truck drivers today to discuss ways the federal government can address unfair labor and trade practices from Canada,” said Congressman Golden. “We look forward to partnering with Secretary Walsh to address these issues and help protect American logging and trucking jobs.”
A Degree Without Debt
New Study: Union Apprentices Achieve Near Wage & Benefits Parity with College Graduates
A new national study by the Illinois Economic Policy Institute (ILEPI) has found that on average, graduates of union apprenticeship programs in the construction industry are able to achieve near wage and benefits parity with other types of workers with four-year college degrees.
The new report titled “Union Apprenticeships: The Bachelor’s Degree of the Construction Industry – Data from the United States 2010-2020" comes as Congress is considering major investments in new infrastructure that is expected to increase demand for skilled trades workers.
“The data reveals that broad stigmas that have long been associated with vocational training alternatives to college are simply not grounded in fact,” said ILEPI Policy Director Frank Manzo IV in a statement. “Compared with two- and four-year colleges, joint labor-management apprenticeships in construction deliver a more robust training regimen, similar diversity outcomes, competitive wage and benefit levels, and comparable tax revenue for states and local governments, while leaving graduates entirely free of burdensome student loan debt.”
In its examination of core economic, fiscal and social metrics, the study — which analyzed ten years of data from the Current Population Survey’s Annual Social and Economic Supplement released by the U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Census Bureau — found that graduates of union apprenticeship programs achieve outcomes most similar to other workers with bachelor’s degrees and associate degrees, while outcomes for nonunion construction workers more closely mirrored other workers with high school diplomas or GEDs.
Overall, the study found that nonunion construction workers earned on average $18,300 less per year than their unionized counterparts, were significantly less likely to have access to health insurance or a retirement plan at work, were more than twice as likely to be living in poverty, were nearly three times more likely to be reliant on Medicaid, and were significantly less likely to be married — a metric that other research has linked to social stability and upward economic mobility.
MSEA-SEIU 1989 & AFSCME 93 Ratify New Contracts with Mills Administration
State employees with the Maine Service Employees Union (SEIU 1989) and AFSCME Council 93 just ratified new contracts that include pay raises and a $15 minimum wage for the lowest paid employees.
“These contracts are an important step forward in our campaign to end publicly funded low-wage work and strengthen the essential services that the people of Maine rely on,” wrote MSEA-SEIU 1989 President Dean Staffieri in a letter to members. “In the coming months and years, all of us must continue our advocacy to hold the Mills administration and the legislature accountable to completing the compensation study and to end the pay gap.”
The contract includes:
- An across-the-board 2 percent pay raise with the start of the pay week starting closest to Dec. 1, 2021;
- A $2,000 one-time payment for all workers, which will be pro-rated for seasonal, part-time and intermittent employees, with the start of the pay week starting closest to Dec. 1, 2021;
- An across-the-board 4 percent pay raise starting with the pay week closest to July 1, 2022;
- On Dec. 15, 2021, all state-worker salary schedules that are below $15 an hour will be increased to $15 an hour.
- Childbearing and adoption leave: Paid leave will be increased from 14 calendar days to 28 calendar days – the leave must be taken continuously but can be begun at any time up to eight weeks after the birth or adoption of the child/children.
The contract also includes increased mileage and childcare reimbursements, an additional paid holiday (Juneteenth), improved telework policies and other gains.
Building Trades Workers Busy on New Limerick Construction Project
Several building trades union members continue to work in Aroostook County on a $150 million expansion of the Louisiana Pacific Mill, which produces strand wood fiber boards and siding.
"We've got three different contractors and close to 70 members working on the project," said Grant Provost of Ironworkers Local 7. "This is a very big job for us."