IN THIS EDITION:
- Local S6 Members Rally for a Fair Contract
- State & Local Aid Car Caravan in Bangor — Thurs. June 19th at Noon!
- National AFL-CIO Calls for Action on Racism & Police Violence
- Victory for Techs at NLMC Hospital
- Maine AFL-CIO Announces Primary Endorsements for State Legislature
- Deadline Coming to Register for COPE Convention
Local S6 Members Rally for a Fair Contract
[caption caption="Members of IAM Local S6 rally last Wednesday morning." align="center"]
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Members of IAM Local S6 and their supporters rallied for a fair contract outside Bath Iron Works last Wednesday. The Local S6 bargaining committee has forcefully rejected General Dynamics’ attempts to weaken worker protections and harm job quality at BIW. Union leaders say their members are likely prepared to strike if necessary to maintain good quality union jobs at BIW.
In the recent round of negotiations, company management proposed to continue outsourcing jobs to out-of-state subcontractors, attack employee seniority provisions and dramatically increase employee healthcare costs. These subcontracting proposals would not only create a workforce of poorly paid subcontractors, but could also push more than 1,200 mechanics with over 30 years of experience into early retirement, taking with them a wealth of shipbuilding knowledge and expertise.
After a late night bargaining session Friday, the Local S6 negotiating committee rejected BIW management's “last, best and final offer” Saturday. If members vote down the contract, they will then vote on whether to strike. A strike would require a 2/3rds vote and would take effect on June 22 at 12:01 a.m.
State & Local Aid Car Caravan in Bangor — Thursday June 18th at Noon!
Join members of the Eastern Maine Labor Council, the Professional Fire Fighters of Maine, MSEA-SEIU 1989, and the Maine AFL-CIO for a car caravan rally in Bangor on Thursday, June 18th at 12 noon to tell our Senators: "We need you to lead! Support State and Local Aid Now!"
We will meet up (RSVP for route details) and form a caravan to drive through downtown past Senators Collins and King’s offices, calling on them to champion crucially needed aid to state and local governments. Fire departments, schools, and state and local public services that we all depend on every day are under threat right now as cities, towns, and states will be grappling with revenue loss and budget shortfalls due to COVID-19. We need to fund the front lines; Congress can and must fund these important public services! Please RSVP here.
National AFL-CIO Calls for Action on Racism & Police Violence
[caption caption="Signs outside the AFL-CIO headquarters in Washington, D.C." align="center"]
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The General Board of the AFL-CIO on Tuesday adopted a comprehensive set of recommendations to take concrete action to address America’s long history of racism and police violence against black people.
The recommendations include calling for the immediate resignations of the secretary of defense and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for their roles in the misuse of federal military power to put down peaceful demonstrations; supporting the call of the Minnesota AFL-CIO for the president of the Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis union to resign and backing the statement of MLK Labor in Seattle demanding changes from its police affiliate among many other demands. Read more about them here.
Would you like to be more involved in fighting for racial and economic justice in Maine and in the labor movement? We are working to organize union members to fight for racial justice. If you are interested please fill out this form or email cynthia@maineaflcio.org for more information.
Management at Northern Light Maine Coast Hospital in Ellsworth has finally reversed course and agreed to recognize two workers as members of the Maine State Nurses Association. Technicians at NMLC organized and joined MSNA in 2017 and have been negotiating a first contract ever since. Management had been dead-set on excluding some workers from being a part of the union. But due to the tenacity, courage, and the solidarity of the workers, the union successfully pressured management to recognize Brother Steve Votey and Sister Lynn Fickett. This is a huge victory for Northern Light workers. When we fight, we win!
Maine AFL-CIO Makes Primary Endorsements for Legislative Candidates
The Maine AFL-CIO has announced endorsements in six state legislative primaries. These elections will take place on Tuesday, July 14th. Absentee ballot voting has already begun. The endorsed candidates are all in competitive primary races, including union member & Maine AFL-CIO Worker Candidate Training graduate Amy Roeder in Bangor. Amy is a member of PATFA (AFT), the Actors Equity Association and the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA).
We have also endorsed Senator Shenna Bellows (D-Kennebec Cty.) & Rep. Anne Carney (D-Cape Elizabeth), two pro-labor legislators who serve on the Labor & Housing Committee and are in Senate Primaries in Kennebec and Cumberland Counties. Other endorsements include longtime labor attorney Ben Grant in House District 41 in Portland, former Bangor City Council Chair Joe Baldacci in Senate District 9 and State Senator Rebecca Millett, running for the House in a primary in Cape Elizabeth.
Maine House Maine House | 30 41 | Rebecca Ben | Millett Grant | Democrat Democrat |
Maine House | 125 | Amy | Roeder | Democrat |
Maine Senate | 14 | Shenna | Bellows | Democrat |
Maine Senate | 29 | Anne | Carney | Democrat |
Maine Senate | 9 | Joe | Baldacci | Democrat |
Reach out if you want to help support these pro-labor candidates in their primary election or have questions about absentee voting and safe voting during COVID. We will be making the vast majority of our endorsements at our upcoming COPE Convention June 25 & 26.
Deadline Coming to Register for ME AFL-CIO COPE Convention!
Don’t forget to register for the Maine AFL-CIO’s COPE (Committee on Political Education) Convention to be held online June 25th and 26th. Registration is strongly encouraged by FRIDAY JUNE 19th. The COPE Convention is where we chart our political agenda for the coming year and make political endorsements. Make sure your local and its members are represented by sending delegates to COPE. If you are interested in being a delegate for your union contact your union president to find out about your union's delegate selection process. If your union needs COPE information contact chris@maineaflcio.org. See you there!