International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Legislative Department
Transportation Trades Department (TTD)
of the AFL-CIO:
"A Bold Voice for Transportation Workers"
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NMB Representation Manual
(revised text is effective 9.8.09)
Office of the Federal Register
Also go to www.whitehouse.gov for all of the updates concerning events that affect workers.
June 10, 2010GOP Senator targets voting rights measure
The National Mediation Board (NMB) made history on May 11 when it declared that airline and rail workers deserve the same voting rights as workers in every other U.S. industry. U.S. Senators will soon begin debate on a last-ditch resolution by Georgia Republican Sen. Johnny Isakson that would block the NMB rule change and restore the unfair voting procedure that was a key tool in anti-union campaigns. Under the new voting guidelines, representation elections for transportation workers will be decided by a majority of workers who actually vote. The new NMB guidelines would end the practice of assigning “no” votes to all workers who do not participate in an election. CLICK HERE to send a message to your Senators and ask them to oppose the Isakson resolution.
June 4, 2010Senators should support workers, fairness on NMB ruling
A long-standing injustice was made right on May 11 when the National Mediation Board changed union election procedures for airline and rail workers. The NMB will now allow a majority of workers who actually vote to decide the election and stop assigning “no” votes to workers who do not participate. U.S. Senators are expected in June to debate and vote on Sen. Johnny Isakson’s resolution of disapproval, which denounces the NMB’s common-sense rule change. Please write to your Senators to ask them to oppose the Isakson resolution.
May 21, 2010Minnesota lawmakers send letter to President Obama, requesting support for the NMB decision
May 17, 2010Legislative update; NMB delivers; Democracy wins
History was made on Monday May 10 2010, when a 76- year old transportation law was swept away; the National Mediation Board filed in the Federal Register a change to the rules governing representation elections conducted under the Railway Labor Act.
Previous rule, under the Railway Labor Act, counted any worker who did not participate as a “NO” vote, encouraging voter suppression
Rule Change, future representation elections will require a simple majority of those who participate and cast a ballot.
For far too long, the rules have provided an upper hand to corporations, while undermining those who participate in the election process. The rule change will level the playing field and reflect the will of working people in the airline and rail industries.
This change was not easy, it took months of lobbying Senators and Congressman along with the outreach of support to all AFL-CIO Presidents, Labor Councils, Unions, Community organizations. I want to thank all of you who worked so hard on this campaign, IAM members gathered over 24 thousands letters and cards of support to the NMB. I just returned from Washington DC where I was able to thank many Senators and Congressman who had supported this change.
As of May 13, 2010 25 Republican Senators have cosponsored a “resolution of disapproval” (SJ Res 30) by Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga. To try and block the rule change. The privileged resolution provides for expedited procedures in the Senate. It is not amendable, cannot be interrupted for other business once brought to the floor and requires only a simple majority for passage, which cuts off the possibility of a filibuster.
The resolution of disapproval ultimately may prove to be a quixotic quest, even with its expedited procedures, the Senate has only 60 legislative days from the date the rule was published in the Federal Register to act before the expedited procedures expire.
The resolution also would require approval in the House, which has no expedited procedures. And even if assuming the resolution clears a Congress controlled by Democrats, it would have to be signed by President Obama- an unlikely outcome.
And as we expected the Air Transport Association is expected to file an injunction against the final rule by May 17th.
The NMB decision that was published in the Federal Register must remain for 30 days before the new election rules take effect. Thank you for patience and for all your support, you were apart of History; Democracy Wins!
In Solidarity
Lisa Stager
March 25, 2010Act now to preserve COBRA subsidy
Efforts are under way in Congress to do away with the temporary extensions on legislation that allows laid-off workers to receive help with COBRA health care premiums. The Senate passed a bill to extend the 65 percent subsidy through the end of 2010. The measure is now under debate in the House. Without the subsidy, many newly-unemployed workers will not be able to afford coverage. And, the deadline for the latest 30-day extension is fast approaching! TELL CONGRESS to pass the year-long extension of the COBRA subsidy today!
February 26, 2010IAM supports bankruptcy reform
IAM International President Tom Buffenbarger has sent a letter to Congress requesting support for thousands of IAM members and retirees who have seen their wages, benefits and pensions shredded as airlines and manufacturing companies use bankruptcy to gut union contracts, while at the same time rewarding executives with big bonuses.
The scenario has played out at United Airlines, US Airways, Northwest Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, as well as companies like Delphi, the Dana Corporation and General Motors.
Buffenbarger urged lawmakers to adopt the Protecting Employees and Retirees in Business Bankruptcy Act of 2010.
“Our bankruptcy laws must be changed,” he wrote. “Ensuring employers engage in good-faith bargaining when seeking contract modifications must be codified into law. Companies cannot be allowed to use our bankruptcy laws to eliminate decades of collective bargaining gains with the bang of a gavel.”
The Protecting Employees and Retirees in Business Bankruptcy Act of 2010 would bring fairness for workers and retirees by ensuring that paying workers what they are owed is just as important as paying banks, and any sacrifices amongst workers and CEOs is shared. The legislation would also protect against bankruptcy misuse and abuse and workers’ interests in a reorganization plan or sale of assets.
CLICK HERE to read the House letter. CLICK HERE to read the Senate letter
CLICK HERE to send a message to Congress to support bankruptcy reform.
February 23, 2010Health care excise tax hits millions
An article in The Washington Post confirms what the IAM has been saying all along: the Senate-proposed “Cadillac Tax” on health care benefits will not only affect union workers, but non-union workers, as well.
“It happens often in Washington: A perception emerges and soon hardens into fact,” says the article. “Because organized labor took the lead in opposing the tax, the assumption took hold that it would hit unions the hardest… But according to a new analysis, the conventional wisdom about the tax is wrong… At least 80 percent of the workers whose plans would be subject to the tax in 2019 would be non-union jobs.”
The analysis, conducted by professors at the University of California at Berkeley Labor Center, including a former member of President George W. Bush’s Council of Economic Advisers, hammers away the absurdity behind the 40 percent excise tax on plans exceeding $23,000 for families and $8,500 for individuals. Earlier this week, the White House proposed raising the tax threshold to $27,500 for family plans. IAM International President Tom Buffenbarger continues to argue it is unfair to fund health care reform on the backs of working families.
“The Machinists have said from the beginning that the mis-named ‘Cadillac Tax’ on health care benefits is a threat to every car in the lot, not just those plans achieved through fair collective bargaining,” says Buffenbarger. “Any health care reform legislation that is funded by taxing the value of workers’ existing health care benefits is wrong. We continue to hold our position on this matter, not only for our members, but for the millions of Americans who would also be impacted should this egregious measure remain in the final piece of legislation.”
February 16, 2010Opposition intensifies to health care excise tax
Resistance from union households is causing headaches for lawmakers and labor leaders who agreed to support health care reform that included a 40 percent excise tax on employer-sponsored health insurance plans. In addition to outrage over any plan to tax their benefits, many union members question the need for such revenue producing measures, given the compromises that have reduced the size and cost of the original legislation. The IAM Executive Council voted unanimously to oppose the excise tax proposal when it first surfaced.
“Our members were against it when it was part of John McCain’s presidential campaign and we remain steadfastly opposed to this egregiously unfair tax,” said IAM President Tom Buffenbarger. Under the modified proposal, the federal government would impose a 40 percent tax on the value of employer-sponsored health coverage that exceeded certain thresholds. Proponents of the excise tax, including the president’s Council of Economic Advisors, argue insurers would voluntarily hold down premiums to avoid the tax, while employers would pay workers more because their health insurance would cost less.
January 18, 2010Machinists remain opposed to health care excise tax
Despite the so-called agreement announced today by various labor organizations, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) reiterated its opposition to any health care reform legislation that is funded by taxing the value of workers’ existing health care benefits.
“The IAM opposes the excise tax, period. We believe it is unfair to our current members and particularly unfair to those members we hope to organize in the future,” said IAM President Tom Buffenbarger. “If a temporary exemption is the best this Congress can offer the American people after the promises of the last election, they will have earned the wrath of voters in the next election."
“By stringing this 'fix' out until 2018, our members will be pressured to agree to benefit cuts year after year in the vain hope they will be able avoid the excise tax. Companies will seek to shift costs while still cutting benefits to avoid eight years of health care premiums accelerating at fifteen to twenty percent per year.
“This is a huge ping pong ball that our elected leaders are trying to shove down the throats of hard-working Americans,” said Buffenbarger. “On the installment plan or all at once, a 40 percent excise tax on their health care benefits is hard to swallow. But the White House and the House and Senate Democratic leadership appear determined to play ping pong with this legislation until they get the votes they need.
“We will continue our opposition to this egregiously unfair tax.”
The IAM is among the largest industrial trade unions in North America, representing nearly 700,000 active and retired members in dozens of industries.
TELL THEM NOW ONLINE or call 1-877-3AFL-CIO.
January 12, 2010URGENT
Congress: we want real health care reform now!
The insurance companies and their corporate front groups are fighting desperately to stop reform, but we're not going to let them. We need health insurance reform so no one ever is denied coverage because of a "pre-existing condition." We need health insurance reform so no one is dropped by their insurance company simply because they are too expensive. Tell Congress now is the time for health care reform and remind them health care reform must include:
A strong public health insurance option must be available to lower costs and make sure everybody has a health care option.
All employers should be required either to provide health care for their employees or pay into a system to make sure everyone is covered.
No new costs or taxes that would hurt working families.
TELL THEM NOW ONLINE or call 1-877-3AFL-CIO.
January 12, 2010Machinists union leaders vote to oppose health benefits tax
The Executive Council of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) has voted unanimously to oppose any health care reform legislation that is funded by taxing the value of workers’ existing health care benefits.
“For decades, IAM members exchanged substantial wage increases for the best possible health insurance,” said IAM President Tom Buffenbarger. “Now, in a bizarre turn of events, their insurance premiums will be subject to a forty percent excise tax if the Senate version of health care reform becomes law. Democratic leaders have the power to stop this travesty and I urge them to do so, quickly and completely.”
“IAM members are rightfully outraged over the bait and switch tactics at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue,” said Buffenbarger. “They were promised health care reform. Now they face health care deformed by backroom deals.”
No single issue brought more union members onto last year’s campaign trail than Republican threats to tax health care benefits, and the Democrats’ pledge to protect those benefits.
“Like NAFTA, the health care excise tax is an issue with the potential to reverberate for years,” said Buffenbarger. “Machinists have long memories. And they will long remember who taxed their benefits after pledging on the campaign trail not to do so.”
The IAM is among the largest industrial trade unions in North America, representing nearly 700,000 active and retired members in dozens of industries. For more information about the IAM, visit www.goiam.org.
December 16, 2009Machinists call for comprehensive bankruptcy reform
International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) General Vice President Robert Roach, Jr. testified today at a House Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law hearing titled "Protecting Employees in Airline Bankruptcies."
"In major airline bankruptcies, much of the financial sacrifices employees were forced to make to save their company were diverted into the pockets of the people responsible for the company's failure," said Roach. "If employees are called upon to sacrifice in order to resurrect their bankrupt employer, bankruptcy law must require that everyone from the break room to the board room shares the pain," said Roach. The IAM's complete testimony is available at www.goiam.org/transportation.
The Machinists Union believes there is an immediate need for bankruptcy reform that should apply to all private sector workers covered by collective bargaining agreements.
"Auto, steel, banking, newspaper, cable television, and trucking companies are among the more than 100 publicly-traded companies that seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection each year," said Roach. "Bankruptcies are not restricted to just one sector of our country, and neither should bankruptcy reform."
The IAM offered some specific recommendations that should be included in any bankruptcy reform legislation.
"Companies should no longer be able to use the bankruptcy code to eliminate decades of collective bargaining gains when there is no justifiable reason other than corporate greed," said Roach. "Recent court rulings should be overturned to allow airline workers the right to engage in self help if the bankruptcy court terminates their collective bargaining agreement. The right to self help fosters good-faith bargaining by ensuring that the bargaining parties understand the consequences of failing to reach a negotiated agreement."
November 16, 2009Leave a comment with the NMB
This is your opportunity to let the National Mediation Board (NMB) know how important representation elections are to you. By clicking on the link below you will be redirected to the NMB web site where you can comment on the proposed NMB rule change. We encourage each of you to voice your opinion. On the NMB web page you can read the proposal, read other people's comments and leave a comment of your own. Just go to the bottom of the screen to "To Leave a Comment."
November 9, 2009What is Delta not telling you?
After the IAM withdrew its single carrier application covering Northwest and Delta Fleet Service employees, Delta called the IAM's withdrawal "repugnant" and "suspicious" given the NMB's recently announced proposal to change its voting rules. Here is what Delta is NOT telling you in Delta's own words to the NMB. Read and decide for yourself.
In the Company's October 5, 2009 filing with the NMB, Delta insisted that the IAM could not proceed with the Fleet Service craft or class without the Board also considering the representation consequences of the Clerical, Office and Passenger Service employees because at Northwest all three groups were lumped together in what was once known as a "1706" craft or class.
Delta wrote:
- "The IAM application requires the Board to address the representation status of all employees in the 1706 craft or class at Northwest."
- "Since the IAM was the certified incumbent only as to the entire 1706 craft or class, the IAM's application requires the Board to determine the future representation status of all the employees covered by the IAM's certification."
- "Failure to address all of the representation consequences as to the former 1706 craft or class would plainly violate the Board's duty."
- "The IAM's attempt to invoke its incumbent status on a piecemeal basis intrudes upon the Board's authority."
- "To allow the IAM to thus limit the scope of the Board's investigation [to just Fleet Service] would be an impermissible usurpation of the Board's authority."
- "The Board's prior decisions do not permit the IAM to narrow the scope of the former 1706 craft or class [to just Fleet Service]..."
The IAM wants to resolve representation issues for all classifications where we currently represent Northwest employees as soon as possible. But Clerical, Office and Passenger Service are not yet operating as a single transportation system. Therefore, Delta's insistence that all three groups be considered at the same time as Fleet Service employees, even though they agree with the IAM that each classification should have their own election, means that none of the three groups could be considered at the present time. The IAM had to withdraw its Fleet Service application until the other classifications are also a single transportation system.
First, Delta deceitfully told Office, Clerical and Passenger Service workers that the IAM left them behind. Now that Delta has gotten what it insisted upon, it is seeking to paint the IAM's motives as "repugnant." This is just the continuation of Delta's campaign to contaminate the election process. Having read the facts, it is Delta's conduct that is suspicious and repugnant.
November 4, 2009National Meditation Board extends an invitation to interested parties
On December 7, 2009, 9am-4pm, at the Margaret A. Browning Hearing Room (room #11000) of the National Labor Relations Board at 1099 14th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20570.
November 3, 2009NMB proposes fair Air/Rail Elections
The National Mediation Board (NMB) this week took the first step toward overhauling the union representation election rules for air and rail workers in the United States. The NMB is proposing to change the threshold for a successful union election from a majority of eligible voters in a classification to a majority of voters who actually participate in the election.
The NMB published its proposed rule change this week in the Federal Register and is seeking comments from interested parties for 60 days.
"As part of its ongoing efforts to further the statutory goals of the Railway Labor Act, the National Mediation Board (NMB or Board) is proposing to amend its Railway Labor Act rules to provide that, in representation disputes, a majority of valid ballots cast will determine the craft or class representative," said the Board. "The NMB believes that this change to its election procedures will provide a more reliable measure/indicator of employee sentiment in representation disputes and provide employees with clear choices in representation matters."
The Machinists union will submit formal comments in favor of the proposed rule change.
The NMB's proposal has support in Congress as well. "Elections across our country are based on recognizing the choice of the majority of voters who participate in the election. Non-votes are not counted as favoring one outcome or the other. This should be the practice of the NMB as well," wrote House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman James Oberstar and House Committee on Education and Labor Chairman George Miller in an October 29, 2009 letter to the National Mediation Board.
The NMB's authority to make such a rule change is contained within the Railway Labor Act and has been affirmed by the Supreme Court.
November 3, 2009NMB offers Airline and Railroad workers hope for fair union elections
WASHINGTON, DC – Airline and rail workers can have hope that fair union election rules are in their future, in light of sensible reforms proposed today by the National Mediation Board (NMB).
“The deck is currently stacked against airline and railroad workers,” said Edward Wytkind, President of the Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO (TTD), which requested the changes to NMB election procedures. “The NMB is proposing new rules that would finally permit airline and rail workers to vote for unions under the same standards found everywhere else in our system of democracy.”
The NMB’s proposed rule change advances a simple proposition: permit a majority of workers who actually vote to decide the election and stop assigning “no” votes to workers who do not participate. “With this change, never again will workers in these industries seeking to form a union be thwarted by such un-democratic rules,” Wytkind said.
Just because a worker does not vote does not mean that he or she didn’t want a union – it just means the worker didn’t vote. The reason workers sit out union elections is often because of pressure from company management. The NMB’s current union election policy has become a magnet for voter suppression campaigns by employers – since they must only convince employees to abstain from voting in order to keep turnout below 50 percent.
“About nine out of 10 union elections in America feature an employer-mounted campaign against the union,” Wytkind said, citing preliminary findings from A Changing Climate for Union Organizing at the Turn of the Millennium.
“The proposed rule eliminates the ‘veto by silence’ principle that has governed for too long and eliminates a voter turnout requirement that exceeds what is required in elections for the highest offices in our land.”
To put it in context, most mid-term elections in America do not involve majority participation. Records show that national turnout was below 50 percent in every mid-term election since 1930. Three former U.S. presidents and countless Senators, Governors and Representatives would not have been elected under the NMB’s voting standard.
The NMB has the authority and ability to make the change as proposed. The U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed that the NMB has broad discretion to determine how union elections will be conducted and that its current voting procedures are not required by law.
“The NMB majority has demonstrated its commitment to fair union election procedures," Wytkind said. “Airline and rail workers are seeing their government take steps today to ensure that union elections are run under American norms and standards that have stood the test of time for more than 200 years.”
November 2, 2009New rule to benefit rail, plane unions
By MIKE ESTERL and MELANIE TROTTMAN
Organized labor appears to be gaining the upper hand in the skies and on rails, as labor and business battle for influence under the Obama administration.
The National Mediation Board wants to make it easier for thousands of airline and railway workers to unionize under the Railway Labor Act by seeking to junk a 75-year-old election rule, according to a proposal published Monday in the Federal Register.
The move comes after a White House appointment shifted the balance of the government agency's three-person board. Linda Puchala, a former flight attendant union leader, was selected to replace Read Van de Water, a former Northwest Airlines lobbyist, earlier this year. She joined Harry Hoglander, a former pilots union leader appointed in 2002. The NMB regulates labor relations in aviation and rail.
More than 570,000 workers are employed by railroads and airlines, more than two-thirds of whom already are unionized. But changes to the election rules could affect thousands more workers. Delta Air Lines, Inc. the world's largest airline, and Continental Airlines Inc. are awaiting unionization votes that would affect about 40,000 workers.
The new policy could mark a significant victory for unions.
REDIRECT TO WALL STREET JOURNAL WEB SITE
November 2, 2009Union vote rule change vexes Delta
By Kelly Yamanouchi The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A proposed change in the rules for union representation elections at airlines is adding tension to expected union votes at Delta Air Lines in the wake of its merger with Northwest Airlines. The National Mediation Board, which governs airline and railroad labor relations, wants to require that unions win a majority of votes only from those workers who cast ballots, rather than from a majority of all those eligible to vote. That could reduce the number of votes needed for a union to win.
The board will formally publish the proposed rule Tuesday and take comments on the matter for 60 days.
Both the substance and timing of the proposal add intrigue to the union question at Delta as it tries to resolve representation issues created by its merger with Northwest.
REDIRECT ME TO AJC AND THE REST OF THE ARTICLE
October 30, 2009 Mediator set to back change that eases airline, railway unionization
Courtesy Mike Esterl, and the Wall Street Journal
The National Mediation Board is proposing an overhaul of a decades-old election rule that would make it easier for airline and railway employees to unionize in the future, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Under the current interpretation of the Railway Labor Act that governs airlines and railroad companies, any employees who don't vote on whether to create a union are counted as "no" votes, meaning a union can't be approved without a full majority of all employees voting in favor of it.
CLICK HERE TO BE REDIRECTED TO THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ARTICLE
October 30, 2009Two House Chairman send joint letter to the NMB asking for change
The House Committee Chairman on Transportation and Infrastructure, James L. Oberstar, and House Committee Chairman on Education and Labor, George Miller, have sent a joint letter to the NMB saying, "We are writing in support of changing current election procedures of the National Mediation Board (NMB) which treat non-voters as if they had voted "no."
CONGRESSMAN JAMES L. OBERSTAR'S LETTER TO DELTA CEO RICHARD ANDERSON
October 30, 2009Machinists withdraw Delta Fleet Service single carrier application
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) today withdrew the single carrier application it filed with the National Mediation Board (NMB) on behalf of Delta Air Lines' and Northwest Airlines' fleet service employees on August 13, 2009. The withdrawal is in response to Delta's insistence that fleet service representation issues be resolved at the same time as passenger service and office & clerical employees, whose single carrier applications have yet to be filed.
"Delta and Northwest have spent the last three months vigorously litigating their position that the IAM cannot submit an application for fleet service employees separately from the office & clerical and passenger service employees," said IAM General Vice President Robert Roach, Jr. "But Delta and Northwest are not yet a single carrier for representation purposes in the office & clerical and passenger service classifications. If the three separate crafts or classes must be investigated simultaneously, as Delta and Northwest insist, then the two carriers are not yet a single transportation system for fleet service either and the IAM must withdraw its application."
"The two airlines have also repeatedly and falsely accused the Machinists Union of not caring about the employees for which we have not yet filed a single carrier application," continued Roach. "Based on Delta's efforts to poison the mindset of employees, none of the employees can have a fair election at this time. The IAM looks forward to filing single carrier applications for fleet service, office & clerical and passenger service classifications when the taint of Delta's conduct has dissipated and each of those groups on Delta and Northwest are functioning as a single transportation system for representation purposes."
A ruling by the NMB that the two carriers are operating as a single carrier for a particular classification must occur before union representation issues can be resolved for that classification. The IAM's previous single carrier applications for Delta and Northwest flight simulator technicians and plant protection employees are not affected by the withdrawal of its fleet service application. The IAM will also file for stores clerks separately when both Northwest and Delta stores groups are operating as a single carrier."
A letter to Delta and Northwest employees, as well as a Q&A about the withdrawal of the IAM's fleet service application, are available below:
LETTER TO NWA/DELTA EMPLOYEES
October 29, 2009Why we want better union election rules
The president of the Transportation Trades Department (TTD) responds to a recent Star Tribune editorial on the proposed NMB election changes.
October 15, 2009NMB considers rule change for Air and Rail elections
In what would be a dramatic improvement to the rules governing union elections for airline and railroad employees, the National Mediation Board (NMB) is weighing a request from the AFL-CIO to allow representational elections to be decided by a majority of workers who cast ballots.
"It's time to give air and rail workers the same opportunity to form unions that other workers in the U.S. have had for decades," said Transportation GVP Robert Roach, Jr.
Under current NMB rules, any employee who does not cast a ballot is counted as a "no" vote. The rules for transportation workers are unlike the rules for employees covered by the National Labor Relations Act, which determines the outcome of elections the same way U.S. citizens elect their leaders - by a simple majority of those who cast ballots.
The current system is deeply flawed. Even if 100 percent of voters in an air or rail representation election were to cast ballots in favor of union representation, the NMB will declare the election invalid unless an absolute majority of eligible voters cast votes.
The AFL-CIO's Transportation Trades Department has developed a Q&A to help understand their request. That Q&A document is available here.
The AFL-CIO request is expected to face stiff resistance from carriers who have enjoyed an unfair advantage in union representation elections for more than 80 years. The IAM is coordinating with other AFL-CIO unions to guarantee fair elections for all transportation workers.
The IAM has submitted election petitions to the NMB for employees at several carriers. What impact, if any, the rule change request would have on pending representations disputes that have not yet come to elections is unknown.
TRANSPORTATION TRADES DEPARTMENT (TTD) WEB SITE
August 29, 2009Delta responds to the IAM NMB filing concerning Sim Techs
If the NMB determines that simulator technicians are part of the mechanic and related craft or class, there will not be a union election among simulator technicians because there is no election pending for the larger mechanic and related group. If the NMB determines that simulator technicians are a separate, stand alone craft or class we expect an election will be held.
February 5, 2009U.S. Labor Department says it pays to belong to a union
A new report from The U.S. Department of Labor shows union workers made an average of $10,140 more than non-union workers last year. The report further supports previous surveys that show having a voice on the job gets workers higher wages, better health care, stronger job security and the ability to retire with dignity.
Researchers also say the number of workers belonging to a union in 2008 rose by 428,000 to 16.1 million – a welcomed increase after a few years of declining membership. But with the current economic climate, the continuing decline of America’s once-powerful manufacturing sector, and the enormous difficulty workers face when trying to form or join a union, those numbers could change.
“In a time of high unemployment and uncertain economic times, it’s critical to know our families are protected,” says IAM President Tom Buffenbarger. “That’s why it’s even more important for our new president and Congress to step up to the plate and pass the Employee Free Choice Act, and enable the voices of working families to be heard.”