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LOCAL UNION 1186 IBEW STATE OF THE UNION
BUSINESS MANAGER'S MESSAGE HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010 This year we celebrate our 70th Anniversary! IBEW Local 1186 was chartered back in June 6, 1940. We owe a lot to Akito “Blackie” Fujikawa, who was a pioneer in starting our Fringe Benefit packages.
Many years ago, Blackie went to New York to visit Business Manager Harry Van Arsdale
from Local 3 to learn how they had structured their fringes.
Blackie later implemented some of those benefits in our Electrical
Contract.
Today
we reap the fruits of his labor by providing excellent benefits for our
union members and their families. We are looking forward to
celebrating our 70th Anniversary with giveaways at our Union meetings
and Union Picnics throughout the state.
This
year we are also hopeful that the economy will bounce back and
construction will resume. We are waiting for the start of the
(Rail) High-Capacity Transit Corridor Project and West Oahu’s UH Campus.
The Honolulu Mayor reports the $4.5 billion that will be spent on
construction may create over 2,300 direct construction projects
statewide. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.
POLITICAL YEAR This year also is a big political year with a possible special election for the Congressional seat vacated by Congressman Neil Abercrombie. Many other seats will be vacated this year, including the Governor’s. We want to get 100% of our membership signed up and registered to vote and then get 100% to go out and actually vote. We can make a difference with our 3,500 members, our families, and friends. With our strength and numbers, we can turn elections in our favor. Our first endorsement for the year is Colleen Hanabusa for the 1st Congressional District. She currently represents the West side of Oahu and is the current State Senate President. She has been a friend of Labor, and I know she will represent us well in Washington. VOLUNTEER We have been helping in the community by donating our time and talent. We will be starting off this year with the “Walk for Diabetes” on March 20th. Please contact Tracy Hayashi for more information. In March we will also be picking up rubbish between the Kipapa Gulch Bridge and Ka Uka Blvd. off-ramp, town-bound lanes. We adopted this part of the Highway. We will also continue to sponsor “Da Braddah’s and Friends” so bring out your acting talents and participate in our commercials.
UNIONS 101 In honor of the recent Labor Day holiday, The Hawaii Electricians is offering this quick study of how unions help workers with a voice on the job: What is a Union?
How do people form a union? What kinds of workers are forming unions today? How do unions help working families today? What have unions accomplished for all workers? |
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