NEWS ARTICLE – December 7, 2015
From the Desk of Dave Jackson:
Secretary-Treasurer Tony Santos retired on October 30, 2015. I would like to thank Tony for representing the members as a Field Representative for five years and as Secretary-Treasurer for three years. Tony also served as Trustee on all the Tile trust funds. I wish Tony a happy, healthy, and well deserved retirement.
I appointed Vice Chair Troy Garland to serve the remainder of Tony’s term as Secretary-Treasurer on November 2, 2015. Troy’s experience, knowledge, and integrity make him the best person for the job. I also appointed Field Representative Darin Compton to serve as Vice Chair for the remainder of Troy Garland’s term.
The Nomination meeting for Local Union Officers was held on November 7, 2015 in Oakland. President and Secretary-Treasurer Positions had uncontested ballots and Officers Dave Jackson and Troy Garland were duly elected for terms beginning on February 1, 2016. There are 4 candidates for 3 Vice Chair positions. Ballots will be counted on Saturday, December 19, 2015 in Oakland.
As work increases, Local 3’s focus has shifted to organizing. The first thing we did was bring back as many ex-members as possible. Many kept in contact and re-joined as jobs became available. Some were sent letters and called as manpower needs increased. We are now talking with non-union workers to let them know what the union has to offer them and their families; some will be joining our ranks as our signatory contractor’s manpower needs increase. We are working with our contractor associations to increase entry level pay scales to attract promising and motivated workers who are looking for a career. BAC 3 apprentice numbers are up as we continue to train our next generation of Craftworkers. We continue to put pressure on non-union companies performing our covered work, and collaborate with those who want to become part of the unionized masonry and tile industries.
Looking ahead to 2016, we will be working on implementing some of the resolutions that were passed at the International Union convention. Some of these changes may necessitate a change to our Local Constitution and Bylaws. The Constitution Committee will be working on proposed amendments to be brought to the membership for approval by mail referendum.
The Tile agreement terminates at the end of March 2016. A Tile membership meeting has been scheduled for January 9, 2016 in Oakland. Please make every effort to attend this meeting. We will need all of the Tile membership’s input and participation for this negotiation process to be successful.
The IUBAC Journal will be reprinting an article that first appeared in the June 2015 issue of the San Francisco Building Trades Organized Labor paper. The article is about Local 3 California Tiling the Arden, a large multi-tower residential project in Mission Bay, San Francisco. The project highlights our members’ skills and commitment to quality work. The article highlights the fact that experienced members are passing along their knowledge to new members to keep our union and industry strong. I am proud that the International Union has decided to put local 3 and this article in the national spotlight.
In closing, I wish you, your family and friends, a Merry Christmas and Prosperous New Year. I thank you for your continued support and am honored to represent you for another term as President.
Work safe and honor all pickets. Dave