Region II/III Conference Roundup
Members gathered in Cleveland June 2-4 to share information, hear from National leadership and staff, and learn new strategies for bargaining, building community coalitions, and improving workplace safety.
Category: Magazine
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Safety Corner: How to Recognize Employer Retaliatory Actions
The Occupational Safety and Health Act includes special protections against employer retaliation when workers take action to ensure on-the-job safety. Retaliation occurs when an employer fires an employee or takes any other type of adverse action against an employee for engaging in protected activity, including those related to workplace safety. An adverse action is defined…
Women’s Caucus: Resilient Women Shape UWUA
When I see UWUA, I see more than Utility Workers Union of America; I think: Union, Women, Uniting, America through focused efforts of member engagement. Your National Women’s Caucus continues to seek collaboration with other partners and AFL-CIO affiliates to hone member leadership skills and build the labor movement. We’re working to develop rank-and-file members…
Human Rights Committee: How Tension Can Undermine Safety Culture
Something special is happening with the members of the Michigan State Utility Workers Council (MSUWC) who work at Consumers Energy. Members from vastly different backgrounds, who used to think they had little in common, are finding ways to have conversations on difficult subjects like politics, race, and religion. Some may ask, why go there? Aren’t…
MSUWC Leans into LEAN
Companies have been adopting “Lean” process, a methodology focused on creating value with fewer resources and less waste, since it was first introduced in the 1930s. In theory, Lean calls for ongoing experimentation by workers and managers to find ways to improve quality and flow, reduce time and effort, and lower costs. It involves collaboration,…
Listening to Our Family
The Region V conference was a great big, joyful family reunion. Our UWUA brothers and sisters gathered for the first in-person meeting in two years, and I was overwhelmed with emotion as I stood at the podium and looked out over a sea of beautiful faces. Our family has evolved and today is more representative…
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT’S REPORT: Members Make Region V Conference a Success
On March 24 – 26, 2022, the UWUA held the first of its 2022 regional conferences with Region V members in Redondo Beach, California. The conference was very well attended with over 100 members who participated. Attendees included approximately 50% first-timers and a very diverse group of members, including an impressive number of women. In…
SAFETY CORNER: Know Your OSHA Rights – Medical and Exposure Records
Too many times members have had to fight for basic information after they were either injured or exposed to a harmful chemical at work. That’s why it’s imperative that every member know their rights under section 1910.1020 of the Occupational Safety and Health standard. It spells out employer obligations for recordkeeping of medical and exposure…
HERstory: Women Embracing the Power to Make Things Happen and Affect Change
What does it mean to walk in your power? It means creating safe spaces for our union sisters to be their authentic selves, promoting opportunities for upward mobility for our UWUA sisters, and fighting inequality that denies women opportunities to thrive. Local 223’s Women’s Committee put this concept into practice in March with its “Painting…
P4A’s First Renewable Energy Specialist Graduates
Paul Turner is not afraid of heights. It’s a good thing because his utility sector career launched him from operating and maintaining natural gas lines to where he spends a lot of time today, up 300 feet into the air working on wind turbines as a journeyman renewable specialist. He and three colleagues completed a…