For press inquiries, please reach out to Communications Director Erin Bzymek at ebzymek@uwua.net or 202-702-9655.
When Columbia Gas took responsibility for the 2018 Merrimack Valley gas explosions in Massachusetts, killing one person, injuring dozens of others and destroying or damaging hundreds of structures, it was ordered to pay a $53 million federal fine, a state penalty of $56 million, and lost its permission to operate in the state. Forced to…
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Power for America (P4A) was getting ready to ramp up training for current and potential UWUA members. State stay-at-home orders forced all in-person trainings to be suspended. As the pandemic continued, P4A looked for new ways to re-start trainings for members. Pictured left – The 24th graduating class of the…
Michigan State Rep. Mari Manoogian was one of 17 “rising stars” who gave the keynote address on the second day of the August Democratic National Convention. Mari is the daughter of George Manoogian, who retired in 2016 as the UWUA chief of staff with more than 50 years as a UWUA member. “When the auto…
Water workers employed by American Water at the Fort Leonard Wood Army base in central Missouri voted overwhelmingly by mail on August 31 to join the UWUA. They become the first U.S. military service group to organize with the union. “We’re excited to be a part of the union brotherhood,” says Brett Brown, a plant…
The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has issued a complaint against the illegal bargaining tactics of Highland County Water management during negotiations with UWUA Local 477-W for a new contract. The NLRB complaint upholds charges filed by the UWUA that the company has illegally frustrated negotiations by refusing to provide bargaining information. A hearing has…
During the 2016 campaign, Donald Trump promised that if he was elected he would be a champion for workers. This promise led many union members to support President Trump, including many UWUA members. After nearly four years in office we now have a record to judge whether President Trump has kept his promise. From the…
On a recent trip to Oregon in support of Local 609 members fighting for a fair contract there, I experienced first-hand the wildfires laying waste to the West Coast. Our members in California and Oregon have described what it’s like to survive and combat the fires, some with families even needing to be evacuated. I…
Emergency Response! As every UWUA member knows, prior planning prevents poor performance. While no one could have known that a pandemic was on the way, less than a year ago, the UWUA had the foresight to establish the National Safety Committee with representatives from every industry in each of our five regions. The Safety Committee…
American Water workers from Bel Air, Maryland ratified a new five-year contract with Maryland American Water on March 2, that includes an average 2.75% annual wage increase, an additional paid holiday, the elimination of a step to get to the top of the wage scale and a host of other working condition improvements. The tentative…
Jerry Acosta, Senior National Representative for Region V, has retired after more than 40 years in the utility industry, most of them spent serving the 5,000 UWUA members of California Locals 132, 522 and 483 at SoCal Gas. Jerry joined Local 132 in 1977 as a young Chicano activist in Los Angeles. He began his…