An innovative new initiative is bringing a fresh layer of support to workers in recovery — one built not only on professional services, but on shared experience. The Sobriety Is Possible (SIP) Employee Resource Group (ERG), developed by UWUA Local 1-2 members in partnership with Con Edison, officially launched in March following more than two…
UWUA members perform some of the most essential work in this country. Our members keep the lights on, deliver gas and water, operate generation facilities, respond to emergencies, and restore critical services when communities need us most. It is skilled, demanding work — but no job, no deadline, and no emergency should ever come before the health…
As the UWUA marks the 80th anniversary of its first constitutional convention, The Utility Worker is sharing perspectives from executive board members throughout the year on the union’s future and the opportunities ahead. We asked board members to reflect on how the lessons and values that built the UWUA can help guide our growth and…
UWUA Local G-555 President Paul Talboo was sworn in as a member of the UWUA Executive Board in late April, bringing more than two decades of industry and union experience to the role. Talboo began his career at Dominion East Ohio Gas (now Enbridge) in 2000 as a meter reader before moving into the engineering…
The UWUA Young Workers Initiative is about much more than the members who serve on the National Young Workers Initiative Committee (YWIC). At its core, it is about harnessing the energy, talent, and potential of young workers across our union — and helping to guide that energy into meaningful roles in activism, leadership, and service. …
1. Nonmembers’ Right to Object. Any employee who is not a member of the UWUA, and who pays fees to the UWUA and/or a Local Union pursuant to a collectively bargained union-security provision, will have the right to object to expenditures paid for activities which are not reasonably related to collective bargaining. Such activities are…
Since its launch last year, UWUA’s Adopt-a-School initiative — a joint effort of the Women’s Caucus and the Young Workers Initiative Committee (YWIC) — has continued to grow, with Local 132 expanding its reach and impact in Southern California. Now in its second year, the program has moved beyond supply drives and career days to…
Utility work is difficult and dangerous. I’ve seen members with decades of experience make mistakes that almost cost them their lives. In my tenure as president of UWUA and in leadership at Local 1-2, I’ve sat with too many families who have lost loved ones on the job. Unsafe working conditions and insufficient training carry an incredibly high human…
As one of the few women in a male-dominated workplace, it can feel lonely at times. I often find myself navigating spaces where women are underrepresented, overlooked, or underestimated. I have experienced moments of isolation and the quiet burden of feeling like I must constantly prove my value to earn the same level of respect…
Over the winter and into the spring, the Veterans Committee moved closer to a launch date for our mental health support hotline for UWUA members — our top priority this year. We are very happy to report that the hotline will be available this summer. This effort has grown well beyond the Veterans Committee and has been…
In recent months, there has been renewed energy for action across the UWUA. In New Jersey, members of UWUA Local 601 demonstrated what it means for labor to play an active role in protecting democratic participation — an essential human right. Earlier this spring, Local 601 answered the call from the New Jersey AFL-CIO to…
UWUA Local 601 members in New Jersey have secured two new collective bargaining agreements — one at the Bordentown Sewerage Authority and another at Veolia Water in Bayonne — delivering meaningful gains while strengthening protections for workers who keep critical water and wastewater systems running. “Whether they’re operating a municipal wastewater facility in Bordentown or…
Randy Azevedo, Local 160-C “I was inspired by seeing so many people from different industries come together with a willingness to help one another. We all face challenges, but seeing that unity motivates me to work even harder to make sure our members know the UWUA has their back. The conference reinforced that we are strongest when…
Something powerful is taking shape across the UWUA. With the Region V conference held in late March in Redondo Beach, California, and the Region II/III conference concluding in Cleveland earlier this month, members returned to their locals with sharper skills, stronger networks, and a renewed sense of what it means to be part of our…
Meter reading is one of the utility industry’s most essential — and most rapidly evolving — jobs. Across gas, water, and electricity, meter readers are the eyes and ears of the system. They ensure customers are billed accurately and are often the first to spot problems. The work demands precision, independence, and stamina, and it’s changing fast…
UWUA Local 423 recently ratified two separate collective bargaining agreements covering members working for New Jersey American Water in both its Central and North territories — capping an intense period of negotiations and reinforcing key protections for nearly 300 members across the state. The agreements follow the recent merger of the former Local 391 into Local 423,…
For UWUA organizer Melissa Harter, the labor movement isn’t something she found later in life — it’s something she was born into. Harter is part of a four-generation union tradition, one that stretches across Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. It began with her maternal grandfather, Ellis Miller, an ironworker who entered the trade as an apprentice in 1957 and…
Municipal workers in Upper Sandusky, Ohio — located roughly halfway between Toledo and Columbus — recently reached a major milestone, ratifying their first collective bargaining agreement with the city following more than a year of negotiations. The 14-member unit — representing the city’s water, wastewater, street, and sanitation departments — ratified the agreement on March 21. Upper Sandusky City Council formally…
As a union, we talk a lot about growth — but growth doesn’t just happen. It requires capacity. It requires structure. And it requires leadership at every level of our organization. Over the past several years, the UWUA has taken deliberate steps to build that capacity — both by strengthening our internal organizing structure and…
The UWUA’s Brotherhood of Utility Workers (BUW) ratified a new four-year collective bargaining agreement in April, covering nearly 2,000 National Grid workers across BUW Locals 317, 322, 329, 330, and UWUA Local 369 — including multiple bargaining units within Local 369 — across New England. The agreement delivers strong economic and contractual gains while maintaining a focus on…
There may be no subject more divisive within the membership of the UWUA than politics. Much like the rest of the country, our members hold a wide range of political views, and there is often debate over what role the union should play in the political process. Some members want greater involvement, while others would…