HUMAN RIGHTS Now is the Time! The Human Rights Committee is launching a nationwide youth education program to introduce young people to the utility industry and the union. The goal is to go into schools — grades K-6, middle school, as well as high school — to educate young people on the importance of the…
NATIONAL VICE PRESIDENT’S REPORT Missouri Victory Validates Labor’s Effectiveness in the Political Arena The recent statewide labor victory in Missouri is the latest example of the collective power of union members. In 2017, Missouri’s Republican controlled legislature passed a so-called right-to-work law. Legislators who voted for this unfair and unjust legislation were the kind that…
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT’S REPORT The Time To Stand For Working People Is Now! As I write this, I cannot help but think that maybe, just maybe, more and more working people are waking up to the fact that if we don’t do something now to protect ourselves, all will be lost. I see firsthand in…
With Women We All Rise! This year the Women’s Caucus attended the Women’s Global Leadership Program in New York and the United Association for Labor Education (UALE) 2018 Women’s Summer School. Both of these forums focused on educating and empowering women to pursue and hone their skills to become leaders in their respective unions and…
SECRETARY-TREASURER’S REPORT Communication is the Key to Success! We have implemented many new technological advancements in our administration. We realize more than ever, that communication is vital to remain viable and powerful in today’s workforce. You may have heard it said that data just may be the new utility. This past year, the National…
Utility Workers Respond as Hurricane Florence Devastates the Carolinas As electric utility crews from as far away as California and Canada traveled to the Carolinas to respond to Hurricane Florence, UWUA Local 69 gasworkers were already on the ground securing their facilities. “We have people in the flooded areas. Luckily everybody got out and is…
UWUA Scholarship Winners 2018 marks the 59th anniversary of the UWUA Merit Scholarship Program. The National Union’s long-standing tradition of investing in America’s most precious commodity – its youth – has thus far acknowledged the outstanding academic achievements of over 100 students, all of them daughters and sons of members throughout the country, with a…
SAFETY CORNER Safety Leadership Program I am excited to report on the pilot of the Safety Leadership Program through the UWUA Power for America Training Trust Fund (P4A). Members of UWUA Local 102 and management from West Penn Power, a First Energy company, attended the training at the P4A training facility in Charlotte, MI. This…
SPEAKING OUT Tuesday, Nov. 6 is Election Day. As a utility worker, what issues will decide who you vote for? John Lorenzo, Local 164 “As a working class man in my late 30’s, what is important to me is: 1) more funding for education, that’s vital; 2) investment in infrastructure; 3) more union jobs; and…
VOTE! – Your Future Depends on It Tuesday, November 6, 2018 — Mid-Term Elections An ever-changing world It has long been said that the only constant in life is change. In the case of American politics and how government affects the lives of working people, that has perhaps never been more true than right now. …
CA Locals Win Historic SoCal Gas Contract Victory The 3,800 UWUA members in CA Locals 132, 483, and 522 won an historic victory when they reached a new three-year contract extension agreement with SoCal Gas. Across-the-board wage increases totaling 9.54%, with no givebacks, tops the list of gains. Industry under attack Most importantly, the agreement…
Organizing Win at Hawaii Water – Contract Bargaining Set to Begin The UWUA is proud to welcome into its ranks Hawaii Water workers, the newest bargaining unit to join the National Union. Their journey into the union in many ways was a textbook case of how the positive experience utility workers have as UWUA members can…
Supreme Court Bows Down to Right-Wing – Janus Decision Will Not Stop Us! On June 27, the Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision in Janus v. AFSCME Council 31 that ruled a public employee cannot be required to pay dues or fees for the representation the union provides related to collective bargaining and other representational activities.…
Local 537 Secures Contract with American Water Under a long-standing agreement by the parties, the National UWUA and other unions negotiate most benefits with American Water as part of a National Benefits Agreement. Negotiations for wages, hours, and working conditions are done separately by local unions. Local 537 members in Brownsville, PA, ratified a new…
American Water Benefits Agreement Inked More than 3,000 members of the UWUA and eight other unions ratified a National Benefits Agreement with American Water on July 31. It includes improvements to healthcare, retirement, and other benefits for nearly 70 bargaining units in 15 states across the U.S. The national agreement is negotiated by a coalition…
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE If Not Us, Then Who? If Not Now, Then When? As Utility Workers, we face life-threatening situations on the job every day. Hurricanes, fires, mudslides, explosions, you name it we deal with it. That’s why we focus on securing collective bargaining agreements that protect us from the dangers of our work. And that’s…