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March 22, 2009
LOCAL 102 BULLETIN
Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield Renewal
May 1, 2009
NO RATE INCREASE
This year's healthcare contract renewal has resulted in a rate freeze of 2008 rates for active and retiree 102 members. Benefit levels will remain in tact with no changes.
Looking back one year when we faced a nearly 20% increase, difficult decisions regarding ways to contain costs had to be considered. No one likes a change in benefits but, in retrospect we have obviously made the right decision resulting in a rate hold this year. More significantly, we are encouraged that President Obama and the new Congress seem to be determined to finally address our nation's health care crisis. The Union has reached out to Allegheny to join forces with the coalition of labor and management to support these efforts. Remember that much of the cost of 50 million uninsured working American families is shifted to the employers and employees who have insurance. Given our current economy and job loss, thousands of Americans each day are losing their healthcare, therefore we must find a way to achieve universal coverage for all Americans. We encourage every member to contact their elected legislators to do so. We can't afford to fail.
In Solidarity,
William J. Sterner, President
System Local 102, U.W.U.A., AFL-CIO
3/18/09
March 1, 2009
Sisters and Brothers:
Reminder: Cell telephone numbers can be released to telemarketing companies, so you might receive sales calls.
Depending on the wireless service provider plan you have, there could be charges for those type of incoming calls.
If you want to prevent that from happening, block your cell telephone number for five years by calling 888/382-1222.
This is a National Do Not Call Registry service and you must call from the cell telephone number you want blocked.
You might want to consider passing this information on to the membership. It only takes about twenty seconds.
March 1, 2009
Dear MoveOn member,
Want to see what change looks like? Real change?
Well, here it is. Last week, President Obama unveiled his budget-his blueprint for America-and it's ambitious, amazing, and unapologetically progressive. As Paul Krugman said, it will set America on a "fundamentally new course."1
President Obama called his budget "a threat to the status quo," and trust me, the status quo noticed. Oil companies, big banks and insurance companies are already mobilizing to stop it.2
Unfortunately, most folks don't realize how far-reaching and progressive the plan is-that's where we all come in.
Here are 10 really incredible things about Obama's plan. Check them out and then send them on to your friends and family so that millions of people will have the information they need to fight to make this vision a reality.
10 things you should know about Obama's plan (but probably don't)
The plan:
- 1. Makes a $634 billion down payment on fixing health care that will go a long way toward paying for a more efficient, more affordable health care system that covers every single American.3
- 2. Reduces taxes for 95% of working Americans. And if your family makes less than $250,000, your taxes won't go up one dime.4
- 3. Invests more than $100 billion in clean energy technology, creating millions of green jobs that can never be outsourced.5
- 4. Brings our troops home from Iraq on a firm timetable, finally bringing the war to a close-and freeing up almost ten billion dollars a month for domestic priorities.6
- 5. Reverses growing income inequality. The plan lets the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans expire and focuses on strengthening the middle class.7
- 6. Closes multi-billion-dollar tax loopholes for big oil companies. 8
- 7. Increases grants to help families pay for college-the largest increase ever.9
- 8. Halves the deficit by 2013. President Obama inherited a legacy of huge deficits and an economy in shambles, but his plan brings the deficit under control as soon as the economy begins to recover.10
- 9. Dramatically increases funding for the SEC and the CFTC-the agencies that police Wall Street.11
- 10. Tells it straight. For years, budgets have used accounting tricks to hide the real costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Bush tax cuts, and too many other programs. Obama's budget gets rid of the smokescreens and lays out what America's priorities are, what they cost, and how we're going to pay for them.12
This is the change we voted for. President Obama has done his part, now we need to do ours.
Can you pass this on to your personal network and then click here to let us know how many people you told, so we can track our impact together:
http://pol.moveon.org/budget10/?id=15687-13608820-yA6j6Wx&t=1
Thanks for all you do.
-Daniel, Tanya, Peter, Justin and the rest of the team
P.S. Turns out there are way more than 10 amazing things in Obama's budget and we couldn't resist sharing just a few more.
- 1. Stops unnecessary government subsidies to big banks, health insurance companies and big agribusinesses.13,14,15
- 2. Expands access to early childhood education and improves schools by investing in programs that make sure every child has a qualified, strong teacher.16
- 3. Negotiates for better prescription drug prices using Medicaid's tremendous bargaining power.17
- 4. Expands access to family planning for low-income women.18
- 5. Caps the pollution that causes global warming, and makes polluters pay to support clean energy innovation.19
February 7, 2009
Update
The Company and Union have presented the Mobile Maintenance and System Transmission Crew agreement to all effected members. The bids for the System Transmission Crew have gone up and the interview process has started. The Mobile Maintenance bids are slated to go up on February 9th.
The Union has been meeting with the Company resolve the grievance backlog that consists of approximately 1800 grievances. We have come to agreement on the backlog of skipped calls and settled 140 grievances. We have scheduled power station cross training, out of service center work, and packing grievances next. We are also working on discipline grievances at this time.
We are also working with the Company to improve outage times and how to use all of System Local 102 resources to accomplish shorter outage times. Please continue to do your part to keep our customers power on.
January 14, 2009
Cutting Through the Spin about
Employee Free Choice
By Seth Michaels, Jan 13, 2009
Here's a delightful surprise from, of all places, Fox News. When Neil Cavuto interviewed Stewart Acuff, special assistant to the president at the AFL-CIO, about the Employee Free Choice Act, he was pleasantly surprised to find that, contrary to corporate spin, the Employee Free Choice Act does not take away the secret ballot process.
Acuff appeared Friday on "Your World with Neil Cavuto" to bust some of the myths and disinformation that has run rampant about the Employee Free Choice Act, a bill vital to restoring the right to form unions and bargain for a better life.
Cavuto-clearly going on what he's heard from the corporate shills and political spinners who hope to block the Employee Free Choice Act-asked Acuff whether the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election process for joining a union would be made illegal or eliminated under the Employee Free Choice Act. Cavuto was shocked when Acuff replied that it wouldn't. In fact, the only change the Employee Free Choice Act makes is that it puts the decision of whether to use a ballot or majority sign-up in the hands of the workers, not their boss.
Said Acuff: I'm for workers being able to decide how they choose whether or not they want to be in a union.
Both [majority sign-up and the NLRB process] are legal today, but under current law, management gets to decide, and under the Employee Free Choice Act, the workers will decide.
Here's another surprise from Acuff for those who rely on the corporate anti-union campaign for information: Forming unions through majority sign-up has been legal for decades and works fine at workplaces around the country and around the world. Unfortunately, that right can be hijacked by bosses, who under current law can refuse to accept the wishes of a majority of employees who want to. Indeed, current law is badly imbalanced, and companies completely dominate the NLRB process.
Cavuto doesn't yet realize that in far too many cases, employers not only block the freedom of workers to form unions, they are actively hostile to the process. This isn't limited to Cavuto-according to our latest survey, fewer than half of the general public understands that corporations use threats, intimidation, high-priced union-busting consultants and even illegal firings to prevent workers from bargaining for a better life.
Acuff noted that in the seven decades since the passage of the National Labor Relations Act, the NLRB has handed down fewer than 50 decisions of union misconduct, compared to the many thousands of corporate acts of intimidation, harassment and even firing of workers that happen every year. That's another statistic that's obscured by anti-union hacks and should come as a shock to the pundits and reporters who buy the corporate line.
The Employee Free Choice Act doesn't take any rights away from workers, and the big-money corporate front groups know it. That hasn't stopped them from building a national disinformation campaign that has Cavuto so confused. What are they really scared of? They know that the Employee Free Choice Act would give employees the power to bargain for the better wages, benefits and conditions they deserve. For CEOs accustomed to big checks and no accountability, that's a terrifying thought.
Here's a message to Neil Cavuto and the media covering the Employee Free Choice Act: Stop taking the corporate lobbyists, lawyers and shills at their word, and start looking at the facts. Corporate misbehavior has prevented millions of workers from having the freedom to bargain for a better life, and the Employee Free Choice Act will restore the balance and put the power back where it belongs.
For More Information on EFCA please visit http://www.employeefreechoiceactnow.org
Watch a new video on the Employee Free Choice Act http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CijNp_bqNsM
One Voice, One Agenda, One Movement!
http://www.wvaflcio.org/
_______________________________________________
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December 21, 2008
By Law Vote Results
The Executive Committee recently met and counted the votes cast for the Article VIII and Article XIII.
Article VIII received 98% of the votes for the amendment and Article XIII received 90% of the votes for the amendment. As a result of these two By Law changes System Local 102 will now have 3 regular board meetings and create a scholarship fund to be used for the School to Work program.
If you have any children interested in attending Blue Ridge Technical School in Martinsburg, West Virginia please contact your local officers.
December 16, 2008
Do you want to help out the American auto industry? Click on the link below and send a letter to your senators and congressmen. As union members we cannot stand still, take action now. They would love to break the back of the UAW, we cannot let this happen.
Click on this URL to take action now
http://capwiz.com/uwua/utr/2/?a=12289991&i=90692840&c=
If your email program does not recognize the URL as a link,
copy the entire URL and paste it into your Web browser.
December 15, 2008
Attn: Union 102 Members
A fellow Union 102 member, Arthur Lial, of the Luray Service Center, was recently injured in a vehicle accident on his way to work. He has a fractured spine and is expected to be out of work for an extended period of time. He is now out of Sick Full Pay and is only receiving Half Pay.
We are taking donations for Art to help with his bills while he is out of work. If interested, anything you can give would be greatly appreciated.
Please send check or money order payable to Arthur Lial to the following address:
Arthur Lial
C/o Tim Miller
1251 Valley Burg Road Luray, Virginia 22835
Thank you!
October 5, 2008
System Local 102 Update
The Union continues negotiate System Transmission crews and Mobile Maintenance crews with the company. Two points of disagreement are wages and travel. We are hopeful to get an agreement soon so both of these important jobs can start.
The company has presented the Union with a new way to operate the Retail Delivery system. The new system will include a remodeling of the service center and distribution facilities. The Retail Delivery Drivers will have a greater hand in material control and storeroom operation at the Service Center level. There will be a pilot program at Kittanning and Berkley Springs Service Centers to test the new program.
The Union recently met with the Allegheny's Vice President of distribution about restoration of service and service reliability concerns. We discussed storm management, interaction of various work groups, maintenance procedures, and host of various issues related to customer outages. The company is looking at ways to better manage storm events with technology and utilization of the work force. The union provided many good suggestions to help get our customers power restored safely and timely. Please continue to accept call outs help our company reach the benchmarks set forth by the PUC.
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