Q3 2022
Members share what's driving them to the polls this election
Union millwright issues motivating members to vote Nov. 8 include job opportunities, protecting fair wages/benefits and union pensions, and access to high-quality, free training through union-affiliated programs. Hear from members in their own words below.
Jesse Beilig, journeyman, Local 1554:
Steve Carr, retiree, Local 216:
Luis Salas, apprentice, Local 216:
(see a version of this video in Spanish here)
Jace O'Neal, apprentice, Local 216:
EST Wayne Jennings: issues critical to work opportunities, union way of life at stake in Nov. 8 elections
I cannot stress enough how important it is that you vote in the mid-term elections on Nov. 8. As union millwrights, it is vital that we let our voices be heard – in every election and especially this one. Many issues critical to our work opportunities and union way of life are at stake. Please research the candidates on your ballot to find out where they stand on issues affecting union millwrights. Read more.
Click the button below to see a listing of candidates who are strong on union millwright and carpenter issues.
COUNCIL ACTION

TENNESSEE:
Council collaborating to fight falsely named Tennessee ‘right-to-work’ amendment
SSMRC Political Director Rick Halford (right) and A.J. Starling, secretary-treasurer of the Tennessee AFL-CIO, are working with the Tennessee Workers’ Alliance to fight back against the falsely named “right-to-work” amendment that Tennessee voters will consider on Nov. 8.

Right-to-work laws, which allow workers to opt out of supporting unions while unions remain legally bound to represent them, weaken union power by robbing locals of the resources they need to bargain well, enforce contracts, build solidarity, and survive labor disputes. Learn more here.
GEORGIA:
U.S. senator tours training center, holds labor round table
FROM LEFT: SSMRC EST Wayne Jennings, Atlanta carpenter Business Manager Daniel Hicks, Augusta carpenter Business Manager Dan Morris, Sen. Raphael Warnock, Savannah carpenter Business Manager Meddy Settles, and Southeastern Carpenters EST Tom Jenkins
Just before Labor Day, Rev. Raphael Warnock, a U.S. senator from Georgia who is running for re-election, toured the Augusta millwright and carpenter training center and took part in a round-table discussion with union leaders.

“Sen. Warnock sat down with labor leaders from around the state and discussed issues our members and contractors face,” Jennings said. “He believes in responsible-contractor laws and the right to collectively bargain for living wages and good benefits. He shares our concerns with worker misclassification and undocumented workers.” Read more.
In partnership with UBC, mayor declares Labor Week in Savannah, GA
FROM LEFT: Yvonne Brooks, secretary treasurer of the Georgia AFL-CIO; Brett Hulme, communications and political director for the Southeastern Carpenters Regional Council; Meddy Settles, Carpenter Local 256 business agent; Sean Presburg, Local 256 apprentice; Christi Hulme, president of the Savannah Regional Central Labor Council; Robert Jeffers, Millwright Local 2411 business agent; Curtis Watson, Local 256 apprentice; Charlie Fleming, president of the Georgia AFL-CIO; and Wade Herring, candidate for Georgia Congressional District 1
The mayor of Savannah, Georgia, declared the week of Labor Day to be Labor Week in that municipality this year. The United Brotherhood of Carpenters, Savannah Building Trades, and Savannah Regional Central Labor Council worked with the pro-labor mayor’s office to draft and enact the Labor Week proclamation.

“It makes so much sense for the city of Savannah to have a partnership with the labor community,” Mayor Van Johnson said. “We will ensure, by working together, better pay, safer work, and benefit opportunities for the people of Savannah through apprenticeships and job-training programs that the affiliates represented here today already do so well.” Read more here.
FLORIDA:
At Kennedy King events, SSMRC staff discuss labor standards, work opportunities
FROM LEFT: Logan Brown, SSMRC Eastern Region director; Omar Diaz, Local 1000 recording secretary; Matthew Bartles, millwright instructor, Florida Carpenters Training Trust Fund; Travis Hurd, Local 1000 member; Cliff Tucker, Local 1000 business agent; Paul Morse, director of operations for W. Soule & Co.; and Robert Jeffers, Local 2411 business agent
While attending the Kennedy King Gala in Tampa, Florida, on Aug. 20, SSMRC staff networked with local and state elected officials and candidates to discuss ways to improve labor standards and to learn about upcoming projects that could provide work opportunities for our members. Florida state Senator Darryl Rouson sat with the SSMRC delegation. Rouson, who supports pro-labor policies, has been a Florida Senate member since 2016 and is up for re-election this year.

Staff also attended the Kennedy King Awards, a similar event, in North Little Rock, Arkansas, on Feb. 19.
TEXAS:
Millwright leaders host commissioner to tour and talk about illegal employment practices
FROM LEFT: James Rowland, Western Region director; Rick Halford, political director; Garcia; Jason Lolling, millwright training director; Victor Sanchez, Local 2232 business agent; Dwight Murrah, Local 2232/1421 business agent; and Monte Thompson, Local 2232 business agent
Harris County, Texas, Commissioner Adrian Garcia visited the Houston training center Aug. 10. He toured the facility, met with apprentices, and discussed with SSMRC staff issues that are affecting union millwrights. The conversation focused on misclassification of workers as independent contractors and illegal use of tourist visas. Both of these problems lead to less work for law-abiding contractors and union millwrights. Garcia said he is aware of these issues and is working to combat them.
ARKANSAS:
SSMRC, Southern District staff help relaunch Arkansas Labor Caucus
SSMRC and UBC Southern District staff were instrumental in relaunching the Arkansas Labor Caucus.

At a July 26 meeting, members of several labor unions met to elect officers, approve bylaws, and make a plan for recruiting members. Officers in the photo above are, from left:

  • Vice-Chair – Derek Donahou, executive assistant with the UBC Southern District
  • Chair – Rick Halford, SSMRC political director
  • Caucus member – Arkansas Sen. Joyce Elliott with the American Federation of Teachers
  • Treasurer – Gerald Sales with the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen
  • Recording secretary – Wayne Denson, Arkansas Legislative Board chairman with the Brotherhood Of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen
OKLAHOMA:
Staff help new DOL investigators ensure contractors pay prevailing wages
From left: Rick Halford, SSMRC political director; John West II, Central South Carpenters business agent; Donnie Newton, Millwright Local 216 business agent; and Michael Speer, U.S. Labor Department Wage and Hour Division district director in Oklahoma City
SSMRC and Central South Carpenters staff met with new U.S. Labor Department investigators in Oklahoma July 13 to explain millwright and carpenter jurisdictions (the types of work each craft performs) so the investigators can better ensure prevailing wages and benefits are paid to workers on federal projects.

After years of short staffing in the Wage and Hour Division of the Labor Department, the department is hiring additional investigators to help enforce the Davis-Bacon Act, which requires workers on federally funded projects to be paid at least the locally prevailing wage and fringe benefits for the work they perform. Read more.
Oklahoma candidates speak at SSMRC staff/delegate meeting
Clockwise from top left: Kendra Horn, U.S. Senate candidate; Leslie Osborn, labor-commissioner candidate, Madison Horn, U.S. Senate candidate, and Kendra Horn with SSMRC Political Director Rick Halford and SSMRC EST Wayne Jennings; Gubernatorial candidate Joy Hofmeister; Madison Horn; and Leslie Osborn
Several candidates running for office in Oklahoma spoke about labor issues during our September staff and delegate meeting in Oklahoma City. The candidates included Joy Hofmeister, who is running for governor, U.S. Senate candidates Kendra Horn and Madison Horn, and labor-commissioner candidate Leslie Osborn. Read more.
NATIONAL NEWS
$1 billion in airport funding to benefit union millwrights and contractors
In the next year, $1 billion in airport-terminal-improvement projects will begin at 85 airports across the country. Funding for the projects comes from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and represents the first year of a five-year program to invest $5 billion in terminals as part of a $20 billion overall investment in airports.

Forty-seven projects that are part of the first-year funding will improve airports in historically disadvantaged and rural communities. Twenty-three airports in the SSMRC’s 11-state jurisdiction will receive funding. Click here or the map above to see details about each project.
Federal grants to assist states in delivering unemployment benefits
The U.S. Labor Department is distributing $260 million in grants to assist states in providing unemployment-insurance benefits to workers who have faced obstacles in accessing those services. The grants are funded by the American Rescue Plan Act. So far, 20 states and the District of Columbia have received $107 million. States in our jurisdiction that have received funding include Alabama, North Carolina, and Texas.
Full pension benefits saved for millions of union workers, retirees
Pensions are now secure for millions of union workers and retirees who were at risk of losing their benefits. Through the American Rescue Plan’s Special Financial Assistance Program, 200 multi-employer pension plans backed by a federal insurance program that was projected to become insolvent in 2026 are now protected until 2051.

“Before the American Rescue Plan, a wave of multi-employer pension plans were projected to become insolvent and leave millions of America’s workers without their full pension benefits,” said Labor Secretary Marty Walsh. “These were benefits their unions bargained for, and they earned. It was a deeply unfair and tragic situation.” Read more here and see the final rule implementing the pension safeguards here.
Inflation Reduction Act, CHIPS and Science Act to create good-paying jobs
The Inflation Reduction Act and the CHIPS and Science Act, both signed into law in August, will create good-paying jobs in the United States.

The Inflation Reduction Act will produce much work for union millwrights in the wind-turbine industry as well as new union jobs throughout the carbon-free energy economy. Tax credits in the bill will be five times larger for facilities that pay prevailing wages and meet apprenticeship standards. Learn how the SSMRC is gearing up to tackle this work.

The CHIPS and Science Act will create technology manufacturing jobs in America and help the U.S. compete with China and the rest of the world. Contractors working on facilities built with CHIPS funding must pay employees prevailing wages and hire registered apprentices.
Labor Department ends duplicative apprenticeship program that aimed to weaken union apprenticeships
The Labor Department announced a final rule on Sept. 23 that ended the Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Program, adding it will direct its resources toward Registered Apprenticeships. (Union apprenticeships are registered apprenticeship programs.)

The Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Program (IRAP), which was started under the Trump administration, intended to move much of the supervision of workforce initiatives to industry groups. In its announcement, the Labor Department stated IRAP "created a duplicative, lower-quality system that was not in the best interest of workers and industries. By contrast, the Registered Apprenticeship system has an established 85-year record of promoting apprentices’ welfare and ensuring program quality in an expanding number of diverse occupations and industries. The RA system offers higher quality training and worker protection standards, including progressively increasing wages and equal employment opportunity requirements."
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