ATU757 SHOP STEWARD TOM HORTON, "A UNION FOR EVERYONE."

TOM HORTON, "A UNION FOR EVERYONE"

Although I agree ATU 757 should be split from the smaller properties, I strongly disagree with Tom Horton's involvement and message. 

A bigger hypocrite there isn't!!

He blocks and invalidates Union members he disagrees with from Union specific Facebook sites and forums, from the information those sites provide. He refuses to be accountable for his behavior and has yet to learn what SOLIDARITY means. He's the Powell Shop Stewart so this behavior is especially concerning, it's anti-Union. This is in direct conflict with what Unions do. His behavior, as a Union Officer is deserving of a Preferring of Charges complaint and subsuquent blackballing.

He's a Bully, not a Union guy looking out for "Everyone's" interests. 

2016 SCROOGE OF THE YEAR AWARD NOMINEES.CONGRATULATIONS TRIMET. YOU'VE FINALLY MADE IT TO THE TOP OF A LIST (2nd Place)

Portland Jobs with Justice

20 hrs · 

"We are excited to announce the 2016 Scrooge of the Year Award Nominees! Visit the event page and click on "Find Tickets" to buy your tickets to the party and your votes now! https://www.facebook.com/events/1338655082824782/

1. David Sanders, CEO of Zoom+Care: Dave Sanders is the owner and CEO of Zoom+Care, a locally based chain of healthcare clinics that operates on a model of discrimination by refusing to accept Medicare, Medicaid, or Tricare patients. A number of employees have accused Sanders of being so harsh that he brings workers to tears. He has repeatedly shown up at community rallies outside of Zoom+ clinics and harassed those attending the rallies.

2. Randy Stedman, Trimet Director of Labor Relations: Before taking his current job at Trimet, Stedman cut his teeth as a union buster at Mt. Hood Community College. Since moving to Trimet he has run a campaign to expand "management rights" and a unilateral, top-down management culture at Trimet. He has vigorously fought ATU Local 757 on reasonable grievances, has negotiated in bad faith, and has consistently frustrated union access to the workplace. 

3. Wells Fargo: Wells Fargo is one for the major investors and lenders in the prison system. Wells Fargo is also implicated as a major funder of the Dakota Access Pipeline that the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and allies are courageously blocking in North Dakota. The bank is also currently involved in a widespread scandal that opened millions of false bank accounts in order to collect fees from unsuspecting customers.

4. Equitable Housing PAC: Equitable Housing PAC is a major landlord lobby here in Oregon. They have been on the front lines fighting against tenant rights at both the local and the state level throughout the housing crisis. The lobby group has dedicated itself to fighting against proposed rent control and just cause eviction legislation in the upcoming 2017 legislative session.

5. Jeff Harvey, CEO of Burgerville: While proudly marketing Burgerville as “sustainable," Harvey willfully directs his company to treat workers as disposable. Everyday, workers are burned by hot oil. Every winter, drive-through workers freeze because restrictive uniform policies. Workers earn poverty wages, have insufficient hours, and inconsistent scheduling. Harvey has refused to meet with the Burgerville Workers’ Union, and denies his workforce basic improvements, such as putting out tip jars, that would cost him nothing at all."

There are many of us including our Union who've experienced Randy Stedman's aggressive, and often inhumane management style in which he promotes and supports a hostile, retaliatory, discriminatory and Bullying/Mobbing Workplace. Under his direction, Trimet's HR Department refuses to enforce their own  policies which include HR 171 respectful workplace violations, hostile working environment, Bullying, IT, etc. Certain employees are often targeted, such as those within a protected class. They pick and choose which workers are worthy of protecting which ones aren't. According to Managers I've spoken with, if they don't take the orders they're given they risk termination. He promotes much fear throughout the system. PLUS, he's a professional Union Buster. He openly advertises 'Union avoidance' on his online resume. (below) His wife does the same at Port of Portland. Nevertheless, in taking this very anti-union stance, Stedman's also sending a message to the majority of our riders, the guts of the system, the middle class who're dependent upon Public Transportation to take them to and from their jobs, shopping, medical, life etc...  

His behavior is a contradiction to the integrity of Trimet , their Unionized Workers and the public we serve. 

Randy Stedman

Director of Labor Relations

In 2011, he was hired at a salary of $175,000.00  (per W2),  for the specific task below:

TRIMET SUES THEIR OWN WORKER TO AVOID PAYING WORKERS COMP CLAIM

TriMet sues to get back mistaken $3,150 payout to MAX operator

"Four years after mistakenly sending a $3,150 check to a MAX train operator, the regional transit agency still wants its money back.

And Phillip X. Emerson still won't return it.

TriMet is now suing Emerson for the money it says he was never "legally entitled to."

Emerson -- who has worked for TriMet for 21 years and still has his job -- told The Oregonian/OregonLive that he kept the money because the agency owed it to him -- plus a lot more -- for a worker's compensation claim over torn rotator cuffs in both of his shoulders. 

Read more here:

Trimet sues their own employee

Workers Comp is a MAJOR issue for Trimet employees as well as the Agency. They don't wanna acknowledge job related injuries because 1.) they believe all workers are liars, cheats and thieves and 2.) they don't wanna be accountable for safety related issues. 

A good reporter could probably gain access to public record documents, perhaps through Trimet and or the State. Obviously, Doctor / patient confidentiality laws exist but public record documents exist as well, more specifically with statistics defining the injury, what caused it and the number of employees affected. I know the Union has access to these numbers as well which they were able to use on my behalf years ago when I sued TM.

Rotator cuff injuries are common. One of my friends had to go back for several surgeries. Both shoulders. He was front ended, true story and the Company came down on him to the degree that his workplace became hostile. 

Shoulder injuries are common, particularly among short Operators. I had a right shoulder replacement in 2009. The steering wheel is up high, I sit low and it eventually grinded the cartilage away. I was off work for 8 months. They actually threatened me with AWOL if I didn't return before the Dr. released me, then fought and denied my claim. The Industry continues to manufacture Buses for large tall men.  And Trimet continues to purchase them. 

Operators 'bottom out' in their seats. Old worn out seats that needed replacing years ago and they're left without a back, without a job and tons of medical for the rest of their life.

The Emergency Brake is another problem. It's situated left of the Operator sometimes below, sometimes in odd positions depending on the manufacturer. It was a problem for me in the newer Buses because it was set so tight. Many times I thought my thumb, fingers and or shoulder was gonna come out of its socket. I wrote tons of work cards but they were never addressed and it was never repaired. The brake is used whenever the Bus is stopped or when the door is open.

There's the whole safety issue regarding assaults, including being spit and coughed on by angry sickly customers. Plus the extreme hostile, bullying environment workers are subjected to by management. The job is psychological. You get abused by the public and the Agency and yet must remain focused at all times while Operating the Bus. Management will mandate you into a meeting, make false accusations or threaten to terminate you, then expect you to Operate a 20,000 ton Bus on the streets as if nothing happened. When something horrendous happens as a result, they deny your W/C claim.

An Assistant Manager told me the agency stopped approving Workers Comp claims unless it was caught on video.  There are other injuries that occur like what feels like a thousand pound motorized scooter running over your foot as you're attempting to secure it. Or slipping on ice in the yard during winter months. On the older buses the vent over the Operators head is full of mold and can't be cleaned. Sometimes events such as these aren't caught on video. Operators face a multitude of repetitive injuries because what we do for a living, is repetitive. Carpel tunnel's common. Constant mirror checks every 6 to 8 seconds throughout your shift, year after year, swerving your neck back and forth, up and down from one side of the bus to the other, trying to look past, under and around huge misplaced mirrors and barriers. They're blind spots. NOT vision barriers but blind spots! And Trimet refuses to move them up, even in light of the Sandi Day accident years ago. They refuse to learn from their mistakes. Arthritis in the neck is common. How would you "catch 'that' on video"?

Repetitive injuries used to be on the list of Workers Comp claims. The State stopped it sometime back. Each job is different. They should have a list of injuries relating to job descriptions particularly if it's something that injures employees on a regular basis. 

They retaliated against Leonard James without mercy. He was the Operator who was stabbed, nearly to death. He was having serious medical problems as a result, having to take time off work for hospitalizations, etc. Blood clots in his legs and stomach problems, serious life threatening incidents.  Retaliatory acts against him were continuous and inhumane.Talk about being bullied!!  They tried to force him out!! Kept mandating him into meetings treating him like shit then expected him to Operate a Bus. When Bruce Hansen was President of ATU, he secretly showed up at one of the meetings and broke Evelyn Warren's (Center Garage Manager) wrath. That was the last time she attacked Leonard's humanity. They apparently didn't like that he continued to suffer as a result of the attack. 

As far as safety issues they exist in virtually every department. Office workers, mechanics, Bus and Max...  The amount of claims denied regularly must be horrendous.

These are severe job related injuries that Trimet and their Insurer ignore. And with each Union contract, they're refusing to provide decent healthcare. As a retiree, I have all sorts of problems now because of driving inadequate and unsafe equipment for nearly 23 years. It's  taking my pension and savings.

John Free, the guy who was in charge of in-house Workers Comp for years denied claims to employees at times based on race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, etc. A couple sued. I was one of 'em. When I sued he was the Garage Manager - and he was 'hating' back then. But haters gonna hate. The Agency (HR) knew but looked the other way. They protect their managers from the workers which is a contradiction of their own respectful workplace policies as well as Federal and State discrimination laws. A person of color was denied w/c, sued and won. Others quit or become 'invisible' because of the velocity of hatred that comes back at you. Retaliation - the one thing Trimet excels at. For some the battle's not worth the fight. but the Agency doesn't care, won't change the way they do business. It appears there are no moral or ethical values for those in power. They're not transparent or accountable as required of other Public Agencies. There's no oversight, which was proven in 2014 when then Secretary of State, Kate Brown did her "top to bottom audit". She ended it after 6 months saying they had run out of money for the project and that she couldn't really tell Trimet how they should conduct business - only suggest. 

From the article, "Mary Fetsch, a TriMet spokeswoman, said she couldn't comment about the specifics of the lawsuit, which was filed this month in Multnomah County Circuit Court. She did say, however, that TriMet is trying to get back public money that accidentally ended up in Emerson's hands."

If they're so damned concerned about "public money" ending up in the wrong hands, why are Neil McFarlane, Randy Stedman, Shelly Lomax, Harry Saporta, Jay Jackson, etc still there?!!  

Jay Jackson, btw (according to ATU Union President Shirley Block) secretly audio/video records workers), which is illegal. 

The job is psychological. You get beaten up by the public and the Agency. Mr. Emerson's lawsuit is something that I hope leads to a government investigation of Trimet, their insurer, and their bought and paid for IME.  

js...

source: Accidents in the Workplace - 1971

SOUND FAMILIAR?

LABOR 

New Study Says 1 Out of Every 5 Corporate Bosses Is a Psychopath

CEO psychopaths are a lot more common than we thought.

By Michael Arria /  AlterNet

September 17, 2016

7K140

Print

119 COMMENTS

Photo Credit: sarahdahmer, Flickr

According to a new study, one out of every five corporate bosses is a psychopath.

The study surveyed 261 corporate professionals and determined that their "clinically elevated levels of psychopathy" were on par with the prison population. Nathan Brooks, a forensic psychologist at Bond University and researcher on this study, told ABC, "Their personality usually leads them to exploit every avenue open to them, whether it's in a criminal setting, or within organizations."

Psychopathy is often defined as a clinical disorder, characterized by a lack of empathy and narcissistic traits. One out of every 100 people is believed to be a psychopath, but this investigation shows that the numbers for CEOs are much larger.

According to Brooks, a certain "successful psychopath" has been allowed to rise in the corporate world, despite the fact that they're more likely to break the law or engage in unethical activity. "We hope to implement our screening tool in businesses so that there's an adequate assessment to hopefully identify this problem—to stop people sneaking through into positions in the business that can become very costly," said Brooks.

The study was conducted by Brooks along with colleagues Katarina Fritzon (also of Bond University) and Simon Croom of the University of San Diego. They presented their findings at the Australian Psychological Society Congress.

UNIONS VS TRUMPF

STOLEN BUS? - OK. WE KNOW THAT'S TRUE. STOLEN UNIFORMS? - PERHAPS NOT!!! - UPDATED

Updated July 10, 2016

Last month I sent this to every member of Trimet's Board of Directors. Not one acknowledgment or reply back.  

Silence speaks louder than words. Their positions are honorary. They're appointed by the Governor. They don't understand mass transit and don't take it. This is based on the results of a few Trimet employees asking them - from time to time throughout the years,  "Please raise your hands if you took Trimet to get here today."  What they do, do however,  is understand street planning and land use. They assist in devising the routes of MAX trains. The land is later bought up by developers or whoever...

When Tom Walsh was General Manager (1991 to 1997) he assisted in devising the route West side light rail would take. Publicly, he announced he would remove himself from Walsh Construction to assumably avoid any 'conflicts of interest'.  His brother took over the company.  Oddly, as the construction advanced there were new construction springing up along the route. In front of those buildings were signs  reading "Walsh Construction".  

Nevertheless, Isn't it about time the Board of Directors were elected positions of folks from within the tri-county area who actually understand and use public transportation? 

That is something we are currently working on and hope to move it forward within the next couple of years. You want a safe, efficient system, you need to be a part of it. 

Al Margulies, retired 

living in Boston

Owner of Rantings of a Former Trimet Bus Driver

Bob Cummings

Former Spotter, Center Street

Click image for zoom
Posted at Center Street

I found it interesting that as soon as I started writing a Blog, I started receiving anonymous tips, documents, etc. This was one of em. Dropped off in my mail box about an hour ago.  Nevertheless, it has all the markings of Cummings...  and Margulies...

Stolen Uniforms You Say?!!  hmm

Click THIS

Lane Jensen

Alex Hawk

Could it be another event from the Margulies/Cummings/Jensen/Hawk group?!! I don't know but if I was Trimet I'd be asking questions - like where are these uniforms now???

btw - Mr. Jensen and Mr. Hawk never worked for Trimet. According to Jensen, Al M gave them the Uniforms after he retired. They're pictured here in his apartment. They liked to parade around the Bus Mall and Transit Centers wearing them - pretending to be Trimet Operators. Falsely giving that impression to the public. I figured, with their TM obsession - groupie status, it wouldn't be long before they either stole a Bus or used the uniforms to gain access somewhere inappropriately or sold them to someone with inappropriate motives. There were a couple of Supervisors who recognized the threat as well so they took care of it the best way they could but weren't able to get the uniforms back because  *Trimet doesn't have a policy stating that the public can't have our uniforms.*

Trimet is fortunate in that no one was injured or killed or property wasn't damaged  as a result of the 15 YO taking the bus. Had that happened, the Agency could be sued for millions for negligence. Negligence for not listening to their Operators. For example the 'open door' policy.  When an Operator leaves for their break the doors MUST remain open. Open for the public to do what they may...  The gates at the garages remain open. I worked nights - easy access. I remember when we had Homeland Security Classes but Management - the ones who make the policies weren't interested.  You have a safety or security concern there's no one - quite literally no one to go to with it - UNLESS you're personal friends with a Manager. Trimet's a seriously broken Agency - on many levels.

Where's, almost $175,000 a year Harry Saporta, in all this?

Executive Director of Safety and Security

There's been a joke circulating about him for years. Comparing him with George Costanza of Seinfiend when he worked for the Yankees.  He'd go in every day with a brief case consisting of an apple, a sandwich and a magazine. Then he'd hide under his desk for 8 hours looking at the magazine. The joke came about because no one ever saw Harry except one time on a Max Train with a drug sniffing dog. Why doesn't he have a more physical presence with the agency? It all seems to be through some antiquated resume which they say qualifies him for the job. Why isn't he hopping on the Buses, trains and maintenance facilities communicating with the workers?!! Why doesn't he have a presence within and outside the Agency?!! Why wasn't he interviewed in any of the articles I've seen about the stolen Bus?!!

I hope this incident doesn't end up being about 2 teenagers going for a joy ride. It's a walkup call not a bureaucratic  moment.

T  H  I  N  K    A  B  O  U  T    I  T   

TWO SUSPECTS IN CUSTODY AFTER STEALING A TRIMET BUS

Story here via KGW

The following story was passed on to me by someone in Management. About a couple years ago, there were two blogs that were displaying images of Center Street on a regular basis. The images were of the layout of the yard as well as the gates. One of 'em was the Ranting's Blog and the other Bob Cummings (spotter) via twitter. Trimet monitors the Blogs so they were concerned with Homeland Security type issues. Anyone could come in, plant a bomb, attack a worker, steal a bus... The Federal Transit Administration Investigated Bob and his twitter (Daily Cyclist). It was taken down shortly thereafter and, I assume he retired. Didn't see him around after that. The thing is, If Al M's Rantings Blog and Cumming's twitter were so concerned with safety in the lot, they should've voiced their concerns to Trimet, not the public. Al's Blog alone got thousands of views weekly from around the world. When your site is THAT PUBLIC you have a responsibility - or so it would seem - at least morally - to do the right thing in terms of safety and the lives of others.

Trimet needs to have a way of monitoring these gates. Perhaps they should have their private security, monitor - 24-7 via video. This can't be just a story about 2 knuckleheads going on a joyride, it has to be a SERIOUS red flag !!! (at least in my opinion)

AL MARGULIES, BOB CUMMINGS AND TRIMET'S ANNUAL APPRECIATION / ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF THEIR TOP OPERATORS OF THE YEAR

It's an annual event. Those selected are  chosen from those who have NO Preventable Accidents, NO (SIP'S) or complaints from their customers, NO time-loss. They're voted in by their own. It's a BIG DEAL and very difficult to attain.

The creme de la creme !!

click image for zoom

As you can see from the snap shot above, Margulies doesn't have the capacity to recognize the difficulty in achieving this honor. He never received it or any others that I'm aware of in the years he drove. And Cummings hasn't received any accolades for the years he put in either.

This is exactly how Margulies feels about his former co-workers. He's written the Rantings Blog for years under the guise of being pro Union but all the while he spews hatred and publicly incites others against us. Lane Jensen's a good example. He was a follower of his Blog.  They latched on to each other and Jensen found his God in Al and Bob who showed him the way, even the way to jail. Many of the complaints Operators receive are called in by Jensen. He drives around filming buses, reporting Ops to Customer Service. Then displaying it on twitter. Some Operators may have been disqualified from these awards because of Jensen.

Bob Cummings

Former Spotter, Center Street

As you can see, he has a 'finger' too. Must be their intellectual property.  

Justina Carrillo, Mini Operator of the Year, shared (with Cummings over 3 years ago) some of what she went through with a worker's comp claim. Why did he feel he had to visit his problems with McFarlane on her by reprimanding her publicly for something that has nothing to do with this award? Instead of congratulating her, he chose to invalidate her (comment in the snap shot above) Winning it is a big deal. It's like some of the Operators would talk to him at the end of the shift and he apparently put it all in a little teeny tiny hole in his head somewhere so he could use it later against them when an opportunity arrived. Similar to Al secretly tape-recording co-workers then publishing it on his site.

Then they put up the photoshopped picture of McFarlane which degrades the entire process. Love him or not, Op of The Year is a big deal. It validates our presence on the streets as good people doing good things in the community! 

Everything's negative with these two.  Cummings used to write up Operators on a daily basis for years then went to Union Meetings crying how he was THE ONLY UNION MEMBER WHO GIVES A SHIT!! 

Instead of using the Operator of the Year award as a good thing, something we're proud of,  they use it as another point of contention and retribution against those who are different then themselves.  

INSUBORDINATION

A while back, while I was in a 'mandated meeting' with the Manager of my garage, and after going back and forth with her I finally said, "Looks like I'm the only adult in the room".  She threatened to charge me with insubordination. Not the first time. You're not allowed to talk, you don't have 1st Amendment rights. My Union Rep was in there as well but she knew she was the one with the least authenticity and inadvertently blurted it out. "You're insubordinate!!" Not the first time she's threatened it. With this manager it comes down to a power play. She isn't qualified for the job, doesn't have the skills, treats her employees like shit and when she finds herself up against someone who's considerably smarter than she is, she uses her power inappropriately. Oy, what a piece 'a work!! How I miss those days...  NOT!! 

Trimet has a HUGE problem with their Managers and Executives creating hostile and bullying work environments for their Union workers. Her husband  (retired or on disability) was Union for years and her daughter works here as well. Her family receives Union and non-Union benefits, while at the same time she stabs Union workers in the back. 

After seeing how County workers (collectively and in solidarity) went after Sheriff Dan Stanton by “overwhelmingly” approving a vote of no-confidence", which led to an internal investigation, I don't understand why ATU hasn't  gotten involved in a similar action against Neil McFarlane.

NO - CONFIDENCE VOTE

I'd like to see ATU Members come together and vote 'no-confidence' against him. It's not like you can call or arrange to meet up with him. He has a closed door policy and the Board of Directors aren't interested. He's removed himself from our building at the expense of the taxpayers. It's like he's this invisible entity all powerful and full of grandiosity and narcissism.

If the Board of Directors positions were elected rather than appointed by the Governor they'd be accountable and their workers concerns would become their concerns. If we were to hand in a no-confidence against McFarlane with the current Board of Directors it wouldn't be taken seriously because they're all buddies. Good 'ol boy stuff. 

There also needs to be a serious internal audit on business trips and personal expenses from the Executives. Similar to this guy:

According to Rantings of a Former Trimet Bus Driver,  STEVE BANTA was caught ripping off another agency.

As it stands, Trimet is a Public Agency without oversight and accountability. I'd like to see a class action suit filed against them by all those workers forced out through harassment, mobbing, forced retirement, denied workers comp claims (termination through time-loss), etc. Plus active employees should file personal injury lawsuits against the individual Managers and Executives and a class action against the Agency as a whole and have a third party come in, clean house and rebuild. 

It's a terribly hostile environment based on personalities and religious beliefs. They pick and choose which employees are deserving of the enforcement of their HR policies. They have policies in place which were meant to protect the workforce. Respectful Workplace, anti Bullying, Hostile work environment, IT but, again they pick and choose who they feel is worthy of working in a hostile free environment and who isn't - based on personalities and religious beliefs. 

In my experience, they're bottom feeders. Their managers are mostly people who are grossly under qualified for their positions because they take orders, take enormous salaries and come to the job without a conscience. Sociopaths.  

As an example, several years ago they violated my HIPPA by disclosing my FMLA diagnosis to co-workers. Wanting to resolve the issue in-house first, which was assumably those appointed to oversight the agency aka the Board of Directors, who then refused to even acknowledge me. I didn't talk about it in a public meeting but I did send each one an e-mail with supporting documentation. I even made calls but they were never returned. 

There's a big problem in the agency - in terms of how they treat their employees and the public.  As a Public Agency, I think it's incumbent upon the Union and the riders to lobby the legislature and the Governor who appoints the Board to make the Board of Directors positions a part of the political process. The Board needs to be elected positions, made up of people from within the riding community.  

The current Board's interests are street  planning and land use. They're not interested in seeing a work environment built on Dignity. They're not interested in seeing a good moral. They're not interested in the safety or the health of the work force.Same with the riders. Trimet is an oligarchy in the truest sense of the word. 

DEMOCRACY DISREGARDED

"The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it."   Alfred Einstein

Democracy Disregarded

IN THE END...

Ballots:

5176 Ballots were mailed out

2350 voted

 (about 100 less than last time)

45.4% of membership voted on the rerun

Final count:

PRESIDENT

Shirley Block - 1279 

Bruce Hansen - 680

Henry Beasley - 381

VP

Jonathan Hunt - 1192

Chris Day - 1111

Bruce Hansen

In this day and age,  evil seems to prevail. That's why people like Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are the frontrunners for the Presidency of this Country.  It's come down to who hates the most and who're the biggest crooks liars and thiefs.

The real winners are those who see our politics, be it National or a local Union election,  as a Revolution for Change. We've planted the seed - watch it grow come the next election. The losers, at least today are the members of ATU 757. The real losers are those who didn't care enough about the quality and safety of their jobs to vote.

Bruce Hansen did the right thing - always has - that's who he is.  I'm proud of him for taking on the faces of evil. And in the end he's the real winner as are all of us who supported his extraordinary level of experience, brilliance, knowledge and compassion for todays Worker vs the Trimet business as usual, Oligarchs. A system made up of greedy hateful retaliatory bullies. Not surprisingly similar to the traits of Shirley Block, Jonathan Hunt and Mary Longoria.  It's a conundrum.

If Trimet Union members are to survive they'll eventually need to form a Union of their own. Trimet members with a strike clause could / would quite literally shut Tri-County service down within hours.

Chris Day

He gave Hunt a run for his money.  I'm confident this won't stop him from focusing his energy on the business dealings of our Union. An overseer of how things are supposed to be. A mosquito in their ass!!

VOTE

DON'T BE A DICK!

V O T E

VOTE

VOTE

VOTE

VOTE

Union label from the early 1970s. 

This print shop printed newspapers, pamphlets, and flyers for many radical movements.

NO STRIKE CLAUSE - EVER WONDER HOW IT CAME ABOUT?

So, here's something that just blew me off my feet.  I contacted NW LaborPress in March to see if they'd be willing to go through their archives to find an article Jonathan Hunt wrote in 2006 about giving up our Right to Strike.

Our ATU website archive only goes back to 2009.

I talked with Office manager Cheri Rice – several times. My phone shows 7 calls. She was very nice, initially. Explained that the archives were not electronically kept. Explained that they were trying to get a paper out and wouldn't have time that particular week. Explained she was part-time. No problemo. 

Couple weeks later I called back. She asked if someone named 'Don' called me. I said, "No". Each call I made I offered my time and assistance and if that wasn't OK then I offered to pay them for theirs.  Each call she reiterated that someone would get ahold of me. No worries.  No one ever did.

So now we're down to 12 days before the votes are counted and I'm not hearing back. They just went silent.  

Just got off the phone with her. Ms 'nice as apple pie' suddenly turned into the evil one. Rude, flippant, interrupting, yelling then she hung up on me.  But before she hung up, she said something that was of such concern that, instead of leaving to run some badly needed errands, I'm writing this.

Cheri asked,  "Didn't you hear back from the Union?

Me, "No, why would I hear back from them?" 

LaborPress, "We aren't allowed to give out any information without their permission."

Me, "Why didn't you tell me this before?"

LaborPress, "NO!  WE TALKED TO THEM. YOU HAVE TO GET THEIR PERMISSION!!  YOU!!"

Me, "Huh?  I'm frustrated because you never got back with me. I've been waiting all this time. Why didn't you just tell me that in the first place?"  "I wanted to publish it on my blog before the election." 

LaborPress, "ARE YOU THREATENING ME???!!!!!  

Me, "Who'd you talk to over there?" 

LaborPress, "SQUACK ARRCK SHRIEK...  SLAM goes the phone!!  !!!  

hmmm...

T  H  I  N  K  

A  B  O  U  T

I  T !!