Outside construction transmisson portability

[ICE]

I don't know how many out there are from an inside outside local? But what I see happening to the inside I want no part of for the outside so if it means more open portability then we better embrace it.

[wudwoker51]

You hit the nail right on the head Drifter. The question is what do we do about it? Personally I am sick and tired of a bunch of narrowbacks who don't have a clue about linework making all the decisions and cutting deals with the contractors. I understand we are as one but inside and outside work is two different worlds and need to be treated as such. Now is the time to get this BS addressed.

[tolex42]

You hit the nail right on the head Drifter. The question is what do we do about it? Personally I am sick and tired of a bunch of narrowbacks who don't have a clue about linework making all the decisions and cutting deals with the contractors. I understand we are as one but inside and outside work is two different worlds and need to be treated as such. Now is the time to get this BS addressed.

All IBEW Construction Agreements, both Inside and Outside have the identical portability language in which it states that an out-of-town contractor may bring in up to four bargaining unit employees into another Local's jurisdiction, plus two specialty workers per job. You do know, don't you that all nonunion line contractors have 100% portability.

Some earlier post made mention of the National Outside Construction Emergency Response Agreement that was recently negotiated and distributed to each Local Union. An agreement was negotiated by several large outside contractors and several Outside Business Managers. The Business Managers were all Journeymen Linemen. They were assisted by members of the Construction Department. The contractors went to the table requesting 100% portability. They got far, far less than that for large multijurisdictional transmission projects.

The Emergency Response Agreement should resolve many issues when responding to emergencies across jurisdictional lines. Not only portability but also wages, conditions and most of all seeing that an IBEW line workers health and welfare and retirement benefits are credited back to the home local so that no one loses out on receiving his proper payment for benefits.

The agreement also addresses apprentices moving across Training Area lines and contractors raiding other contractors employees for emergency response. Your Local union has a copy of the Agreement.

[Highplains Drifter]

All IBEW Construction Agreements, both Inside and Outside have the identical portability language in which it states that an out-of-town contractor may bring in up to four bargaining unit employees into another Local's jurisdiction, we are not discussing the four man portability. The International negotiated full portability and it is not just transmission but now it is distribution too. plus two specialty workers per job. You do know, don't you that all nonunion line contractors have 100% portability.

Some earlier post made mention of the National Outside Construction Emergency Response Agreement that was recently negotiated and distributed to each Local Union. An agreement was negotiated by several large outside contractors and several Outside Business Managers. The Business Managers were all Journeymen Linemen. They were assisted by members of the Construction Department. The contractors went to the table requesting 100% portability. They got far, far less than that for large multijurisdictional transmission projects.

The Emergency Response Agreement should resolve many issues when responding to emergencies across jurisdictional lines. Not only portability but also wages, conditions and most of all seeing that an IBEW line workers health and welfare and retirement benefits are credited back to the home local so that no one loses out on receiving his proper payment for benefits.

The agreement also addresses apprentices moving across Training Area lines and contractors raiding other contractors employees for emergency response. Your Local union has a copy of the Agreement.

You hit the nail right on the head Drifter. The question is what do we do about it? Personally I am sick and tired of a bunch of narrowbacks who don't have a clue about linework making all the decisions and cutting deals with the contractors. I understand we are as one but inside and outside work is two different worlds and need to be treated as such. Now is the time to get this BS addressed.

Wudworker51 , My local has a committee working on this, right now is the time for folks to stand up and voice their minds!!!

[linhand]

I don't post but do read the threads. I'm not sure if 100% portability is the answer to helping the contractors keep the work union here in Illinois or in the south were the contractor can't compete even with the cheap wages for the union men.

What I have seen all over when work was booming was portability by the locals. It seemed like they wouldn't have anyone or it was older double dipping utility hand looking to make some extra money. They never even talked about book 2 or just let you come and sign through. Now work is not like it was and lots of my friends are out of work and the union now moves in to protectionism. This is what the inside has done and now they keep others out and only keep the big project and lose the small ones. They don't even have 65% of the work in some locals and they still refuse to change to help get more to work.

I sure hope the outside doesn't chase our contractors away from the jobs. If they stop bidding small jobs then where are we going to work. There is a cost to the contractor when they get all new people to start a job that don't know the company. We all know linework but there is more to being on a job then the work. You still need PPE, equipment, tools, and how to get reported to get paid. Plus if they hire and work a man for a week and he is a turd (and the local boys usually know who they are) they send them back to the hall. This still cost the job money which the contractor eats not the hall.

One last things lots of my friends are out of work, 2 years ago lots of them thought it was fine to go in to other locals and never even see the local hall but now they all sound the same "its our work not theirs".

I just hope the utilities start releasing work soon. We can't have it both ways.

Lets work on keeping the work IBEW not the trades or nonunion. Local hands or not if its IBEW work, it keeps our brothers on it. Working locally or traveling.

[ICE]

I'm glad this has been done my friends have been screwed silly on benefits and now its easy to watch, I say its something done right!

[BookII]

I don't know if this will help, but IBEW local 55 in Des Moines Iowa has a petition they're passing around OPPOSING the portability!

And as for me, I'm 100% against it! Edwin Hill works for US, IBEW dues paying members! I wonder sometimes if he's moved his office to Kansas City or Blue Bell???

We have a voice gentlemen! But if we choose to look the other way...THEY WIN!!!

[scratchpad]

There's an IBEW video by Ed Hill i recently watched at the cal/nev jatc. In the video i clearly remember a guy talking about portability and if we, IBEW, want to increase our workload we need portability. They went on to show the increase and then declining numbers of our members and work since Henry Miller. Non union has been taking over. I'd like to know more about the pros and cons of portability.

I think the noble way is to put the local hands to work first instead of bringing crews in that have been laying in the weeds from other states/locals. Do all contractors work this way? I've seen so much shady shit with Henkels & McCoy it disgusts me. H&M should have their own thread.

[ICE]

We do seem to be losing work to the non union. It seems to be happening fast, I used to think protability was only for hands that couldn't cut it and had to brown nose to stay working. I see now traveling around our great country that we are out numbered by the non-union. 100 % portability i disagree with but double or even triple what we have now sure is a lot better than whats coming down on the inside locals with seperate cba for work on small jobs and different classifications on the work that don't seem to include journeyman. Is that where we want to go? Not me. Lets do better than the inside and try to do it different don't just say no and force something lets be the leaders we started out to be 115 years ago when there were no portability rules if you could work and live you worked and became a proud IBEW member. We started this outfit so lets lead the way once again and try something different? Sorry for the rambling but I love this union and I want to leave it better than I found it!! I can't leave yet.

[wudwoker51]

We do seem to be losing work to the non union. It seems to be happening fast, I used to think protability was only for hands that couldn't cut it and had to brown nose to stay working. I see now traveling around our great country that we are out numbered by the non-union. 100 % portability i disagree with but double or even triple what we have now sure is a lot better than whats coming down on the inside locals with seperate cba for work on small jobs and different classifications on the work that don't seem to include journeyman. Is that where we want to go? Not me. Lets do better than the inside and try to do it different don't just say no and force something lets be the leaders we started out to be 115 years ago when there were no portability rules if you could work and live you worked and became a proud IBEW member. We started this outfit so lets lead the way once again and try something different? Sorry for the rambling but I love this union and I want to leave it better than I found it!! I can't leave yet.

I'm in ICE, where do we start?