30-CENT DUES ON NYCDC MEMBERS

NYCDC Delegate Body Meeting--The NYCDC called a special call meeting of the Delegate Body to consider a resolution for a proposed $0.30 an hour working dues payable to the District Council.

The new dues would be on top of the 1% union assessment (see below) on hours worked the district council already collects.

The district council would stand to gain an extra $6 million if it adopted the full 30-cent working dues resolution.

NYCDC President Peter Thomassen addressed the Delegates and began to outline the proposed resolution for the $0.30 an hour working dues. “Times are good now”, President Thomassen stated, “and we need to plan for our future”. “The District Council must look long-term and move into the new century more powerful and stronger and become the premier labor union in the city. Without long-term planning we will jeopardize the future for our membership. Our plan will help secure a better future and will lead to more jobs, higher wages and better benefits for our membership”.

President Thomassen proposed that $0.30 of the $1.16 raise the carpenters receive July 1, 2000 be allocated as follows:

$0.05 will be dedicated to a political action committee or PAC fund. The NYCDC is planning to take an aggressive, proactive role in local politics and lobby elected officials to preserve and advance the accepted workplace and economic standards of the organized labor movement. The NYCDC intends to support labor friendly elected officials in their endeavors that benefit our collective interests. During the “restructuring” we retreated from political action and the results of it have damaged our Brotherhood.

$0.05 will be dedicated to a communications fund. This will include the NYCDC newsletter and website. The communication fund will also include an educational public relations campaign to promote the NYCDCC to the general public and to the corporate world. The NYCDC interactive website can be utilized by the membership to check benefit hours, pension credits and print out medical forms, just to name a few.

$0.20 will be dedicated for organizing. It was organizing that built our Union from the ground up. Organizing is our lifeblood. The NYCDC will embark on a serious campaign to organize the anti-union sector, which has grown like a cancer over the last few years. Along with the new mandatory union participation program, we will aggressively pursue the anti-union sector and their supporters to secure a better standard of living for our families in the future.

The proposal was put to a vote under Section 21c of the District Council By-laws, and was overwhelmingly supported by the Delegate Body. EST Forde thanked the Delegates for their support and stated “we are going to be the biggest bunch of bastards in New York City to the non-union contractor, if we can organize 25% of the non-union work we will keep our members employed when times get slow”.


Working Dues Update December 09, 2004

Delegates to District Council, Held On 12/09/04 for the purpose of considering a $250 per year increase in the working dues payable to the District Council. The Resolution was passed by delegate vote.

Resolution

WHEREAS, pursuant to Section 45C of the Constitution of the UBC and Section 21© of the By-Laws of the District Council of New York City and Vicinity a Notice of a Special Convention of the Council Delegates, dated November 3, 2004, was issued for the purpose of considering a $250 per year increase in the working dues payable to the District Council for all carpenters performing work in our jurisdiction during a calendar year, provided that the member who shall have satisfied his or her Union Participation requirement for the applicable year, pursuant to Section 21 (G) of the By-Laws, will receive a credit for the $250 working dues requirement, and WHEREAS, the topic having been duly introduced and discussed by the Delegates to the Council; now, it is hereby

RESOLVED, Section 21 (A) of the By-Laws for the District Council of New York City and Vicinity is hereby amended to read as follows:

Section 21 (A)- The Council shall receive working dues in the amount of 1% of the members total package rate as reflected in the current collective bargaining agreement covering members for each hour worked. The Council shall also receive working dues from each member of $.30 per hour worked. This $.30 will be allocated to Organizing in the amount of $.20 an hour, $.05 for Communications and $.05 for Civic Action. The working dues to this Council shall be due on the first day of the month and must be paid not later than the 15th day of the following month. Effective January 1, 2005, the Council shall also receive working dues of $250 per year from every carpenter who has performed carpentry work for a signatory contractor in our jurisdiction during the calendar year. This $250 working dues to the Council shall be due on the first of the month following the first day of work performed in our jurisdiction each year and must not be paid later than April 15th of the following year, provided however, that any member who shall have satisfied his or her Union Participation for the applicable year, pursuant to  Section 21(G) of the By-Laws, will receive a credit for this $250 working dues requirement.


Referendum Vote 1% Assessment

In December of 1988 the membership of the New York City District Council voted on a referendum which ask for the elimination of the $0.15 assessment on hours worked to be replaced with a 1% assessment on hours you have worked.