Sunday, September 18, 2011

Contract Negotiations Update: Delegates Approve Tentative Agreement

Deal reaches tentative agreement on contract with Cement League and Wall and Ceiling which boost wages and includes full mobility.

No Wage Cuts: Carpenters pressured union leadership.
After several contract extensions, the District Council of Carpenters has hammered out a new, tentative five-year deal with the Association of Wall-Ceiling and Carpentry Industries, though agreements with several other industry associations remain outstanding.

Last Wednesday Delegates to the council (see sign in sheet below) voted and approved a Cement League "Memorandum of Understanding" (MOU) by a vote of 45 to 18 and voted and approve a Wall-Ceiling MOU by a vote of 35-28.

Unfortunately, under the current council by-laws the rank-and-file does not get to vote and approve contracts.

With 10,400 members local 157 is the largest local in the UBC and is grossly underrepresented in the delegate body with only 22 delegates (local 2790 has 3000 members with 15 delegates). Since being elected in June, President Patrick Nee has been demanding fair representation and has asked to make additional pro tem appointments which has been denied by Supervisor Spencer. The delegate vote would most likely been defeated if local 157 had its fair amount of representation.

The Wall-Ceiling MOU is contingent on full mobility, or contractors' insistence on the right to hire 100% of workers they choose. Presently, as per a federal judge's order, they must hire a third of their workers through the union's out-of-work-list.

Contractors argue that the system is inefficient and hurts productivity because they end up with workers who may not have certain skills needed on specific job sites. Rank and fliers argue that full mobility will turn the union into a contractors union with no ability to obtain work from the out-of-work-list. The full mobility provision must go before federal judge Richard Berman in the form of a motion for approval.

Review Officer Dennis Walsh, held a forum on September 14, and according to RO Walsh the Cement League MOU is for three years and provides raises of $1.50 an hour in the first year, $2.50 in the second year and $3 in the third year.

The Wall-Ceiling MOU is for five years and provides no raise the first year, an increase of $2.60 in the second year, $2.65 in the third year and $2.70 in each of the fourth and fifth years.

As part of the deal, contractors will get a 20% wage discount (Market Recovery Rate) on residential and hotel projects of 20 stories or less in Manhattan and on all residential and hotel projects in the outer boroughs, regardless of size, Walsh said.

The deal also includes a helper/scraper category, (language to be determined) with a total package not to exceed $25 per hour to "clean up and handle deliveries," and jobs with two carpenters will not need a shop steward.

The association thought it had a deal in place several weeks ago that would have actually cut wages by 5% in the first year, but it fell apart, presumably after rank and file carpenters staged two protest rallies (against wage cuts and full mobility) outside council headquarters and pressured union leadership to scuttle the agreement. 

“It's not as much as we hoped, but it's a step in the right direction,” according to John DeLollis, executive director of the Wall and Ceiling association. “We looked for 5% roll back in first year. That was a greater step towards leveling competition with nonunion (firms), but it's gone.”

Contract negotiations for the carpenters are being led by Frank Spencer, who was appointed in 2009 by the general president of United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America to oversee the local union after several of its officials were indicted for bribery.

As usual the council has not updated their website with detailed information about Wednesday's delegate vote. A statement posted on September 9th, announced the Wall-Ceiling deal, (giving no details) and said that progress was made this week in talks with the Building Contractors Association and the General Contractors Association.

“The District Council continues to make positive movement to reach our overall goal of reaching agreements with all of our association partners,” the statement said.

Bargaining will resume on Monday September 12, with those two remaining groups, according to the statement. DC Delegates 9 14 11

7 comments:

  1. The Helper/Scrapper language is a prima-facie 10(k) violation for the Jurisdictional work of the Laborers Union.

    Not only is this Trade Raiding, it is a willful/wanton announcement to all that we don't care what the Contracts say - we're the UBC & we can and will do whatever we please.

    Where are the Laborers leaders in NYC on this proposal?

    Better still, being done right under the nose of Walsh & the alleged United States Attorney - Benjamin Torrance and nary a peep from him.

    Any Union Carpenter who crosses over to do any other trades work should be booted off the job, shunned by fellow workers and brought up on charges.

    Did you Join the Carpenters to do Laborers work? Hell no! Did you joint the Carpenters to become an Electrician? Don't think so. Did you join the Carpenters to run Heavy Equipment?

    The best part is, ole Douggie has started varying partnering programs with area colleges around the USA to award phony Associates & Bachelor Degrees to Union Carpenters for attending Saturday classes with watered down curriculum and standards, credit hours etc.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nice to post the sign in list but where is the breakdown
    Of the yes and no vote

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous, the breakdown of how each delegate voted is not available, you would have to call your delegate and ask how he voted.

    ReplyDelete
  4. How can any contract be passed with the wording (language to be determined). So sign this blank check and we will fill in the terms later. Will the helper/scraper, which is a raid on the Laborers work,hold a Carpenters Union book or will the UBC be putting non Union,underpaid and no benefit workers on the job sites???If so does this mean there will be shame on you banners and rats outside all UBC job sites??(Hint.You betcha)

    "The Wall-Ceiling MOU is contingent on full mobility, or contractors' insistence on the right to hire 100% of workers they choose."

    100% Mobility is NOT a contractors idea though they are happy to jump on it.. 100 % mobility was conceived put on the table by the UBC .. Hatchet Jack Garrison the UBC International low life you now own came to the Local 370 xmas party on December 13,2010 and announced 100% mobility. He did not even mention contractors except that under 100% mobility they could bring their entire work force and not hire a single local worker.This was a UBC conceived and FORCED program. Garrison said nothing abut it being a contractor demand but was so all Upstate UBC members could work where ever they wanted. Members told him to stick it in his ass.

    The fact is Garrison and his fellow UBC rats where behind the scenes getting ready to pull our charters and seize control of our jobs and work . We unlike NYC were still,dispatching out of our locals. 100% mobility was needed by the UBC so they could force the MX 20/20 program on us and dispatched to our jobs from a corrupt New Jersey council of dirt bags

    This contract "Deal Breaker" was not a contractor demand but a UBC International conceived program to further screw the membership. Presenting it any other way to the court is fraud and a lie

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  5. "Since being elected in June, President Patrick Nee has been demanding fair representation and has asked to make additional pro tem appointments which has been denied by Supervisor Spencer."

    Can you prove this in writing. First Spencer has not right to deny anything. Local 157 is NOT in trusteeship the council is so Spencer cannot deny anything. Despite the declaration of the US Attorney so Walsh office could control you the members of NYC ARE NOT MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL BUT AFFILIATED WITH THE COUNCIL.

    Section 32 B gives Nee the right to fill vacant delegate Pro Tem.Pro Tem appointees have every right as a duly elected officer.If Spencer refused to recognize his appointments did he file a complaint with Walsh and why did Walsh not act on it before the vote??ie: Dear Frank go f..yourself. Will Nee and 157 now file a legal action seeking to null and void the contract approval because Local 157 was not allowed the vote of its Pro Tem delegates.??

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  6. Insistence on forced adherence to an unlawful clause as the price for any agreement is facially unlawful; and, it is settled law.

    The fact is, the UBCJA International, via the veiled threats of a former & now disgraced Federal Judge, one teetering on the edge of disbarrment - cannot force reversion of 100% Control of all Hiring to the Employer without filing a formal Motion with Judge Berman and arguing their case per the Federal Rules of Evidence and the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

    Under the LMRDA Trusteeship, which has been imposed by the UBCJA International and which has been extended, the UBCJA does not escape their newfound agency status & they are directly liable.

    This is coercion & intimidation plain and simple and a willful violation of 8(e) & 8(b)(4) amongst other sections.

    ReplyDelete
  7. FAIRY TALE & LIES by: Frank Spencer

    PROPOSED M.O.U. - PAPER TIGER WAGE & BENEFIT RATES
    YEAR TOTAL COLA

    2011 - $85.03 +0.0%
    2012 - $85.03 +0.0%
    2013 - $87.63 +3.05%
    2014 - $90.28 +3.05%
    2015 - $92.98 +2.99%
    2016 - $95.68 +2.90%


    DELEGATES SELLING YOU OUT-PRICELESS!

    ACTUAL WAGE & BENEFIT RATES, 20-STORIES & LESS & 21 AND ABOVE (PLA's)
    YEAR TOTAL COLA
    2011 - $68.02 -25.007%.
    2012 - $68.02 -25.007%
    2013 - $70.10 -25.007%
    2014 - $72.24 -24.972%
    2015 - $74.38 -25.006%
    2016 - $76.54 -25.006%


    OFF WITH THEIR HEADS! GET RID OF THE ASSHOLES WHO SOLD YOU OUT!

    STRIKE NOW!WHEN IN DOUBT, KNOCK EM OUT.

    ReplyDelete

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