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It’s Your Union – Get involved! Whenever I speak with our members my focus is on membership involvement and opportunities for participation. Local 1625 is not just interested in “dues payers,” I say. We are looking for people who want to help build and strengthen our union. Outlined below are a number of opportunities for all members who want to help us in that important task: Steward Program Each Local 1625 field representative is responsible for more than 20 or 30 worksites. Simply stated, they can not be in every location every week. The steward is the “eyes and ears” of the union on a day to day basis. Stewards help with simple contract questions, orient and sign up new members, distribute information from the union office, and perform a number of other important duties. We offer training and some small compensation for those who are willing to accept this important responsibility. All of our contracts allow our steward to take a day off to attend a steward training once per year. Don’t think that just because you are a new member or a part-timer that you can’t serve in this capacity. All you need is a strong commitment to your co-workers and our union. If you’re interested in our steward program, contact your union representative. Political Activity Unions get involved in politics in a big way and we do so in the interest of our members and all working families. By electing worker-friendly politicians to office, we help avoid harmful legislation and increase the possibility of passing new laws that benefit all of us. From school board and city council races, to state and federal elections, Local 1625 is on the scene working for union-endorsed candidates that will represent the interests of our members. While health care, immigration reform and the Employee Free Choice Act are our current priorities, there are always many issues that require our attention and action. While we will never be able to match the money of the pro-business lobbyists, we can make our difference with volunteers. Each election year we bring hundreds of members together to talk with voters by phone or in person in order to turn them out to vote for our candidates. The historic election of President Obama was made possible in part, by hundreds of thousands of union members who worked on the campaign throughout the country. We also do voter registration and fund raising. You can make a huge difference by joining us in this effort. For more information, contact your union representative. Organizing Organizing new members is one of the most important roles that any union has. When non-union companies pay their workers below our union scale and offer inferior benefits, it creates an unfair competitive disadvantage for our employers, and a difficult time for us at the bargaining table. Local 1625 is moving forward with a number of organizing campaigns in health care, food processing facilities and a variety of other industries. If you know someone who is working at a non-union job, get them together with our Organizing Director, Glenn Harris. If you want to work on a campaign, let us know. Remember every member that gives us the initial contact that eventually results in a union contract receives a $500 bonus. There are a number of other ways that you can get involved in our union’s programs and activities. A good start would be to attend a union membership meeting. From there, you can get up to date information on our upcoming activities and have an opportunity to sign up to help. Thanks, Ed Chambers |