Author: IUEC Local 17 Website Administrator

April ’17 Labor-Citizen

Brothers and sisters:

Congratulations to the International Union of Elevator Constructors on the successful completion of the negotiations of the new Standard Agreement. The IUEC Labor Committee just concluded negotiations with the National Elevator Bargaining Association (NEBA) and the Elevator Contractors of America (ECA) on a new five-year contract. The contract gives significant increases in pay and benefits for its term and has no significant concessions. The most important changes to the Standard Agreement are the Assistant Mechanic reporting requirements, the addition of paid time off (PTO), and a shelf life of 24 months for all Article XXII warning letters. There was also a minor agreement on modernization jobs being able to work four ten-hour days Monday through Thursday or Tuesday through Friday.

At the bottom of this article you will find a list of signatory companies working in the northern Ohio. While the signing of Gable Elevator in February closed a three year and a half year campaign, there are still several companies operating in the area that Locals 17 and 45 would like to bring into the fold. If you see a company you do not recognize from the list working on one of your jobs or in your area, please contact IUEC Local 17 Business Manager Tim Moennich at 216-431-8088 or Akron IUEC Local 45 Business Manager Dave Morrow, Jr at 330-620-9259 to report their location and, if known, what kind of work they are doing.

If you are an apprentice in Local 17 make sure your OJT forms are up to date. There are several apprentices whose forms are not current and are flirting with a date with the JATC. This is not a date you will want to make. Get your forms signed and turned in as soon as possible.

There are still spots available for the scaffolding class as well as the CPR/First Aid class. If you are interested in either offering contact Tim at the hall or email him at TMoennich@iueclocal17.org.

If you are working as a contractor at a Cleveland Clinic facility and are required to take an infection control risk assessment, complete an online badging and get a flu shot to work at a facility, be sure you are getting paid for your time. A letter was sent by the Cleveland Building Trades to the contractor associations in Cleveland about this requirement because of a concern that some contractors may not be paying employees for their compliance time. If this applies to you and you feel there is a problem, contact Tim at the hall.

Entertainment Chairman Bill Dudas is planning a walleye fishing charter for April 22nd. The charter costs $30 per person and is currently limited to the first 35 people who sign up. For more information or to sign up for this first time event you can call Tim at the hall.

The Annual IUEC Local 17 Retiree’s Dinner will be held May 19th at Frank Sterle’s Country House, 1401 East 55th Street just south of St. Clair Avenue. Refreshments start at 5:30 pm and dinner is served at 6:30 pm. The cost remains at $30 per person and will include a family style dinner. For more information contact the hall no later than May 1st to secure your spot at this always well attended event.

If anyone is into trap shooting, the IUEC will be hosting the Union Sportsman’s Alliance 7th Annual Baltimore Area Trap Shoot. The event will be held Saturday, August 5th at the Carney Rod and Gun Club in Carney, Maryland. For more information go to unionsportsmen.org.

A large IUEC Local 17 tip of the hat to Joe Broz, Jr., his wife Meg and her sister Christine for their efforts in organizing this years entry into the 2017 Cleveland St. Patrick’s Day Parade. A huge thank you also goes out to ThyssenKrupp Elevator in allowing the Local to use their brand new truck and borrow their truck driver, Tony, for the day. The IUEC participation in the parade is one event that the whole local, not just those of Irish decent, look forward too all year. For photo coverage of Local 17’s participation, please visit iueclocal17.org and cursor down or click on Galleries.

As of this writing there are three mechanics and one apprentice on the bench.

April ’17 Elevator Constructor

Brothers and sisters:

Entertainment Chairman Bill Dudas is planning a walleye fishing charter on April 22nd for 35 interested members. The cost is $30 per person. If you are interested in attending this first of its kind event, contact Business Manager Tim Moennich at 216-431-8088 or email him at TMoennich@iueclocal17.org.

The Annual IUEC Local 17 Retiree’s Dinner will be held May 19th at Frank Sterle’s Country House, 1401 East 55th Street just south of St. Clair Avenue. Refreshments start at 5:30 pm and dinner is served at 6:30 pm. The cost remains at $30 per person and will include a family style dinner. For more information contact Business Manager Tim Moennich no later than May 1st to secure your spot at this always well attended event.

There is a sign up sheet for classes in CPR and scaffolding. The CPR class is designed to give the participant an American Red Cross certificate. The scaffolding class is a Scaffold and Access Industry Association authorized program offered through the National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP). The successful completion of the class makes the student a competent person for the erection of frame scaffolding. The certification is good for three years and must be renewed after that time. For more information on this or any other offerings, contact Tim at the Hall.

On February 8, Brothers Joe Broz Jr, Bill Lynsky, John Patton and myself attended the Local 45 (Akron) meeting to watch 21 employees of Gable Elevator be sworn in as IUEC members. In addition, four Gable employees were sworn in to Local 37 (Columbus). Gable also hired six existing IUEC members, four from Akron and two from Cleveland, to deepen the talent pool and help shepherd the new members in the ways of the union.

Since its founding, Gable has been a major force in the home elevator and lift market in northern and eastern Ohio. They started by selling home lifts and elevators out of their family pharmacy and after some initial success formed the company to develop this underserved market. This region is now the third largest organized home lift market in the International.

The signing was the culmination of a three and a half year effort by Locals 17 and 45 to organize Gable into the IUEC family.

The effort was not always easy. Anything worth accomplishing is never easy. The effort was not always nice. Tempers flared, expectations waxed and waned. This happened because we are human and passionate about our goal. Through the entire effort our regional organizer Jim Lowery lent a steadying hand. He commented several times that this was an unusual campaign but, Cleveland is an unusual city!

I believe we were successful because our goal was to organize the entire company and raise it up, not tear it down. Ultimately, the lives of 25 men are better today than they were three and a half years ago.

And that is what it is all about.
Where are they working?

Mark Byram and Felix DeJesus doing a mod at Waterford Condominiums for Schindler,

Shawn Yatsko and Matt Herbold doing a one-car mod at Moreland Courts for Schindler,

John Brunner and Jason Tischler installing five cars at the Edison Building for Schindler,

Jason Costa and John Ondich working at 200 Public Square for Schindler,

Anthony Metcalf and Ken Eaton doing a mod at Coppertop for Thyssen,

Dave Francis installing a car for Gable,

Scott Daugherty doing a mod for Gable.

As of this writing there are five mechanics and one apprentice on the bench.

Until next month….

Work smart, work safe and slow down for safety.
Don
Dknapik@windstream.net

March ’17 Labor-Citizen

Brothers and sisters:

There are a lot of festivities planned for the coming months. So, get out your calendars and take note….

Once again IUEC Local 17 will be marching in the Cleveland St. Patrick’s Day Parade. The event steps off at noon and the participating units marshal along Superior Avenue east of East 18th Street prior to the event. This is a very family friendly gathering and all members are encouraged bring their children to share in the excitement. This is a great opportunity to make a memory or begin a family tradition.

Entertainment Chairman Bill Dudas is planning a walleye fishing charter for April 22nd. The charter will cost $30 per person and is currently limited to the first 35 people who sign up. For more information or to sign up for this first time event you can call Business Manager Tim Moennich at 216-431-8088 or email him at TMoennich@iueclocal17.org.

The Annual IUEC Local 17 Retiree’s Dinner will be held May 19th at Frank Sterle’s Country House, 1401 East 55th Street just south of St. Clair Avenue. Refreshments start at 5:30 pm and dinner is served at 6:30 pm. The cost remains at $30 per person and will include a family style dinner. For more information contact Business Manager Tim Moennich no later than May 1st to secure your spot at this always well attended event.

There is a sign up sheet for classes in CPR and scaffolding. The CPR class is designed to give the participant an American Red Cross certificate. The scaffolding class is a Scaffold and Access Industry Association authorized program offered through the National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP). The successful completion of the class makes the student a competent person for the erection of frame scaffolding. The certification is good for three years and must be renewed after that time. For more information on this or any other offerings, contact Tim at the Hall.

On February 8th, Brothers Joe Broz, Jr., Bill Lynsky, John Patton and myself were in attendance at the IUEC Local 45 (Akron) meeting when 21 new members were sworn in as a result of the successful organizing effort of Twinsburg’s Gable Elevator by both Local 17 and the Akron Local. Four Gable employees were sworn into Local 37 (Columbus) and they will be working in that jurisdiction. As a result of the signing onto the Standard Agreement, Gable also hired six experienced IUEC mechanics, four from Akron and two from Cleveland.

Since the beginning of Gable Elevator in 1991, they have been a significant player in the home elevator market. This single signing makes the home elevator market from Cleveland’s western suburbs south to Columbus and east to the Pennsylvania border the third largest organized region in the International. This pairs with the long term plan of the International to recapture the home market.

Gable employees have a portability agreement which allows them to work in both Cleveland and Akron but, they must report in when working in another jurisdiction.

If you see any of the new members take the time to congratulate them on becoming part of the best trade in the trades.

There are rumors of a tentative contract agreement between the IUEC, the Big Four elevator companies (NEBA) and the independents (ECA). No details will be available until all the contractors and Locals are briefed on the contents of the agreement.

As of this writing there are five mechanics and one apprentice on the bench.

March ’17 Elevator Constructor

Brothers and sisters:

Local 17 is proud to announce that after a three year campaign by the Local 17 Volunteer Organizing Committee, Business Manager Tim Moennich, Akron Local 45 Business Agent Dave Morrow, Jr., regional organizer Jim Lowery and head of organizing Jim Biangini successfully signed Gable Elevator as an IUEC signatory company.

In a Facebook post dated January 25th, Morrow made the announcement saying “I look forward to working with the new members and owners Rick Gable and Phil Isaac.” He punctuated the message with “Welcome to the IUEC Brothers! Local 45 and Local 17 joint effort!”

The signing brings 21 new members into Local 45. The decision for the Gable employees to go into the Akron local was based on the company being located in the Akron territory with a large portion of their work being conducted in Local 45. They will be working in the Cleveland area and will have to follow all of the rules that every signatory employee does when working in another Local’s territory.

Well, looks like the easy part is over.

I’m hearing a lot of you reading this saying “wait? What?” Yep, the easy part is over, the hard part is going to be making these new union Brothers feel welcome. Although I was raised in a strong union household, my own personal experience with organized labor was not always positive.

I spent part of one summer working in a grocery warehouse represented by the Teamsters. When I needed help I called the Local and had the door slammed in my face. So when I was approached about going to work in this trade knowing that I would have to join the union, I took a deep breath, swallowed hard and took the plunge with a “let’s wait and see” attitude.

Two months into my probationary period, I was laid off because of money. Within a week our business agent had me working in Columbus where I met some of the best guys to I could have worked with. The work was hard but, I learned my way around an elevator and did my best to make sure that at the end of the day all my mechanic had to do was wash his hands. Eventually I came home and worked at Millar and through the merger found myself back at Schindler.

For years after my swearing in I only came to the mandatory meetings and didn’t really take part in any of the Local’s activities because I didn’t feel a part of the group. Even after I ran and won my job as the correspondent to the Constructor it still took time before I felt accepted. Eventually I got to know more guys from different companies and began to see from my unique vantage point what it meant to be called Brother. It is not just something we call each other because it sounds good, we call each other Brother or Sister because we are a family. We argue, we laugh and we console. We eat and drink together and teach each other. When we are stuck we call Brothers from other companies to help us out and return the favor without charge.

These are the things we do because we are part of one of the most exclusive clubs in the trades. We make the most, have the best benefits and retire better than most people can dream.

In the end, this organizing effort was not about breaking Gable as a company, it was about raising their employees up. It was about giving them the opportunities we take for granted: the pay, the benefits, the education. If you see one of them out and about, take the time to introduce yourself, talk to them, answer their questions and take an interest in them.

After all, who wants to be part of a club where they don’t feel welcome.

The Brothers and sisters of Local 17 send their condolences to the family of Retired Brother George Prochaska who passed away January 4th.

Until next month,

Work smart, work safe and slow down for safety.

Don
DKnapik@windstream.net

February ’17 Labor Citizen

Brothers and sisters:
The International Union of Elevator Constructors Locals 17 (Cleveland) and 45 (Akron) are proud to announce that effective February 1, 2017 Gable Elevator of Twinsburg became a signatory to the IUEC contract. This draws to a close a three year effort by the Locals to organize Gable into the union.

In a Facebook post on January 25, Local 45 Business Manager Dave Morrow Jr. announced the signing and thanked the International’s head of organizing Jim Biangini, regional organizer Jim Lowery and Local 17 Business Manager Tim Moennich for their efforts in the successful signing. He also went on to say “I look forward to working with the new members and owners Rick Gable and Phil Isaac.”

The signing adds 21 new members to the rolls of the Akron local. Those new members who were not previously part of an International Local will now be eligible for apprenticeship training through the National Elevator Industry Educational Program (NEIEP) as well as participation in the National Elevator Industry Benefits Plan. Those previously members will also be eligible for continuing educational opportunities through NEIEP’s online and classroom instruction. The NEIEP program is the only accredited apprenticeship program recognized by the State of Ohio as meeting all the requirements for apprentice training.

Local 17 would also like to thank those that helped with the effort in this organizing campaign. Special notice goes to Brothers Joe Broz, Jr., John Patton, Mike Moennich, Bill Lynsky, Tim Gibbons, Lucas Jenke, Steve Keating and retired Brothers Buzz Gibbons and Jimmy Battiger for all the time and effort exerted in this successful campaign. There are others to thank, some of whom must remain anonymous. This was truly a group effort.

Moving forward it is important that these new members feel welcome by the Brothers and Sisters of both the Akron and Cleveland Locals as well as the Building and Construction Trades in general. If your see one of these new members, take the time to say hello and welcome them into and some of them back to the best trade in the trades.

On a personal note, I have said this before and I will say it again for all to read: I have never been prouder to be a part of anything than I am to be a member of IUEC Local 17.

Congratulations.

All apprentices should have their NEIEP issued laptops. The laptops are preloaded with digital copies of all NEIEP materials needed for the eight semester apprenticeship. They feature the ability to run the Virtual Courses from the classroom or home.

Local 17 has opening for the scaffolding and CPR classes. The scaffolding class is taught in cooperation with Scaffold and Access Industry Association Training Program and leads to a three-year certification as a Competent Person in the erection of scaffolding. The CPR class is offered to teach the student the possible life saving skill and give them the confidence to handle an emergency situation. If you are interested in either of these continuing educational opportunities contact Business Manager Tim Moennich at 216-431-8088 or email him at TMoennich@iueclocal17.org.

The Brothers and Sisters of IUEC Local 17 send their condolences to the family of retired Bother George Prochaska who passed away January 4th.

As of this writing there are five mechanics and three apprentices on the bench.

GABLE SIGNS WITH LOCAL 45

The International Union of Elevator Constructors is proud to announce it has signed an agreement with Gable Elevator, Inc. of Twinsburg, Ohio to become a signatory to its contract. Gable has 21 field employees which will become members of IUEC Local 45 (Akron).

“The organizing campaign has taken a long time and was very complex” commented IUEC International Organizer Jim Lowery. “In the end the 21 new members of the IUEC and Local 45 will be able to take advantage of the best wages, benefits and retirement package of the building trades.” He continued “this gives them a significantly better future, for themselves and their families.”

In a Facebook post dated January 25th, Local 45 Business Agent Dave Morrow Jr. made the announcement saying “I look forward to working with the new members and owners Rick Gable and Phil Isaac.” He punctuated the message with “Welcome to the IUEC Brothers! Local 45 and Local 17 joint effort!”

Based in Columbia, Maryland, the IUEC represents 23,000 unionized elevator constructors in the United States and Canada. It also has an affiliation with the Gladiadores de Elevadores of Puerto Rico and continuing partnerships with unions in Europe.

February ’17 Elevator Constructor

Brothers and Sisters:

A large thank you to everyone who turned out for the 2016 edition of the Local 17 Children’s Christmas Party. As usual it was a great time for all who attended. If you take a minute to go to the Local’s website, iueclocal17.org, and search back to the first Christmas party covered in 2011, it is interesting to see how both the children and the adults have changed through the years.

Business Manager Tim Moennich has sign up sheets available for a scaffolding class and CPR class. The scaffolding class leads to a card which certifies the bearer as a Competent Person for the erection of frame scaffolding. The card is good for three years after which it must be renewed. If your card is due, lapsed or coming due, now is a great time to take the class. The second class offered is a CPR class. This class will give the student the confidence to handle an emergency situation and might just help save a life. Both of these classes are offered in conjunction with NEIEP. If you are interested in either class you can contact Tim at the Hall at 216-361-8088 or by email at TMoennich@iueclocal17.org.

Starting this semester all apprentices in the NEIEP program in Local 17 will be issued laptops pre-loaded with all of the textbooks and material needed for their four years of training. Not only will this make it easier to lookup material in the text but, the ability to play content related videos and go into NEIEP virtual courses will expand the learning opportunities for all apprentices.

In November the Affiliated Construction Trades (ACT Ohio) and the Ohio AFL-CIO were able to stop Ohio House bill 394 which would have decimated the states unemployment benefits. In short the new bill will have no impact on benefits except to freeze the weekly wage for 2018 and 2019 at the 2017 levels. This means that those receiving benefits will not see their weekly amount change.

This was accomplished with the cooperation of union organizations and the Republican dominated legislature.

There was a mailing from NEIBP to all members about the 2017 changes to the health plan. The largest change was in the drug program and the cost difference between the generic and brand name drugs prescribed by a physician. If you are receiving drugs through Plan, please take a few minutes to read and understand these changes and how they may effect you and your family.

Where are they working?

KevinThomas and Lemroy Hurd installing a freight car at NTA Coatings for Thyssen,

Ryan Todd and Felix DeJesus at Huntington Park Parking Garage doing a modernization for Schindler,

Dave Gnagy and Brian Seither doing a modernization at the Lorain Correctional Facility for Schindler,

Mark Byram and Matt Herbold doing a mod at Westbury apartments for Schindler,

Matt Weingart and Sean Canning adjusting cars at the Cleveland Clinic Cancer Center for Schindler,

John Goggin and Brian Chambers doing generator work at Penton Media for Schindler,

Sean and Dion Yatsko doing a mod at the Leader Building for Schindler,

Joe Broz Jr. and Kevin Driscoll doing a mod at Bishop Park Apartments for Thyssen,

Tim Narowitz and Tony Kuhn doing a mod at Judson Park for Thyssen.
As of this writing there are two mechanics and two apprentices on the bench.

Until next month…
Work smart, work safe and slow down for safety,
Don
DKnapik@windstream.net