The Qwest Bargaining Committee was elected during the proceedings of the 64th Annual convention in Las Vegas. The election was held Wednesday morning June 19th during the District 7 Bargaining Unit meeting.
There were a total of nine candidates running for four positions at large, with one alternate. We have a good mixture of job disciplines that will be representing us at the table. Patti Glazener from Local 7019, Phoenix, is an Area Vice President who will bring much experience to the table. She has been a member of the Leveraged Compensation Plan Oversight Committee from 1999 to present. Another member with a strong background for sales office and mega-center issues is Annette Cunningham from the Salt Lake City Local.
We can be fortunate to have two strong leaders from the Pacific Northwest elected to represent us. Jay Boyle Executive Vice President Local 7812, Vancouver, WA will bring over 23 years of CWA leadership and experience to the table. A 28 year employee, a CDT at Qwest, Jay knows the issues and is experienced in negotiating grievances, benefit denials, payroll issues, and owns extensive knowledge of the current agreement with Qwest.
The fourth member of the committee is Marty Hickman of Local 7908, Medford, OR. Nominated by the Portland Local and seconded by the Phoenix Local, Marty was a popular choice for the committee and will make a fine representative at the table.
The alternate will be Bill Buelt from Omaha. He was on the last bargaining committee and will be a quality replacement if necessary.
This should serve as a reminder that contract time with Qwest is slightly more than a year away. We should all be thinking of our bargaining demands now, to help prepare our committee and our district for the task ahead.
Randy Grams, Secretary/Treasurer
Communications Workers of America AFL-CIO-CLC 64th Annual Convention
I attended the 64th annual convention with Vice President Garrett, the other delegate from our local June 17-19th in Las Vegas. The weather was in the 100’s each day but the confines of the proceedings were comfortably air-conditioned. The theme of this year’s convention was “CWA, We Make the Difference on the Job, in the Community, in the Political Arena.” There were well over 3,060 delegates, alternates, retirees, and guests.
After introductions and welcomes, the business of the convention began with reports of committees on Resolutions and Rules, Finance, Defense Fund Oversight, National Women’s Committee, National Committee on Equity. Other awards and presentations were sprinkled in over the three days of business, including for Organizing, COPE (Committee on Political Education), and the charity of choice Pediatric Aids Foundation.
A number of guest speakers were welcomed including Ron Kirk, US Senate Candidate (D-TX), John Kerry, US Senate (D-MA), Harold Shaitberger, President International Association of Fire Fighters. His speech was followed by a touching video of the devastation and heroism, which took place after the disaster of 9-11 in New York City.
Elections were held and all executive officers of the international were re-elected by acclimation. Similarly, John Thompson, our District 7 Vice President was also re-elected by acclimation
As an officer and a delegate of Local 7804, I wish to thank President Bowlby for sending me to my third convention in 3 years of office. It is an educational experience in which to participate, learn, grow, and understand how great this Union truly is!
Randy Grams, Secretary/Treasurer
(From Annie Hill, Assistant to the CWA Dist. 7 Vice President).
We have recently had another case of one of our members denied healthcare enrollment for their newborn son because they didn’t enroll him within 45 days of his birth. They will now have to wait until open enrollment in November to add him as a dependent. The lack of knowledge of the 45-day requirement may have catastrophic financial effect on this member. Please contact us at the District Office if you have any questions or concerns.
Delegates representing the affiliated union organizations that comprise the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO conducted the 2002 WSLC Political Endorsement Convention on Saturday at the IAM District 751 Hall in South Seattle. A two-thirds majority of the delegates present was necessary for the endorsement of any candidate or ballot measure. To view the endorsees, visit the our local web page at cwalocal7804.org and follow the links to WSLC.
CWA, in partnership with Cisco Systems, and Stanly Community College, are bringing new opportunities for accessible High Tech training. Several certification-training tracks are being offered through an online curriculum written for the Cisco Networking Academy Program. This curriculum is offered to members and military personnel only through distance learning. CWA is a regional Cisco Academy providing training and support to other CWA local union labs and training sites around the country.
For full information, click on theCWA link.
Anniversaries: Edward Clark, 37 years; Larry Smith, 35; Dan Riddle, 34; Reginald Zimmerman, 34; Richard Gibson, 34; Donald Schmidt, 34; Cheryl Dallum, 34; Juanita Wright, 34; Karon Ingeldue, 32; Teresa Bradford, 31; Weldon Scott, 29; Ronald Jorgensen, 28; David Pedee, 25; Donald Johnson, 25; Douglas Daniels, 25; Kevin Smith, 24; James Armstrong, 24; Cheryl Tomlin, 24; Maynita Smith, 22; George Morrow, jr., 22; John Gerasimczyk, 22; Mark Fox, 22; James Ross, 21; George Kinney, 21; Matthew Cook, 13; Gay Decamillo, 7; Troy Rush, 6; Bryan Mittge, 6; Daniel Eddington, 6; Kenneth Ward, 6; Robert Withrow, 6; Gerald Wilhite, 6; David Schott, 6; Laumea Vee, 6; Michael Heiserman, 5; Jeanne Diel, 5; Thomas Loescher, 5; Rawleigh Irvin, 5; Michael Jones, 5.
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