Vote No On the Pro-PMA Contract

Vote No On the Pro-PMA Contract

After more than 10 months of negotiations that were kept secret from the ILWU longshore rank and file as well as the Coast Caucus until the last, best and final offer by PMA, the McEllrath team has recommended a contract that will change our union from ILWU to ILW“Me”. PMA companies have made super profits off our blood and sweat. They'll gladly trade paltry wage increases in exchange for eliminating our jobs, limiting our power, weakening our solidarity, reducing our jurisdiction. That’s what is at stake here. Take a close look before you vote.

1. Most importantly, it easily allows picket lines of ILWU affiliate unions to be made illegal under the contract if either the PMA or the union does not attend a joint labor relations meeting. This will be used to cross ILWU members’ picket lines from our OCU affiliate in LA/LB’s Local 63 clerks. lt has already shamefully happened. Picket lines of IBU and Local 30 Boron miners and other unions are in jeopardy. In ILWU’s March Inland we organized warehouses by honoring picket lines and extending longshore solidarity. This runs against our proud history and the ILWU’s 10 Guiding Principles. The longshore contract has had strong picket line language since ’34. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. It’ll destroy the ILWU.

2. There’s no language protecting against massive jobs losses from automation including a shorter workweek at no loss in pay and adding four 6 hour shifts.

3. Any “side deals” negotiated for special payments to steady crane operators or walking bosses, all Letters of Understanding and Port Supplements must be published in The Dispatcher before the contract is ratified.

4. The contract does not set labor manning standards coastwide. We need 4 dockmen under the hook and signalmen for transtainers. A skilled operator can not do unskilled work like turning pins. Enforce the contract. Instead this TA companies can whiplash one port against another using manning differences.

5. It creates a wider gap in wages between highest tiered Skill III workers and “B” and casual workers. Casuals are still left without any benefits. It is a basic union principle that workers who do the same work should have equal pay and benefits. This TA increases the bosses’ profits and divides the highest paid members and the majority of members further weakening union solidarity. This is a recipe for speed-up, corruption, favoritism and company unionism.

6. It does not increase the pension of senior retirees and pensioners’ wives sufficiently to keep up with the cost of living. They helped build this union’s benefits by picketing in the ’71 strike. We need to take care of them now.

7. It continues with Zenith as administrator for our medical plan although this is the same company that denied coverage for longshore members and their families. Why do we have to fight collection agencies and Zenith when we already have union-negotiated insurance coverage?

8. It removed a letter that Harry Bridges had put in our contract that specifically defines what is longshore work and what is Teamsters work. This contract will be used to pit Teamsters against longshoremen, in a jurisdictional battle that will only help the bosses. The ILWU International has shown it’s against real labor solidarity. They’ve ordered longshore workers to cross port truckers picket lines which were being supported by the Teamsters in LA. Port truckers who organize a union could decide to choose any union to affiliate to including ILWU. While talking "tough" ILWU tops refused to coordinate coastwise actions during contract negotiations just like in the defeats in the EGT and Boron miners’ struggles. Worse yet, they feared mobilizing the ranks to drive off scabs in the Vancouver and Portland grain terminals, disregarding our militant history! Then, after pulling out of the AFL-CIO, McEllrath tells us we are all alone and have no power.

9. For mechanics one of the biggest dangers we face is job loss from automation and new technology. This contract doesn't deal with it. The lack of training given by PMA is their main strategy for replacing us with machines. Training is one of the major issues in negotiations and one of the hottest issues for mechanics coastwise. This contract has basically nothing on it. This is unacceptable!

Coming out of the 2008 longshore contract the core of our Union's strategy on automation was if machines do our work/take our jobs, the ILWU will work on the machines/new technologies as mechanics. PMA has been slashing our jobs and mechanic jurisdiction by not training us, especially in the new technologies. They have non-ILWU do our work. Here’s a recent history of PMA's scam:

. 1999 MOU-- established a mechanics training program- never implemented.

. 2002 MOU--admitted training wasn’t implemented but promised in this contract.

. 2008 MOU—again admitted training wasn’t implemented but swore it’d be done

“no later than July 1 2009”.

. 2014 MOU--No training in last 3 contracts! Same B.S. on implementing training

The “New Technology” OCR (Optical Character Recognition) has replaced hundreds of clerk jobs. Mechanics know nothing about the new OCR computer or software on cranes (i.e. no training or even access to information). With the “older computer”technology, implemented starting in the 1970s-80s, mechanics know all of it, even down to programing/modifying software.

But with the “new OCR technology” our “work” is limited to cleaning camera lenses and pushing the computer off/on switch. Meanwhile, non-union contractors do all the rest of the work often remotely online. This is our future. Yet, all we get for the 4th time in this TA is “Have faith in PMA there will be training this time.”

10. No to the 3-man arbitrator panel- one arbitrator picked by the union, one by PMA and one from the government (FMCS or AAA). The FMCS was created in 1947 under the Taft-Hartley Act known by trade unions as the Slave Labor Bill, an act designed to stifle and destroy unions. The government has shown its hand in the NW grain negotiations clearly. The ILWU initially opposed government participation in bargaining. They used the Coast Guard to protect a scab grain ship in Longview. Why would we have a government/professional arbitrator decide longshore disputes? The union-picked arbitrator will be outvoted 2 to 1.

Our forefathers that built this union didn’t see fit to bring in the government to “solve” the problem. Our power is in rank and file job action not arbitration.

11. The length of the contract is too long. Like a fighter who doesn't fight for years, a longer contract makes us soft- not as able to fight when the time comes. More time for the employers to nibble away at us through arbitration, automation, superintendents doing our work, and more speeding up to chase the shorty.

During these contract negotiations, union tops have resorted to intimidation and even physically assaulting some members who dare to criticize them. That runs against the grain of ILWU principles. They want to shut members up so they are afraid to even ask questions at union meetings. This heavy-handed “top down” unionism is similar to the many business unions like Operating Engineers and Teamsters that sign concession deals their employers. It’s time to speak out! Vote no! Renegotiate the contract! Organize to fight for a decent contract!

An Injury To One Is An Injury To All!

Dan Coffman #92556, Anthony Leviege #9576, Howard Keylor # 20447 (ret.),

Victor Gallardo #08666, Norm Parks #81082 (ret.), Garret Hilbert #37927

Marcus Holder#101355, Jack Heyman #8780 (ret.), James Curtis #9639,

Stacey Rodgers #101236, Jack Mulcahy #82013, Byron Jacobs #92733,

Phyliss Mandel Survivor Pension #6382, Jahn Overstreet #9189,

Ricky Voto #9710, Doug Coffman #92647, Chris Colie #80869 (ret.)

Robert Roden #92720,