I A M A W

LODGE #31

Not A Spectator Sport

Unions Are Far More Than A Kind Of Employment Insurance Policy For Working People. Plenty Of Union Members And Union Official Have Learned The Hard Way That When Workers Come To Think Of Their Union As A Business That Provides Service Rather Than A Group Of People Banding Together To Fight  For Common Interests, The Union Quickly Loses The Clout And Credibility Needed To Defend And Advance The Members' Interests. When An Employer Looks And Sees Only A Small Handful Of Paid Union Staff Or Elected Union Leaders, And No One Standing Behind Them, Pretty Soon The Employer Starts Thinking That "The Union" Isn't Really Much To Contend With.  And The Truth Is, That's Right.                                                                   Adapted From "The Union Members Complete Guide, by Michael Mauer

IAM Goals

• Cost-of-living raises so that wage rates rise with living costs.

   

• Equal pay for equal work regardless of sex, race, or national origin.

   

• Paid sick leave and life insurance for workers; employer-paid hospital, medical, dental and eye care benefits for workers and their families

   

• A safe, healthy workplace.

   

• Increased purchasing power to provide a higher standard of living.

   

   

• Union Shop.

   

• Portable pensions with optional early retirement benefits.

   

• Joint apprentice training and retraining on the job.

   

• Restrictions on subcontracting. Employer-paid insurance for worn, broken, or stolen tools.

   

• Severance pay and supplemental unemployment benefits.

• Shorter work week with double time for voluntary overtime.

   

Copyright 1996, The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers

R. THOMAS BUFFENBARGER,
13TH INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT,
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MACHINISTS AND AEROSPACE WORKERS

Economic Indicators Show Industrial Workers Hit Hardest, Says Machinists President WASHINGTON,  "This economy is being balanced on the backs of U.S. manufacturing workers and their families," declared Tom Buffenbarger, president of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. "The sharp decline in industrial production reported today and continued increases in manufacturing bankruptcies and layoffs are a direct reflection of last year's interest rate manipulations." "The figures released today confirm the economic slowdown is concentrated in the nation's manufacturing strongholds," said Buffenbarger. "This country cannot afford the loss of the middle class purchasing power that has driven our economy for the past six years." According to figures from the U.S. Department of Labor, the largest increases in unemployment claims are in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Ohio and Kentucky. The most recent numbers for seasonally adjusted unemployment show a nationwide increase of nearly 175,000 from the preceding week. "The 0.6 percent drop in industrial production reported today is more bad news for workers," said Buffenbarger. "Coupled with rising food prices and soaring fuel costs, the interest rate decisions made by the Fed last year are coming home to roost." "The federal reserve bank's policy of turning the interest rate screws to slow production and reduce employment levels shows a cold disregard for the real-world effect on working families," said Buffenbarger. "If the economy can not be made to work for working Americans, then we need to fix the way the economy works." The IAM is the second largest industrial union in North America, representing more than 730,000 active and retired members in the U.S. and Canada, Puerto Rico Guam and the Panama Canal Zone. Heavily concentrated in Manufacturing, Aerospace, Shipbuilding and Airlines, the IAM maintains one or more agreements with almost every major employer in North America. More information can be found on the IAM web site at: http://www.iamaw.org. SOURCE International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

Member Advantages

It pays to belong to the IAM. Whether it's a professionally negotiated IAM
contract, financial security in the IAM pension fund, or state-of-the-art
instruction at the William W. Winpisinger Education & Technology Center, the
rewards of membership are many.

©2009 IAMAW  Lodge # 31  All Rights Reserved.

Comments and suggestions should be E-mailed to the Communications Officer of Local Lodge # 31  IAMAW Moerles@Cox.net

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