Why I Oppose the UTU-SMWIA Merger
>
>
>
> The proposed merger between the United
> Transportation Union and the Sheet
> Metal Workers International Association is a bad
> idea--not a terrible idea,
> just not right for us.
>
>
>
> The sheet metal workers and their progressive and
> competent leader, Michael
> Sullivan, are great folks. They are committed to
> building their union by
> devoting 40 percent of their resources to
> organizing. Brother Sullivan is
> president of the Eugene Debs Society, an
> organization I have belonged to for
> many years myself. I speak no ill of these folks.
>
>
>
> I oppose this merger because the Sheet Metal Workers
> and the UTU lack a
> "community of interest," which is a legal principle
> that determines
> appropriate labor bargaining units. Community of
> interest is based on what
> workers have in common, like: Do we perform similar
> work? Do we have similar
> training and skills? Do we work similar hours and
> have similar wage
> packages? Are we supervised by the same managers,
> etc.? The answer to all of
> these questions is simply No.
>
>
>
> The reason community of interest is important is
> because united workers have
> much more clout than those divided. Workers split
> up into separate unions
> commonly undermine each other in jurisdictional
> disputes and management is
> able to pit one group against the other to undermine
> us all.
>
>
>
> The sheet metal workers union is predominantly a
> building trade union. Most
> of their members are involved in construction. They
> also have some
> shipbuilders and some railroad workers. I do not
> know of a single sheet
> metal worker who works on a railroad in my state of
> North Dakota, nor do we
> have any sheet metal locals here.
>
>
>
> Our community of interest as UTU members is most
> closely aligned with the
> folks we work with: locomotive engineers, car men,
> maintenance of way
> employees, signalmen, roundhouse workers, van
> drivers and railroad clerical
> people. These are the people with whom we should
> continue attempting to
> merge.
>
>
>
> The problem is that many of these workers have
> already merged into larger,
> non-rail unions. The carmen and clerical workers,
> formerly TCU, have
> recently been swallowed up by the Machinists Union.
> The BMWE and BLE are now
> part of the Teamsters. The Firemen and Oilers
> (roundhouse hostlers) are
> members of the Service Employees Union. Once these
> folks have merged with
> larger, non-rail unions, it is very difficult to get
> them back out. The same
> will happen to us if this proposed merger goes
> through.
>
>
>
> When the BLE agreed to merge with the Teamsters,
> that agreement included an
> interesting provision. The BLE was given a two-year
> period during which they
> could simply withdraw from the Teamsters by a
> majority vote of the BLET
> Advisory Board. The two years passed and they did
> not disaffiliate.
>
>
>
> There is an independent group called Railroad
> Operating Crafts United (ROCU)
> at http://www.rocutoday.com/page.php?4 which has
> proposed that the UTU
> attempt to negotiate a merger with the Teamsters
> with a similar two-year
> provision.
>
>
>
> At the end of two years, the entire Teamster Rail
> Conference membership
> (UTU, BLE and BMWE) would then participate in a
> referendum vote of the
> entire membership on whether or not to stay with the
> Teamsters. This would
> allow the BLET, UTU and BMWE memberships to jointly
> decide the issue once
> and for all.
>
>
>
> If (and this is a pretty big if) this vote were to
> take place, we could
> merge with our coworkers in one big union as Eugene
> Debs, the founder of the
> American Railway Union, once dreamed. If we don''t at
> least try to make this
> deal, rail labor will never unite and the fighting
> and jurisdictional
> disputes will never end.
>
>
>
> I have been a railroad worker for 30 years and a
> member of UTU Local 1344
> since 1978. I''m tired of fighting with the BLE.
> Every fight results in
> losses for everyone. In Congress and in the state
> legislatures, politicians
> are not interested in getting involved in our
> disputes and constantly tell
> us to mend our fences if we hope to accomplish
> anything politically.
>
>
>
> I will vote "No" on the proposal to merge with the
> sheet metal workers--not
> because the sheet metal workers are bad folks, but
> because we should merge
> with our coworkers. If this merger effort fails, it
> is my hope that our UTU
> leadership will attempt to negotiate the ROCU
> proposal.
>
>
>
> I ask that you join me in voting "No" on the
> proposed merger. A "No" vote is
> a vote in favor of unifying rail labor. I also ask
> that you pass this letter
> on to other UTU members for their consideration.
>
>
>
> In solidarity,
>
>
>
> John Risch
>
>
>
> UTU Local 1344
>
> Mandan, North Dakota
>
>
>
> July 2, 2007
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> Tim Deneen, Director
> United Transportation Union
> Wisconsin Legislative Board, LO 056
> 7 N Pinckney Street, Suite 320
> Madison, Wisconsin 53703-2840
> 608 251 4120
> utulo56@gmail.com