IBEW Local 96 News

New Study From Cornell University Shows Project Labor Agreements Are A Tool That Builds Middle Class Careers

George — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 09:05:35 -0400

The School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University today released a report that demonstrates how Project Labor Agreements are helping to create middle-class careers in the U.S. construction industry. Among the key findings are that 97% of the 185 PLAs examined incorporated "community workforce provisions" which are specifically designed to create pathways to jobs and career training for women, minorities, and military veterans.

State Senator Steven Tolman Elected President of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO

George — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 09:01:17 -0400

The state’s largest union, the 400,000-member Massachusetts AFL-CIO, today elected State Senator Steven A. Tolman president on the opening day of its 54th annual constitutional convention.

Solar project proposed in Barre

George — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 09:10:15 -0400

A start-up solar energy company, EPG Solar, has outlined plans to build a 12,000-panel solar array on a 30-acre parcel of the 184-acre site.

Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette (10/5/11)

Union members are working-class heroes

George — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 08:13:05 -0400

More than ever, unions are under attack. The far right has convinced many that union members are lazy, violent, uneducated, greedy and stooges of the Democratic Party. This attitude is shameful, because unions helped build our nation.

Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette (9/11/11)

Casino efforts on deck again

George — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 07:48:53 -0400

Legislative leaders yesterday released a new bill to license three destination resort casinos, including one in Southeast Massachusetts for a Native American tribe, and a single, competitively bid slot machine parlor license.

Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette (8/24/11)

Three Proposed Tentative Interim Amendments on the 2011 National Electrical Code

George — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 11:18:28 -0400

There are three new Tentative Interim Amendments (TIAs) that are currently being balloted through the National Electrical Code® code-making panels. While the panels are reviewing them, these TIAs are also available for public review and comment.

Source: NEC Plus

I.B.E.W. Local 96 Members Assist in Tornado Clean-Up Effort

George — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 15:31:00 -0400

Although it has been over two months since several tornadoes caused devastation to approximately 20 communities in Western and Central Massachusetts, there still remains substantial clean-up work to be done. Beyond taking four lives and serious injuries to about 80, these tornadoes have left several communities looking like a war zone with complete destruction and loss of many homes and trees, along with dismantled and dislocated cars, sheds, barns, and personal property.

Judge Sides With NYC & Unions on Construction

George — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 08:28:44 -0400

New York City said it will proceed with $6 billion in infrastructure updates after a federal judge preserved its project labor agreements with an organization representing some 50 local unions.

Source: Courthouse News Service (8/9/11)

Solar or wind, city is aiming for best deal

George — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 09:14:48 -0400

Hoping for the city to get the most megawatts for the buck, Mayor Mark P. Hawke said the city and the Gardner Redevelopment Authority are weighing whether to substitute a solar array for a wind turbine planned at Summit Industrial Park.

Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette (8/3/11)

Union Volunteers Aid Disabled IBEW Member, Activist

George — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 08:57:48 -0400

Any shop steward will tell you that protecting workers’ rights on the job is both a mental and physical endeavor.

But those challenges were gradually magnified over the past decade for Middleton, Mass., Local 2321 member and former steward Lorraine Jasukonis, when a still-undiagnosed impairment began impeding her ability to walk. During that time, she became less able to perform operator services and dispatch duties at Verizon shops in the Bay State until her retirement in June 2009.