44115 P01 36.qxp 8/6/2007 1:41 PM Page 1assets.usw.org/News/USWatWork_PDFs/44115.pdfdemocratic only when the humblest and ... cial base but to put real muscle behind ... FDR. Now my

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2 L a b o r D a y I s s u e 2 0 0 7 • U S W @ W o r k

USW@Work (ISSN 0883-3141) is published five times a year by the United Steelworkers AFL-CIO•CLC Five Gateway Center, Pittsburgh, PA15222. Subscriptions to non-members: $12 for one year; $20 for two years. Periodicals postage paid at Pittsburgh, PA and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: USW@Work, USW Membership Department, 3340 Perimeter Hill Drive, Nashville, TN 37211

Copyright 2007 by United Steelworkers, AFL-CIO•CLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written consent of the United Steelworkers.

Direct Inquiries and articles for USW@Work to:United Steelworkers

Communications DepartmentFive Gateway CenterPittsburgh, PA 15222phone 412-562-2400

fax 412-562-2445on-line: www.usw.org

Communications Staff: Marco Trbovich, Assistant to the President/CommunicationsGary Hubbard, Director of Public Affairs, Washington, D.C.Wayne Ranick, Assistant Director

Jim McKay, EditorAaron Hudson and Kenny Carlisle, Designers Lynne Baker, Kelly Barr, Jim Coleman, Deb Davidek,Gerald Dickey, Connie Mabin, Joanne Powers, Frank Romano, Barbara White Stack, Scott Weaver,Contributors: Russell W. Gibbons, Meghan McClincy,Erin Schubert

InternationalExecutive Board

INSIDEUSW@WORK

Official publication of the United SteelworkersVolume 02/No.4 Labor Day 2007

Safeguard your ChildrenToxic toys, poisoned pet food, tainted toothpaste andunsafe tires are making their way into the world's marketsfrom China and other places.

04

USW Presidential ForumPresidential candidates tell a USW forum what they woulddo to revive manufacturing.12

New Day in LiberiaWith help from the USW, workers at a Firestone rubberplantation in Liberia choose new union leadership in firstdemocratic election held in 80-year history.

13

Abandoning HeroesThousands of sick former nuclear weapons workers arestruggling to obtain compensation and medical care froman aid program fraught with delays and red tape.

22

A community isdemocratic only when

the humblest andweakest person can

enjoy the highest civil,economic, and social

rights that the biggestand most powerful

possess.

“

”A. Philip Randolph(1889-1979)

Features:Speaking OutCAPITOL LETTERSNews Bytes

031833

Leo W. GerardInternational President

James D. EnglishInt’l. Secretary-Treasurer

Thomas M. ConwayInt’l. Vice President

(Administration)

Fred RedmondInt’l. Vice President

(Human Affairs)

Ken NeumannNat’l. Dir. for Canada

Richard LaCosseInt’l. Vice President

Gary BeeversInt’l. Vice President

James H. DunnAssociate Secretary-Treasurer

Ron HooverExec. Vice President (R/PIC)

Lewis PeacockVice President (Organizing)

James K. Phillips, Jr.Vice President at Large

DirectorsDavid R. McCall, District 1

Jon Geenen, District 2Stephen Hunt, District 3

William J. Pienta, District 4Michel Arsenault, District 5

Wayne Fraser, District 6Jim Robinson, District 7

Ernest R. “Billy” Thompson, District 8Stan Johnson, District 9John DeFazio, District 10

Robert Bratulich, District 11Terry L. Bonds, District 12

J.M. “Mickey” Breaux, District 13

Co-DirectorsGerald P. Johnston, District 1

Lloyd Walters, District 9Kenneth O. Test

ONTHECOVERPhoto Illustration by Wix Pix Productions Inc.

STEELWORKER STORE

The Steelworker Store has New Items! Show your Steelworkerpride by wearing blue and gold. Our catalog contains union-made products from the U.S. and Canada including shirts, hats, jackets and gifts. Be sure to watch for our monthly sales.

View the USW catalogon our web siteand select the

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Order online, downloadan order form to mail in

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44115_P01_36x.qxp 8/7/2007 2:12 PM Page 2

Forward-lookingThe articles on Global Solidarity and

Cross Border Strategy in the Summer2007 edition of USW@Work bring backmemories of my work as a union econo-mist from 1957 to 1985.

I am glad to see that the USW is mov-ing towards one big union that many werepursuing more than a century ago.Congratulations on being a dynamic for-ward-looking union.

Roy Ockert Sr.Salem, Ore.

VEBA thank youI worked at U. S. Steel's Lorain Works

for 41 years, retiring in 1992. When welost our health care, the UnitedSteelworkers came together and secured aVEBA (Voluntary Employee BeneficiaryAssociation) health plan for its members.The members in Lorain, Ohio, thank youvery much.

May God bless the USW.

Otis McCoy Local 1104 retiree, Lorain, Ohio

Building powerTwo years ago I received a solicitation

from the United Steelworkers to join as anassociate member. I set it aside. Then ear-lier this year I received another and sentin the dues.

Lo and behold I got a membership cardand a subscription to the periodicalUSW@Work. When I read the publication,I began to understand the strategy and it isvery smart. Samuel Gompers wouldapprove.

Unions need to build organizationalstrength, not just to improve their finan-cial base but to put real muscle behindtheir demands for change in wages, healthcare and workers' rights.

With my second issue, I find I amproud of the Steelworkers for taking along overdue initiative — going interna-tional in a serious way. The USW is join-ing with a large union in the UnitedKingdom and Ireland to form a trans-Atlantic body representing more than

3 million workers and retirees.We'll have to see how this plays out

but I have hope that it shows evidence ofa vibrant, creative labor movement, aheadof the curve and looking for interestingways to tackle what seems like intractableproblems of poverty, ignorance and misal-location of resources worldwide.

Si, se puede!

Mary Beth AcuffDublin, Calif.

Memorial Day massacreRegarding the article on the 1937

Memorial Day massacre, one of the 10men killed during the protest, AlfredCausey, was my uncle. It makes me veryproud to know that he is being recognizedfor what he believed in and died for.

Martha ScottAttalla, Ala.

America in jeopardy?I retired 24 years ago with a small pen-

sion and health insurance, thanks to thebargaining ability of labor unions. I sup-plement that with Social Security, thanksto a great president, FDR. Now myincome may be in jeopardy due to a"brain dead" Bush, and a "bought off"Congress.

What happened America?

Jack E. Carroll,Radcliff, Ky.

We've had enoughEnough of sending our troops off to

war; alienating our allies, ravaging SocialSecurity and Medicare, squanderingAmerica's riches on the wealthy, whiletreading on the rights of the strugglingpoor and middle class.

Let's hope that our next President willbe a person of unquestionable integrity,morally sound, compassionately under-standing and highly intelligent with thewisdom to lead our great nation onward ina quest for peace and goodwill toward allof humanity.

Bill Diller Sr.Local 1196 retiree, Brackenridge, Pa.

Thank youMy husband loved his job and was

loyal to the company and his union duringhis years of service at LTV Steel,Cleveland Works.

Thank you for all that you are doing tohelp retirees and surviving spouses … Iam very proud to be in touch with theUSW and appreciate the financial andprescription assistance as well as the sur-viving spouse checks.

Novella ReeceMountain City, Tenn.

Private equity problemsI agree 100 percent with the article in

USW@Work regarding President Gerardurging Congress to regulate private equitypools of capital used for investments.

The article missed one important prob-lem. The private equity and the venturecapital crowd are treated like the top onepercent fat cat taxpayers in this countryand taxed at a much lower rate.

These people also play games byagreeing to waive fees and instead take alarger chunk of the profit to further dodgethe tax man on their payday. Plus they aretaxed only after an investment proves suc-cessful, often after many years.

Tom SedorLocal 2599 retiree, Northampton, Pa.

Worker against workerInternational President Leo W. Gerard

calls on Congress to regulate private equi-ty funds, but that may not be enough andmay be too late.

A report by the International TradeUnion Confederation advises its membersin 153 countries to pull their pensioninvestments out of hedge funds and pri-vate equity funds.

The immense debt bubbles these fundscreate are threatening a collapse of finan-cial markets as credit conditions changefor the worse. Pensions are directly in thepath of disaster.

Geri A. Mellgren-KerwinBurbank, Calif.

U S W @ W o r k • L a b o r D a y I s s u e 2 0 0 7 3

USW active and retired members and their families are invited to “speak out” on these pages. Letters should be short and to the point. We reserve the

right to edit for length. Mail to USW@Work, Five Gateway Center, Pittsburgh PA15222 or e-mail to [email protected].

Speaking OutSpeaking Out

44115_P01_36x.qxp 8/7/2007 2:12 PM Page 3

SW members know all too well the devastating effects of a bro-ken trade system: the loss of jobs, shattered communities, stagger-ing national deficits.

Now, nearly every edition of the daily newspaper or broadcast of thenightly news reveals there are more side effects that could harm everyAmerican — toxic toys, poisoned pet food, tainted toothpaste and an at-risk human food supply are making their way into the United States fromChina and other places where there are little or no environmental andhealth regulations.

In early August, Fisher-Price recalled 967,000 plastic preschool toysmade in China because their paint contains excessive amounts of lead.The recall covered 83 types of toys including play sets, toy vehicles, fig-ures and musical instruments. Many of the recalled toys areconnected to popular children’s TV programs includingSesame Street, the acclaimed educational series, and

Dora the Explorer, an animated series. Fischer-Priceis a subsidiary of Mattel Inc.

In July, media reported that 180 food factoriesin China that make everything from shrimp tocandy were shut down after inspectors foundindustrial chemicals such as formaldehyde, illegaldyes and wax being used in products.

Toxic baby bibsThat report came after thousands of pets died from poisoned food, 1.5

million Thomas and Friends toy trains made in China were recalled4 L a b o r D a y I s s u e 2 0 0 7 • U S W @ W o r k

U

Photo by Wix Pix Productions

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because its paint contained lead, and afterChicago area grandmother Marilyn Furertested her 3-month-old grandson'sChinese-made baby bibs and found theyhad alarmingly high levels of the poison.

Furer alerted the California-basedCenter for Environmental Health and fur-ther testing led to the recall this spring oftens of thousands of Baby Connectionbrand bibs sold at Wal-Marts across thenation. Some 60,000 vinyl bibs wererecalled in Illinois alone.

"It was incomprehensible to me thatbibs with lead in them could be on ourmarketplace shelves. A deep sense ofbetrayal overwhelmed me along withgreat sadness when I thought of babiespossibly already damaged by this leadpoisoning from baby bibs," Furer said."Each parent, each grandparent shouldcorrectly be outraged, infuriated and picket-ready angry that this was allowedto happen by our government."

Furer says her story should be a wake-up call for those who think a cheap pricetag is worth abandoning American manu-facturing. She's called on the governmentto toughen its trade policies and productsafety laws to better protect children fromdangerous imported items.

Trade debate intensifiesAs consumer pressure to toughen trade

and product safety laws mount, the U.S.trade deficit with China hit a record $233billion and counting. The deficit hasgrown at 20 percent or more every year.

Some on Capitol Hill are pushing theBush administration to take a tougherstance on product safety and China'sunfair currency advantage. China's yuanis consistently undervalued, making itsexports less costly for American con-sumers.

U.S. Sen. Charles E. Schumer, chair-man of the Joint Economic Committeeand a member of the Senate FinanceCommittee, called for an import czar tooversee consumer protection fromChinese imports.

"It's bad enough that we have a recordtrade deficit with China. It is even worsethat there is a dangerous quality deficitthreatening the safety and health ofAmerican consumers,'' Schumer said.

China has stockpiled more than $1 tril-lion in U.S. assets as a result of its boom-ing export business. The U.S. economycould be vulnerable if China decides to

dump dollars in the event of a trade war,some lawmakers and economists warn.

Recalls mountMeanwhile, the product safety con-

cerns continue. A recent Chicago Tribuneanalysis revealed that since 2004, theU.S. Consumer Product SafetyCommission issued 303 recalls for chil-dren's products, including 94 toys. Ofthose recalls, 218, or 72 percent, wereproducts made in China.

While imported food and other prod-ucts reach record numbers — they'vedoubled since implementation of theNorth American Free Trade Agreementand the World Trade Organization agree-ments — the Bush White House has cutthe number of Food and Drug

Administration inspectors every yearsince 2003.

A new report by watchdog PublicCitizen says the government tests only .6percent of the food being imported intothe United States and that the only effec-tive way to truly protect Americans is tochange the nation's trade policies.

Shoddy food safety regulation isn't theonly problem. The Administration isproposing closing seven of the FDA's 13laboratories that do health and safety test-ing, and has overseen the shrinking of theConsumer Product Safety Commissionto about 400 workers, less than half of theagency's staffing levels in 1980.

Deadly imports The tainted product scandal first cap-

tured the attention of U.S. consumers lastyear with front-page newspaper reports ofdogs and cats dying from pet food madewith a toxic additive.

Some 24.3 million tons of Chinesewheat gluten laced with melamine, achemical used in plastics, were sold to a

major pet food maker that suppliesNorth America. The resultingpet deaths led to a massiverecall and a public uproar.

ntil the government does a better job at protecting consumers' safety, Furersuggest people take the following steps to safeguard babies and children:

• Test for lead. It is a simple finger or toe prick. Lead accumulates in the bodyand can cause brain damage, learning disabilities, attention deficit disorders,behavioral problems, stunted growth, impaired hearing, kidney damage and evendeath. It can be removed but only if you know it is there. Call your doctor andask if a lead test for your child has been performed. If not, schedule one. Evenbabies and toddlers should be tested. • Call, write, e-mail, or forward an informative Web site (go to any search engineand type in "baby bibs and lead") to your contacts, especially to new parents inand out of the United States. • Buy American-made products when you can and home test soft vinyl plasticbaby items. If you don't test — throw them out. Lead is an invisible poison. • After home testing, should you find lead in any baby or child item, notify theCenter for Environmental Health (www.cehca.org) at (510) 594-9864, or (800)652-0827. They want to know about it. • Put pressure on your lawmakers to do something about the nation's unfair tradepolicies that discourage American manufacturing. Let them and the businessesyou frequent know that saving a few pennies is not worth endangering our babiesand grandbabies!

U

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Serious questions were also raisedabout the safety of Chinese-made tiresafter two Pennsylvania passengers werekilled in a vehicle crash caused by sepa-rating tire tread.

As many as 450,000 Chinese-madetires sold in the U.S. lack a key safetyfeature — a gum strip or thin layer ofrubber that binds belts of a tire together.Without it tire treads can separate.

The faulty tires were manufactured byChina's Hangzhou Zhongee Rubber Co.and distributed in the U.S. by ForeignTire Sales Inc. under the brand namesWestlake, Telluride, Compass, and YKS.

Calls for hearingsThe scary statistics about unsafe

imports, particularly toys, promptedMinnesota Democrat Sen. AmyKlobuchar to call for a congressionalinvestigation. She said the number ofrecalled Chinese-made products has dou-bled in the past five years.

"As a parent of a 12 year-old and as amember of the Commerce Committee'ssubcommittee on Consumer Affairs,Insurance and Automotive Safety, I amalarmed by these statistics and concerned

that the risks our children face in playingwith these unsafe toys are not being ade-quately addressed," Klobuchar wrote inher request for hearings.

For China, the product safety scandalis a public relations nightmare, andobservers said it could lead to sympa-thetic hearings for U.S. legislators inter-ested in toughening trade regulations.

"This is going to play against Chinain the larger political picture,'' said


ubsidized foreign-made productsbeing dumped into the U.S. mar-ket cost the economy more in

money, profits and jobs than the savingsrealized by consumers who buy them, anew study has found.

Applying countervailing duties onillegally subsidized and dumped prod-ucts "does not harm the U.S. economyand should not be viewed negatively,"the report by the newly-created Alliancefor American Manufacturing also con-cluded.

"The pure gains from unfair trade …are relatively small compared to the rev-enues lost by the domestic industry," thereport found, "and are often not signifi-cantly higher than the financial costsassociated with higher imports."

Dumping cases reviewedThe Washington-based think tank

analyzed dumping cases in 10 U.S.industries including garlic, lumber, craw-fish, carbon steel, ball bearings, cementand bedroom furniture.

In each case, lost revenue, lost indi-rect economic activity and the interestexpense of being in debt due to the tradedeficit in imports far surpassed the pricegains offered to consumers from cheaperimports.

"When our trade laws are enforced,the contribution to the economy actuallyoutweighs any of the so-called benefitsof the dumped or subsidized imports bymore than 50 times, in the form ofAmerican jobs, added productivity and apositive impact on the surrounding com-munities," said Scott Paul, the AAM'sexecutive director.

AAM researchers found, for example,that the U.S. shrimp industry lost $210million in revenue between 2000 and2003 due to dumped and subsidized

imports, along with $175 million in lostindirect activity impacting suppliers. Yetthe "pure consumption gains" to con-sumers totaled $66 million.

Carbon steel analysisThe costs associated with dumped

imports for the carbon steel industrywere much more massive: $5.9 billion,while the benefit to consumers throughlower prices was only $1.3 million overa two-year period, the study found.

Predatory trading practices have con-tributed to the loss of 3.2 million manu-facturing jobs and the closing of morethan 40,000 U.S. facilities, the AAMsaid.

The report is entitled "Enforcing theRules: Strong Trade Laws as theFoundation of a Sound American TradePolicy." It is available at www.americanmanufacturing.org.

S

There are many resources available for consumers to research importantinformation about product safety and trade. Here is a sampling:

The Center for Environmental Health: http://www.cehca.org

Wake Up Wal-Mart: http://www.wakeupwalmart.com

Wal-Mart Watch: http://walmartwatch.comWomen's Health and Environment:

http://www.womenshealthandenvironment.orgConsumer Reports:

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/index.htm

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Merrill Weingrod, head of ChinaStrategies, which advises companies ondoing business with China.

And the problems aren't unique to theUnited States. Other countries havebanned Chinese-made toothpaste whileJapan and the European Union havepushed Beijing to improve inspections ofgoods sold globally.

China has a history of product safetyproblems at home, too.

At least 14 people died after takingthe prescription antibiotic Xinfu, one ofseveral medicines that were tainted withunsafe ingredients.

That led to the execution of the for-mer head of the Chinese State Food andDrug Administration, Zheng Xiaoyu,who was convicted of taking bribes frompharmaceutical companies.

AFL-CIO Industrial Union CouncilExecutive Director Bob Baugh says it'stime for the nation's dangerous trade pol-icy to change. He says the huge tradedeficit is costing Americans jobs andputting their safety at risk.

"People want to act like this is an actof God. Or it's like the weather and youcan't do a damn thing about it," he said.

"And that's a flat-out lie. This trade sys-tem is a system that is run by rules, andthe set of rules have been designed byglobal corporations who do this in theirown self-interest."

Acting U.S. Consumer Product SafetyCommission Chairwoman Nancy A.Nord said in July she was preparing reg-ulatory proposals that could mandatebroader inspections of imports and stifferpenalties for ignoring safety rules.

The Republican appointed byPresident Bush is drafting the proposedchanges, which would require importersand manufacturers to certify that prod-ucts comply with regulatory standards.At press time there was no word fromthe White House about whether it wouldsupport the plan. In the past, theAdministration has generally favoredloosening business regulations.

USW working for 'all of us'After telling her story to the

Steelworkers' POWERcast, Furer, a for-mer postal worker, was so impressedwith the union's various efforts, especial-ly those to fight for fair and safe trade,that she joined the USW's Associate

Member program.Among other things, the USW is

fighting to put an end to presidentialFast-Track authority over trade deals,drawing attention to the assassination oftrade unionists in Colombia and else-where, and is pushing an anti-sweatshopbill (H.R. 1992) in Congress that wouldprohibit goods made in sweatshops andwith child labor from being importedinto the U.S. marketplace.

"I can readily see that the UnitedSteelworkers membership has a tremen-dous influence and power containedwithin themselves to effect great contri-butions to a safer and fairer environmentfor the average American," Furer said."You are working on behalf of all of us."

To hear more of Furer's story go towww.usw.org or iTunes and listen toPOWERcast, Episode 17.


he Sierra Club has notified 10 companies that import ordistribute Chinese products containing potentially-hazardous lead levels that it will sue if they don't file

required reports with the Environmental Protection Agency(EPA) over health risks.

The American environmental group told the companies —importers or distributors of toys, children's jewelry and othergoods — that they are required to report their lead-tainted prod-ucts to the EPA under the U.S. Toxic Substances Control Act.

Among the companies notified are retailers Target Corp.,Dollar General Corp. and RC2 Corp., a maker of die cast col-lectibles and toys under various brands. RC2 has recalled someThomas and Friends wooden railway toys made in Chinabecause of lead paint.

The Sierra Club said it took the step to protect children fromcontaminated products. The overwhelming majority of toyssold in the United States are now manufactured in China.

"Companies need to be held accountable for failing to report

dangers posed by their products,'' said Jessica Frohman, co-chair of the Sierra Club's National Toxic Committee.

After discovering a problem with one or more of their prod-ucts, the 10 companies requested that the U.S. ConsumerProducts Safety Commission (CSPC) issue a voluntary recall,the Sierra Club said.

However, the companies failed to also notify the EPA asrequired by law. The EPA is responsible for investigating toxicchemicals such as lead in commerce and taking action to pro-tect the public. The agency has greater authority than the CSPCto get to the source of the problems.

The EPA, as part of a prior settlement with the Sierra Club,sent more than 100 letters to companies with a track record ofpotential problems warning them of the legal obligations toreport poisonous products to the EPA and the CSPC.

"Violators simply have no excuse," Frohman said. "It's timeto enforce the law to protect children from toxic toys and otherproducts that may lead poison them."

T

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This illustration shows how many tainted goods couldpotentially be purchased during one trip to a big box store.The products shown represent imported goods whosebrand names have been changed.

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he USW saved American jobs bypartnering with a paper company tochallenge illegally subsidized and

dumped imports from Communist China.Now, we're going after the Asian jugger-naut's shady trading practices in steel pipeand off-the-road tires.

In a precedent-setting decisionannounced this spring, the CommerceDepartment said it would, for the firsttime ever, slap anti-subsidy or countervail-ing duties on imports from China.

The decision to hit China with anti-subsidy duties on imports of glossy papercame in a case brought by the USW andBaltimore-based NewPage Corp., whichemploys 4,000 of our members at plantsin Escanaba, Mich., Luke, Md., Rumford,Maine and Wickliffe, Ky.

Glossy paper imports from China roseto $224 million last year from $29 millionin 2004.

Give us a fighting chance"The decision is welcome news for our

workers here in Maryland and at othercoated free sheet mills throughout theUnited States,'' said Tom Caldwell, presi-dent of Local 676 in Luke.

"Putting the brakes on unfairly tradedproducts will help ensure our workers afighting chance to compete on equalterms," Caldwell added.

The USW has since joined in com-plaints alleging imports of welded standardpipe and tires used in agriculture, construc-tion and general industry are also beingboth dumped and illegally subsidized.

In those filings, made in June, theUSW joined with six steel pipe producersand tire maker Titan International Inc. Thecompanies are seeking tariff relief.

International Vice President TomConway joined the pipe industry in testi-fying before the International TradeCommission (ITC) on the need to enforceU.S. trade laws against the predatory prac-tice of Chinese imports.

Too many family-supportive jobs in theAmerican pipe industry have already beenlost to surging, illegal imports from China,he said. Other skilled jobs with goodwages, health care and pension benefitsare difficult if not impossible to find.

"I'll tell you what happens to thesefolks," Conway testified. "Their cars getrepossessed, their houses foreclosed, theirkids can't afford to go to college and theylose their health insurance. That is theplight of the American manufacturing

worker when they lose

their job because ofimports."

Under the complicated rules of trade, acountry may impose duties or tariffs fortwo reasons: when products are dumped(sold below cost) or if illegal subsidies areinvolved. Up until now, our governmentonly went after China on allegations ofdumping and left illegal subsidies unchal-lenged.

Cold war policy reversedWhile government policy, originated

during the Cold War, prohibits applyingcountervailing duties on subsidized goodsfrom non-market economies, the decisionon paper imports reflects our govern-ment’s decision to treat China as the mar-ket-oriented economy it has become.

In the past, the government reasonedthat subsidies to non-market economieswere too hard to measure and state-con-trolled firms set export prices withoutregard to subsidies. That reasoning nolonger applies to the industrial power-house that China has become in 2007.

"The message to foreign governmentsis 'stop providing unfair subsidies to yourexporters,' " said International PresidentLeo W. Gerard.

In the paper case, Commerce SecretaryCarlos Gutierrez announced a preliminarycountervailing duty of 10.90 percentagainst Shangdong Chenming PaperHoldings and 20.35 percent against GoldEast Paper Co. A preliminary rate of 18.16percent will apply to all other Chineseglossy paper exports.

Commerce will make its final determi-nation on those duties later this year, like-ly in August. Until then, importers will berequired to post bonds or deposit cashwith the U.S. Customs Service based onthe preliminary duty levels.

Separately, Commerce placed dumpingduties on glossy paper from China run-ning from 23.19 percent to 99.65 percent.Indonesia was hit with preliminary dutiesof 10.85 percent and Korea 30.86 percent.

Beijing reacted angrily to the U.S.decisions. Gerard, meanwhile, said theUSW will fight to ensure that the Bush


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Wheatland Tube's Sharonplant tumbles.Photo by David E. Dale/Sharon Herald

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administration does not bend to Chinesepressure and grant China special immunity.

USW, producers join forcesIn the steel pipe and tire cases, the

USW joined with employers in filing peti-tions with both the Commerce Departmentand the ITC.

On July 31, acting on a petition filed bythe USW and Titan Tire, the CommerceDepartment announced that it would initi-ate investigations on imports of new pneu-matic off-the road tires from China. Intheir petition, the USW and Titan claimedrising low-cost imports from China haveharmed the industry. They cited lost sales,reduced market share, lower productionand shipments and reduced employment inthe domestic industry.

On July 20, the ITC determined thatthere is a reasonable indication that thedomestic welded pipe industry is material-ly injured or threatened with materialinjury by imports from China.

As a result, the Commerce Departmentwill move forward with its investigationand make a preliminary determination oncountervailing duties on or about Aug. 31.

Imports of circular standard and struc-tural pipe jumped to 690,000 tons last yearfrom 10,000 tons in 2002.

During the last three years, in a strongU.S. economy with a robust market fornonresidential construction, we have lostone quarter of the jobs at plants producingwelded standard pipe.

Gerard was critical of the Bush admin-istration, saying that the real tragedy is thatmost of the recent job losses occurred afterthe president denied relief that had beenrecommended by the ITC.

The ITC, acting under Section 421 ofthe Trade Act of 1974, had urged the presi-dent to grant relief to the pipe industryafter finding a surge in imports from Chinahad disrupted the domestic market.

"It is time for the Administration to puta stop to the Communist Chinese govern-ment's unfair trade practices that are steal-ing good American jobs and to restore therules of fair competition to the U.S. mar-ketplace,'' Gerard said.


ust two years ago, the WheatlandTube Co. plant in Sharon, Pa.employed 420 USW members. Today

the site is an empty lot, the mill havingbeen leveled by a flood of imports fromChina.

The Clark Street plant, which had beenupgraded with some $200 million in newequipment, was torn down in June afterimports wasted its market for half-inch tofour-inch diameter pipe.

"It was one of the most modern mills inthe United States,'' said an angry GeorgeBournes, president of Local 1016. "Now,I've got a big parking lot. Now, I havenothing. And you can thank yourCommander in Chief for that."

Bush inaction kills jobsLayoffs in the pipe industry accelerated

after President Bush in December 2005ignored a recommendation by theInternational Trade Commission andrefused to place tariffs on pipe importsfrom China.

Last summer while in Washington topromote an AFL-CIO sponsored tradeaction against China, Bourne warned thathis plant was in danger. He said the com-pany was considering closing the plantbecause it could not compete with China'sfinished pipe prices and surging volume.At the time, 300 people were laid off fromthe Sharon plant. Chinese pipe was beingdelivered on the West Coast at $550 a tonwhile the steel and zinc ingredients tomake the pipe Wheatland produced cost$700 before delivery.

In less than a year, Bourne's prediction

of a plant shutdown came true. "I told themthis might happen and it did," he said.

Today all sectors of the pipe, tube andfittings industry are challenged by growingimports, many of which are unfairly tradedand threaten the future of companies andthe jobs of thousands of workers.

Of particular concern are imports ofstandard pipe, oil country tubular goodsand structural tubing. In the first quarter ofthis year, those imports were 81 percenthigher than the first quarter of 2006,increasing from 350,000 to 631,000 tons.

"Almost every year, the amount ofexports from China to this country havedoubled,'' said USW member Mickey Bolt,a lab technician at Wheatland Tube.

Chinese export tax rebates are particu-larly galling to Bolt, who is also volunteerchairman of the Western PennsylvaniaCommittee to Save Our ManufacturingIndustries.

While the Chinese government hasrecently removed tax rebates on manysteel products it exports, it kept unchangeda 13 percent rebate on pipe and tube prod-ucts, which has a devastating impact onthe domestic industry and the local econo-my where Bolt lives.

The industry's primary regional produc-tion areas include the Sharon/Wheatlandareas of Northwest Pennsylvania, theChicago metropolitan area and NorthwestIndiana, North Central Ohio, North andCentral Arkansas, metropolitan Houstonand metropolitan Los Angeles.

"One of the cornerstones, one of ourthree main pipe plants has already closed,''Bolt said of the Sharon area. "If the other

two go, it would definitely devastate thecommunity."

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steep decline in manufacturingjobs over the last decade hasharmed millions of working

families and their communities through-out the United States.

To keep strong, America must devel-op a national strategy to renew andrebuild manufacturing industries thatprovide good-paying jobs and a solidcommunity tax base.

In early July, the USW hosted a pres-idential candidates' forum in Clevelandto hear what the candidates would do torevive American manufacturing.

More than 1,000 members fromacross the United States heard from four

Democratic presidential candidates —Sen. Joseph Biden of Delaware, NewYork Sen. Hillary Clinton, former Sen.John Edwards of North Carolina andRep. Dennis Kucinich of Cleveland. Themembers also participated in a concur-rent forum on political activism.

Sen. Barack Obama and two otherDemocratic hopefuls did not attend, cit-ing scheduling conflicts. The topRepublican presidential candidatesdeclined invitations to appear.

Unions welcomedAll four of the candidates present

emphasized their ties to organized laborand said unions would be welcomed andencouraged during their administrations.

"We need a president who is not afraidto use the word 'union,' '' said Edwards,the son of a North Carolina textile worker

who served as that state's U.S. Senatorbefore becoming the Democrat's VicePresidential nominee in 2004.

Biden, who credited a Steelworkerendorsement for helping him to win hisfirst Senate race in 1972, promised to bea "best friend" to the USW if electedand pledged to use the president's bullypulpit to promote organized labor.

Clinton said if she is elected, "We areactually going to appoint people who arepro-labor," while Kucinich promised tobe a "labor president."

All of the candidates called for mean-ingful national health care reform andpledged to better enforce trade laws and

toughen future trade agreements byincluding labor rights and environmentalstandards in the core language of theagreements. They all called for endingthe war in Iraq.

Restore economy"When we take back the White

House we're going to... restore the econ-omy and the opportunity that goes withit," Clinton said.

"We're going to work to make surethere is health care for everyone, workto create new good-paying jobs by deal-ing with energy and global warming andwe're going to bring our troops home."

Clinton, who said she considers her-self an honorary Women of Steel mem-ber, pledged to rebuild America's manu-facturing base by, in part, funding newrenewable energy with taxes and

royalties from the oil industry.Edwards, who has made eliminating

poverty a hallmark of his campaign,pledged to raise the national minimumwage to $9.50 an hour by 2012, andrequire that it automatically increaseeach year.

"No one should work full time in theUnited States of America and still live inpoverty," Edwards said.

Enforce labor standardsEdwards, noting that his father

worked for a textile mill that closed,said he would make sure trade agree-ments have real labor and environmental

standards that can be enforced."When I'm president and trade agree-

ments land on my desk to be signed, Iwill not ever forget where I came from,what I have seen with my own eyes,'' headded.

Kucinich drew heavy applause fromthe union audience when he pledged tocancel the North American Free TradeAgreement (NAFTA), withdraw fromthe World Trade Organization and makesure new trade agreements have laborand environmental protections. He andBiden also proposed rebuilding bridges,water and mass transit systems.

"Isn't it time we had an Americanmanufacturing policy where the mainte-nance of steel, auto, aerospace and ship-ping is seen as vital to our national secu-rity, our national defense," Kucinichsaid.


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his summer, workers employed on aFirestone rubber plantation in Liberia,West Africa took the first step in stand-

ing up to their oppressors when they chosenew union leadership in the first democraticelection held in their 80-year history.

Liberia was founded in 1847 by formerAmerican slaves and their descendants.The settlers formed an elite ruling class inwhich native residents could not partici-pate. In 1980, a military coup toppledthe government and assassinated thepresident. A second coup occurred a

decade later followed by a civil war, whichdecimated the nation.

The rubber plantation did not escape thewar. Lawlessness and desperation struck at allwalks of life. Schools, hospitals and manyother buildings were damaged or destroyed.

Order was restored in 2003 when the dicta-tor Charles Taylor was removed and U.N.Forces took control and established a board ofLiberian citizens to run the country until elec-tions could be held.

During this period, union activists in Liberiarequested assistance from the AFL-CIOSolidarity Center, an organization that providestechnical assistance and support to workers andunions around the world. InternationalPresident Leo W. Gerard is a board member.

The biggest concern of unionists in Liberiawas the workers on the Firestone Plantation.So the Solidarity Center contacted the USWbecause we represent Bridgestone/Firestoneworkers in North America.

The USW responded by sending a fact-finding delegation to Liberia in 2005, led bythen District 7 Assistant Director FredRedmond and Harmon Lisnow of the Institutefor Career Development (ICD). Lisnow hadexperience serving in Liberia with the PeaceCorps.

Misguided tourArriving at the plantation, the delegation

was taken on a guided tour by union represen-tatives and management. Things did notappear as bad as they expected. But it soonbecame apparent that they were being restrict-ed to areas that the company wanted them tosee.

Later they were approached by a group thatwanted them to experience what plantation lifewas really like. They set out at 4 a.m. and fol-lowing local escorts, evaded guards to gainentry. They were shocked by what they saw.

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They visited five villages and sawdismal living conditions prevalent on theplantation. "We saw people living insqualor with no running water; hospitalsand schools had been destroyed," saidRedmond, now an international vicepresident.

Impossible production quotasrequired workers to put their entire fami-lies to work and basic safety items werenot available. Some workers were blindfrom getting latex in their eyes.

Each tapper was responsible for 750rubber trees and had to accumulate 150pounds of latex daily. Pay amounted tolittle more than $3 a day and a monthly100 pound bag of rice if quotas weremet. Children who should have been inschool were put to work.

After about three hours, Firestone'ssecurity police caught up with them. Butby that time, plenty of information hadbeen gathered with photos to back it up.

The next day in the Liberian capital ofMonrovia, Firestone's human resourcesdirector confronted the delegation. Hewas furious because he had tried to con-trol their Firestone experience.

What next?The fact finding group returned to the

U.S. and gave a complete report. Theyknew that there was a moral obligation

to help the workersbut since there

was no democratically elected govern-ment, it was too early to determine howto do it.

Then, in November 2005, EllenJohnson-Sirleaf was elected president ofLiberia. Many years ago, she had beenan immigrant living in the U.S., whoswept floors and waited tables beforegraduating from a university inWisconsin and from Harvard. Sheworked at the World Bank and Citibank.

"Johnson-Sirleaf's election was amilestone," Redmond said. "We knewshe was committed to improving thelives of her people."

Redmond sent her a letter. She wroteback and put him in touch with theMinister of Labor, Samuel Kofi Woods.With the support of the Liberian govern-ment, the USW and the SolidarityCenter offered training sessions formembers of FAWUL, a union represent-

ing plantation workers. But there wasone condition. All activists, not justunion officials, who wanted to attendwould be permitted.

FAWUL agreed. It was a mistakethat they would later regret.

Empowering the workersIn training led by USW staff member

Mike Zielinski, workers learned aboutunion democracy, methods of buildingsolidarity and how to take strategicaction when necessary. In early 2006,workers formed the "Aggrieved WorkersCommittee" demanding better treatmentfrom Firestone and new union leader-ship. They led wildcat strikes and someimprovements were made.

Workers struck again in April. Thistime, police attacked and beat the strikers.One worker died from his injuries.

Convinced that the attacks were


Photos courtesy DeWitt Walton

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instigated by Firestone management,they appealed for outside help whilecontinuing to demand new union elec-tions. President Gerard sent a strongprotest letter to Firestone managementand arranged for a delegation to return toLiberia.

Following the strike, Liberia'sMinistry of Labor ordered an electionand invited representatives from theUSW and the Solidarity Center to bemonitors.

The historic eventA delegation including DeWitt Walton

of the USW staff, Kim Smith, presidentof USW Local 9-508 in Summerville,S.C., Ben Edherue of the SolidarityCenter and Zielinski were dispatched.

Upon their arrival, they had heardFirestone management was putting pres-sure on the workers to support theincumbent office holders.

"Not long after we got there,Firestone backed off," said Walton."Workers told us that our presence madea significant difference. It was incredi-ble to see how people with no experi-ence in running democratic electionsrose to the occasion."

Most rubber tappers and their familiesrise at 3:30 a.m. to begin a long work-day. On Election Day, they returned inlate afternoon to find fellow workersstanding in long lines waiting to vote.

There were 55 polling places spreadover the 240 square mile plantation.Election monitors were able to cover allbut the most remote locations.

"The Liberian government played acritical role," Zielinski said. "Theywanted participation and transparency."

Many workers are barely literate.Colorful ballots were used, listing notonly the names of the 30 candidates butphotos as well. More than 3,000 peoplevoted. The eight candidates of theAggrieved Workers Committee, who hadreceived USW and Solidarity Centertraining, won by large margins. Theincumbent officers were stunned.

The workers had viewed their oldunion leadership as a company unionand with good reason. They were partof a caste system in which managementlived at the top level and rubber tappersand their families lived in abject poverty.Union officers lived in upgraded housingand facilities that were not quite up tomanagement level, but far above theworkers.

As the new officers take charge, plan-tation workers are looking forward tocontract negotiations next year. Led byAustin Natee, they have time to prepare.

Plantation wages are extremely lowbut are not the biggest issue. Third andfourth generation workers wantFirestone to provide better housing, run-ning water, toilet facilities, and schoolsfor their children, medical care and ahospital.

They want production quotas that canbe filled without entire families havingto work to meet them. They want theprice of rice set where they can feedtheir families.

"As Liberia advances so will theunion," Redmond said. "This electionwas important because it establishesdemocratic principles for the union andthe country. It's just one step but it's a bigone. There's no going back. Firestone isone of the country's biggest employers.We've helped empower the workers.We've helped set a new standard."

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ave Alvin is a Grammy Awardwinning songwriter, singer andgut-wrenching guitarist. He's also

the son of a USW organizer and publicistwho has not forgotten his labor roots.

His late father, Cass Alvin, had a col-orful 40-year career with the Steelworkerson the West Coast starting in 1945. Cassworked as a union organizer in steel andmining and was the Western BureauChief for Steelabor, the forerunner toUSW@Work, as well as a publicist for theunion's non-ferrous labor negotiations.

Working-class startDave, who was born in 1955, and his

older brother Phil spent their childhood ina working-class neighborhood in subur-ban Los Angeles.

Their father's work took him to steelmill communities in California and tocopper and coal mines in Arizona, Utah,New Mexico, Colorado and Wyoming.Sometimes the brothers would tag alongto union events and travel with him onorganizing drives during their schoolvacations.

Dave vividly remembers the

nervousness and anticipation he felt whiledriving down a one-lane dirt road at nightin a back country mining community inColorado to attend a union rally. It was aclandestine meeting kept quiet because itwas a company town.

"The community feeling inside thathall and to see my dad up there exhortingthe workers had a profound impression onme,'' he said. "Most kids don't see thatunless they live it every day."

Lessons from dadThe musician said he "learned a lot of

lessons from dad"during thosetrips. "One ofthe big oneswas there ismore than oneside of a story,"he said.Another was thatblack, Latino,Asian and whiteworkers all had thesame issues.

"There are differences between every-body," he told one interviewer. "But …what are the connections? On a workingclass level, you're connected by that.You're all working men and women."

His search for that other side of thestory has extended into his music. "That'swhat I'm going for," he said. "What's theside that you're not hearing?"

The Alvin brothers learned to love therock n' roll music they would listen to onthose car trips with their father. The R&B,soul, honky-tonk and rockabilly theyheard on AM radio were early exposuresto music that would shape their profes-sional lives.

Their childhood love for music ledthem to form The Blasters, an 80s bandbig in the Los Angeles club scene thatcombined blues, rock n' roll, and rhythmand blues. Despite critical acclaim and adevoted following, Dave left the band in1986 for a solo career.

Brothers on the lineDave's first solo record was

"Romeo Escape," whichfeatures the com-

pelling, blue-collarroots inspiredsong "Brother onthe Line." Anexcerpt fol-lows:

D

Cass Alvin and Dave Alvin

Photos courtesy of Dave Alvin

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on O'Bannon, a member of Local 979 at the Mittal Steel USAplant in Cleveland, tenderly jokes about his son Jason, a NationalHockey League prospect, but he can't hide his pride.

"Jason's a handsome kid, still has all of his teeth, polite; not like ahockey player at all,'' says Ron, a No. 2 Steel Producing MTM, or main-tenance technician.

The senior forward from Kent State University has raised eyebrows inthe hockey community this season, racking up numerous awards for hisefforts.

The Collegiate Hockey Association named Jason to the Division I All-American, making him the third rising senior in Kent State history to beso honored.

The younger O'Bannon led his Golden Flashes team to a schoolrecord 26 wins, which qualified Kent State for its fourth ever NationalTournament appearance.

His head coach, Jarret Whidden, had nothing but praise for his starplayer, who is no slouch in the classroom even though being a Division 1athlete can qualify as a full-time job.

"Jason is a leader both on and off the ice,"Whidden said. "He looks after his fellow team-mates, which is always a sign of a good leader.He sets the bar high."

Jason has hopes of playing in the NationalHockey League. His effort this season hasdrawn the attention of league scouts, giving hima shot at making that dream come true.

A criminal justice major who started playinghockey at age 4, Jason remains modest abouthis achievements. He gives his father creditfor being a good example.

"He works hard every day just to providefor his family," Jason said of his dad. "Heshowed me the importance of hard work. Youhave to put in the time to get results."


"Brother, I'm fighting for you as well as me. Igave them my sweat, they want my dignity. Whenthe boss man shakes your hand and says, 'Son,you'll do just fine,' and you walk into the factory toa job that once was mine, please don't forget yourbrother who's still standing on the line."

This poignant ballad is just one example ofDave's ability to tell stories through his music. Hissongs, intimate tales of working people's lives,address universal issues yet touch the hearts of lis-teners.

He finds a musical muse in his loyalty andrespect for everyday people. He said he is quiteaware that "working people rarely get their storiestold." Besides, he said, he was "brought up with acertain kind of morality of the underdog."

Dave believes, as his father did, that workingpeople are underdogs who need to stand up againstgreedy corporate powers and make their voicesheard. His father strongly advocated the labor causeand the necessity of unions.

"Get the message out there," he said. "Unions,though not perfect, are the best way for workingpeople to have a voice, to have clout and to havepower against the powerful."

Though he acknowledges "things are hard now"he remains optimistic and feels that the labor move-ment is still alive and kicking, just like rock n' roll.

Back on trackIt just "takes people to see things outside the

box," he said. As with musicians, "it is up to(union) members to correct the problems" and steerAmerica back on the right track.

Americans will soon realize that "the things peo-ple take for granted arethe things the uniongot for them," he said.

Workers’ benefitswere gained through our

forefather's "toil and struggle,"not corporate America's CEOs who "do not

give employees benefits out of the kindness oftheir hearts," he said.

"My dad believed in the Steelworkers union,"Dave said in ending the interview, the pride obvi-ous in his voice.

One can only believe that his father would alsobe proud — proud that his son carries on his mis-sion to promote and protect the values and rights ofthe nation's working class.

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ast summer, that Wal-Mart fakehappy face was the perfect symbolfor Washington, D.C., with

Republicans, fat-cat corporations and K-Street lobbyists controlling foreign tradedeals and constantly crowing about howgreat they were. But all the while, mid-dle-class Americans were losing theirgood-paying jobs as U.S. manufacturersclosed.

The symbol changed after last fall'selections. There was a look of surpriseon that Wal-Mart happy face when theDemocrats took control of Congress, fol-lowed by a scowl of consternation.

And if a symbol could cry, you'd haveseen it after those Democrats refused toapprove the Korean and Colombian freetrade deals that Wal-Mart wanted sobadly, followed by their denying thepresident renewed "Fast Track" authorityto negotiate such pacts and get themthrough Congress unchanged.

If that weren't enough to make thathappy face spin, the Dems then had thetemerity to suggest America shouldexpand the benefits given to workerswho lose their jobs because of foreigntrade.

O ColumbiaIt will take the involvement of mil-

lions of individual workers and voters toget that piece of legislation passed, as itdid to accomplish the scuttling of theKorean and Colombian free trade dealsand "Fast Track." Over the past year,those voters and workers have shownthat they're a force to be reckoned with.

After the election, with the Demo-crats in control of Congress, the K-Streetboys knew they'd have to put a littlemore effort than usual into getting thelikes of the Colombian and Korean freetrade deals approved.

Wal-Mart, Citigroup and Caterpillarteamed up to lead a business lobbyinggroup on the Colombian deal.

The United Steelworkers, the AFL-CIO and other labor groups foughtback. They pointed out that more laborleaders are killed each year inColombia than in all other countries in

the world combined, about 120 a year.They pointed out that despite thekillings, Colombia makes no effort topunish murderers. Columbia has con-victed only one person since 2004, eventhough its murder rate amounts toapproximately one every three days.

The International Labor Rights Fundand the USW are pursuing a federal law-suit in the United States for the survivorsof three murdered union officers whohad worked at a Colombian mine ownedby Alabama-based Drummond Co. Thesuit accuses Drummond of hiring para-militaries to kill the three union officers.A federal judge and the government ofColombia refused to permit the USW toobtain testimony from key witnesses forthe trial in July, and the USW now plansto appeal what it believes were incorrectrulings that led to the jury’s decision infavor of Drummond.

One-sided dealInternational President Leo W. Gerard

said the free trade agreement (FTA) withSouth Korea would erode jobs inAmerica, just like those that preceded it."The FTA with South Korea represents aone-sided deal. It favors South Koreaninterests at the expense of farmers,workers and businesses here in the U.S,"Gerard said, "It allows for benefits underthe agreement to extend to a SouthKorean industrial park operated in NorthKorea where the workers are paid virtu-ally slave wages."

When leading House Democrats sug-gested that a side agreement to theKorean and Colombian trade agreementsmight solve the problems, labor leaders,including Gerard, met with them inWashington.

They reminded Democrats that lastfall voters across the country demanded

a new direction on trade, not just a sidestep.

In the end, that's what Americanworkers and voters got. Democratsdumped the Korean and Colombian freetrade deals at the end of June.

Also, that's when the President'sauthority to negotiate "Fast Track" dealsexpired. In the Constitution, trade is theresponsibility of Congress. Fast Trackgave it to the president, who negotiateddeals, which Congress could vote up ordown without changing.

Expanding assistanceWhat remains, however, from years

of unfettered free trading is economicdevastation in the heartland. Democratshave proposed expansion of the TradeAdjustment Assistance(TAA) programas a result.

This aid would go to more categoriesof workers who lose their jobs to off-shoring, and there would be more of it.TAA pays for job training and relocationassistance, among many other things, forworkers whose jobs are moved overseas.Under the expansion proposed byDemocrats, these would include comput-er programmers, call center staffers andother service-sector workers, in additionto traditional manufacturing workers.

Republicans have said they'll nevergo for this bill to help Americans wholose their jobs unless Fast Track returns.

They say, in the words of Susan C.Schwab, U.S. Trade Representative,"America needs to remain open for busi-ness to the 95 percent of the world's con-sumers living outside the United States."

Maybe so. But if they want to sendtheir cars, baby bibs and pharmaceuticalshere, we have a right as a nation to insiston certain standards. We have the rightto demand that the products are notmade with child labor; that they are notmade in countries where trade unionistsare routinely murdered; that they are notmade in countries where internationalenvironmental regulations are openlyflouted, leading to global warming. Wehave a right to fair trade.


CAPITOL LETTERSCAPITOL LETTERSThe inside scoop on what's going down in D.C.

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fter facing nearly universalRepublican opposition in the U.S.Senate, the battle for the

Employee Free Choice Act is moving tothe 2008 election with the promise of itspassage under a new presidential adminis-tration well within our reach.

The grass-roots momentum for the billcontinued to grow even after the Senatevoted strictly along party lines this sum-mer to stop the bill before it could bevoted on. Only one Republican, Pennsyl-vania's Arlen Specter, was supportive.

More proof on the need for the billcame in July when American Rights atWork released a new report by Universityof Oregon political scientist Gordon Laferthat uncovers how employers exploitweaknesses in U.S. labor law duringunion recognition elections.

"Anti-union employers are making amockery of the principles governingAmerican elections," Lafer said. "Weaklabor laws allow anti-union employers tomanipulate the outcome of union elec-

tions in a man-ner that isinherentlyunfair andundemocratic."

Legal, illegal strategiesLafer's report details strategies — legal

and illegal — that employers use to denytheir workers the right to form unions andcollectively bargain. He found workersroutinely face:

• Denial of free speech: Managementconsultants typically advise employers tomaximize legally-permitted one-sidedadvantages, such as plastering the work-place with anti-union material. Pro-unionemployees are prohibited from doing like-wise, and union organizers are bannedfrom entering the workplace.

• Economic coercion and intimidation:It is common practice in anti-union cam-paigns for supervisors, who have the mostimmediate control over hiring and firing,to communicate to workers that their jobsmay be at risk if they form a union.

• Ostracism and defamation of unionsupporters: Security guards with walkie-talkies followed one worker featured inthe report to restaurants on her days off. Amember of management was assigned towork with her eight hours a day, five daysa week, solely to change her ideas aboutunions.

• Intrusion into workers' decisions onhow to vote: "Union avoidance" consul-tants typically train supervisors to have

repeated, intimidating one-on-one conver-sations with their employees to makethem reveal their feelings about the unionbefore the election.

Level playing fieldThe Employee Free Choice Act would

level the playing field in the workplace byallowing workers to decide to join a unionwithout employer interference and byrequiring arbitration if a timely agreementis not reached on a first contract.

But the Senate in June voted 51 to 48for cloture, or shutting off debate, on theact. The slim majority was not enoughsince 60 votes are needed to invoke clo-ture and move to a vote.

Even though the cloture vote fell short,the Senate action was a step forward. Itwas the first time in a generation that amajority of the U.S. Senate voted forworkers' rights.

Prior to the Senate vote, 16 state gov-ernors and nearly 1,300 state and localelected officials expressed support for thelegislation in all 50 states. Seven presi-dential candidates also backed the bill.

Middle-class Americans generated50,000 telephone calls to the Senate,156,000 faxes and e-mail messages and220,000 postcards.

"It's clear the majority of the Americanpeople want this legislation,'' said a sup-porter, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio). "A majority of the House wants it.A majority of the Senate wants it. And wewill keep coming back year after year."

AFL-CIO President John Sweeneysaid the Senate vote shows the ground hasshifted. He predicted that working menand women will elect more senators and apresident who will champion their con-cerns and fight for their futures.

"The status quo of our broken systemis unacceptable," Sweeney said. "Thosewho continue to support our broken sys-tem will find themselves on the wrongside of history."


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he United Steelworkers and the Canadian Region of theCommunications Workers of America have signed astrategic alliance agreement to work together on issues

of common interest in Canada and globally.The agreement was signed in July during a two-day interna-

tional convention of the CWA that was attended by more than1,500 people at Toronto's Convention Centre.

Ken Neumann, USW national director for Canada, said theUSW is proud to join forces with CWA members in Canada.

"Our union has a history of developing partnerships that areflexible and constructive with like-minded organizationsthroughout the world," said Neumann. "Through these closer

ties we are better able to work toward building justice and bet-ter working conditions for working people."

CWA Canadian Regional Director Arnold Amber said bothunions are "progressive forces that fight in the political arenaas well as collective bargaining" and are dedicated to protect-ing their members in Canada.

"Members of my union look forward to working closelywith the USW," Amber said. "We have long been allies. Nowour partnership is even stronger."

The unions will fully retain their autonomy and indepen-dence but commit to conducting joint activities in support oftheir members and their struggles. Initially, the alliance will


nternational President Leo W. Gerard led a team ofUSW officials to England this summer to open dis-cussions on a global trade union with leaders of

Unite, the largest trade union in the United Kingdomand Ireland.

The June meeting of the working group was the firstsince the April 18 signing of a formal agreement toexplore a partnership with Unite the Union, which wascreated by the recent merger of two UK-based labororganizations — Amicus and the Transport and General

Workers Union (T&GWU).It is the responsibility of our generation to builda stronger labor movement that can confront the

challenges presented by international capital,Gerard told delegates to a Unite policy con-

ference held in Bournemouth,England, south of London.

"I believe, as most of ourexecutive board and our

membership believe, thatnow is the time to

explore a way tobuild a global

union so we

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can respond to global corporations,"Gerard said in a passionate speech thatdrew a standing ovation from the con-ference .

Technical issues discussedThe parties discussed technical and

procedural issues and established aworking plan for future discussions, saidGerald Fernandez, who oversees inter-national affairs and global bargainingoperations for the USW.

Of note was an agreement to detaileach union's top sectors and employersas a step toward creating workinggroups, or joint councils, to coordinatebargaining and apply leverage in supportof each other in difficult bargaining.

Delegations for the two unions willnext meet in October, Fernandez said.Talks on the possible merger will runparallel with the discussions on buildingbargaining and other leverage.

In addition, it was agreed that theunions will exchange rank-and-file dele-gations to cooperate on functional areassuch as health and safety issues.

"Our meetings were very fruitful,including establishing working groups tolook at the possibility of coordinated bar-gaining with common employers such asTimet,'' Gerard said in a Message FromPittsburgh to our members.

Solidarity is key"We'll start talking to each other soon

about areas where we can begin imme-diate cooperation such as health andsafety," Gerard added. "This sort of soli-darity is key to the USW better repre-senting our members."

In his speech, Gerard touched onpublic and private health care, student

debt, private equity and corporatemanslaughter in illustrating the commonproblems faced by union membersaround the world.

The 2005 explosion at a BP oil refin-ery in Texas City, Texas, that killed 15workers and injured 180 illustrates thesectoral, company and issue linksbetween Unite and the USW.

Some of those workers had been"evaporated" in the intense heat of theexplosion, which had been caused inpart by cost-cutting measures ordered byBP's British former boss, Lord Browne.

Noting that Browne escaped sanctions,Gerard told the delegates that the UnitedKingdom needs its own version of theUSW-backed Westray Bill in Canada,which makes corporations, their directorsand executives criminally accountable forputting workers' lives at risk.

"We need that law in Britain just likewe needed it in Canada so that peoplewho behave like that with the health andsafety of workers get punished the waythey deserve to be punished and we'regoing to be proud to work with you tomake that happen,'' he said to applausefrom the delegates.

Private equity firmsWhile the team was in Britain, the

USW and Unite jointly called for gov-ernment regulation of private equityfirms that increasingly operate aroundthe world and wield much economicinfluence.

The unions pledged to lobby nationaland regional governments in Europe andNorth America for legislation to bringtransparency into the activities of privateequity firms and close tax loopholes thatreward short-term manipulation at theexpense of sustainable jobs and incomefor workers.

The unions want greater powers andflexibility for member pension plantrustees to ensure more ethical invest-ments.

"Private equity firms operate under acloak of secrecy, often creating instabili-ty in the companies by loading themwith debt, and treating working peopleas expendable commodities," said DerekSimpson, Unite joint general secretary.

The use by private equity firms ofpension money against the interests ofworkers highlight the reason that we areexploring a merger with Unite, Gerardsaid.

"Global finance must be confrontedby global labor," Gerard added. "Ourmembers demand that the deferredwages of workers be used to createlong-term viable companies and thatworkers receive a fair share of thewealth that they create.''

The merger exploration process isexpected to take a year. A merger com-mittee made up of five principal individ-uals from each union, with support oftechnical staff, will meet regularly dur-ing that time.

If consummated, a merger would cre-ate the first trans-Atlantic labor union,representing more than 3 million work-ers and retirees in the United States,Canada, the Caribbean Basin, the UnitedKingdom and Ireland.

focus on joint public policy and legislative work but joint activitiescould include any other mutual objectives including education.

The presidents of the USW and CWA will appoint a coordinat-ing committee consisting of their Canadian national directors andother key elected officials and staff. The committee will operate byconsensus.

The CWA/SCA Canada Region represents about 9,000 workersin Canadian media including newspapers, broadcasting, newsagencies and the Internet. Other members are in social work, inter-pretation services and light industry.

The USW is the largest private sector union in both Canada andNorth America, with more than 280,000 members working inevery economic sector in Canada, and 850,000 members continent-wide.

This solidarity is key tothe USW better representing

our members.“

”

CWA President Larry Cohen and InternationalPresident Leo W. Gerard sign alliance agreementas Ken Neumann, USW national director forCanada, looks onPhoto by Bill Burke/Page One Photography

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ouglas DelForge sat in a wheelchairduring a USW demonstration calledto support former Rocky Flats

nuclear weapons plant workers seekingexpedited compensation and medical care.

DelForge, 45, worked for 24 years atRocky Flats, which manufactured plutoni-um triggers for atomic weapons. Hecleaned equipment that leaked radioactivecontamination in dangerous Building 771.

Confined to a wheelchair because ofmany falls, DelForge suffers from a palsythat distorts his face and prevents his righteye from opening. He has atypical menin-gioma, an aggressive nonmalignant braintumor. So far, he has had four conventionaloperations and numerous treatments thathave caused further health problems.

Thousands of sick former nuclearweapons workers like DelForge are strug-gling to obtain compensation and medicalcare from an aid program fraught withdelays, red tape and imprecise science.

For many it's an exercise in patienceand perseverance as they try to prove theirwork caused their illnesses and find thedata to back it up.

The Department of Labor (DOL) deniedDelForge's claim four or five times, saidhis father Clifford. The DOL said therewas no credible evidence the meningiomawas caused by ionizing radiation.

Conducted own researchClifford found information on the

Internet claiming ionizing radiation doescause meningioma. He sent the informa-tion to the DOL, which passed Douglas'sclaim to a toxicologist. Soon after, theclaim was approved under the program'sPart E, which offers compensation andmedical benefits to workers sick fromexposure to chemicals, acids and metals.

"I don't think workers are getting thecompensation they deserve," Douglas said."It seems to me that the money the govern-ment spends trying to avoid the situationcould be spent on the workers and gettingeverybody compensated."

As of June, the government compensat-ed 299 of the 1,253 former Rocky Flatsworkers who applied for help and turneddown 631 sick workers. Nationally, morethan 60 percent of 72,000 cases processedwere denied.

It was not supposed to be this way.When Congress passed the EnergyEmployees Occupational IllnessCompensation Program Act in 2000, itsintent was to help sick workers get com-pensation and medical care in a timelyfashion.

The act applies to employees whodevelop cancer and other illnesses as aresult of their exposure to radiation, berylli-um or silica while employed by theDepartment of Energy (DOE), its contrac-tors and subcontractors.

Under the program's Part B, a lump sumpayment of $150,000 is given to applicantswhose cancer is determined to be likelyrelated to their employment. They alsoreceive medical expenses from the datetheir claim is filed.

Many die waitingIt can take two or more years to process

a claim. One in 10 Rocky Flats workers diebefore the government pays, the RockyMountain News reported. In those cases,payment goes to survivors.

The DOL sends claims to the NationalInstitute for Occupational Safety andHealth (NIOSH), which has hired a con-tractor to do dose reconstructions that esti-mate how much radiation a worker wasexposed to during his employment.

Film badge readings, medical x-rays,urine analysis, incident reports, co-workerdata, environmental exposure records,technical documents, interview informationand workplace history are used.

NIOSH's contractor enters this informa-tion into a computer program to determineif it is more likely than not that a worker'sillness was caused by workplace exposure.If the probability of a link is less than 50percent, the worker's claim is denied.


D Richard Castillo addresses the Advisory Board onRadiation and Worker Health in Denver. Castilloworked at the Rocky Flats nuclear facility for 27years. He suffers from neuropathy.Photo by Omar Vega/ The Denver Post

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Gathering the information necessary todo a dose reconstruction is not easy.Records are often lost, incomplete, unreli-able and inaccessible. For example, 400boxes of medical records from an Ohioweapons facility were found in a LosAlamos, N.M., landfill contaminated byradiation. Workers cannot access secretgovernment files or personnel records.

There is no guarantee the documenta-tion found is adequate. Nuclear workerstell stories of being told to toss theirbadges that measure radiation exposure,use their last data or their co-worker's dataif the exposure reading was high.

Some question whether science isadvanced enough to fulfill the intent of theprogram. Scientists have had to make somany assumptions and take so manyshortcuts in reconstructing estimated radia-tion exposures that the results may be nomore valid than assuming certain cancersare work-related.

A group of workers from a particularsite can be recommended by

NIOSH and the presidential-appointed Advisory Board

on Radiation andWorker Health to bepart of a Special

Exposure Cohort (SEC) ifdose reconstructions cannot be done withaccuracy and the harm to the group fromradiation exposure is great. Workers withSEC status who have any of 22 radiation-induced cancers and worked at least 250days at their facility receive the $150,000compensation and medical care withouthaving to do a dose reconstruction.

Rocky Flats workers, represented byUSW Local 8031, filed a petition on Feb.15, 2005 for SEC status. NIOSH expandedthe class of workers affected to include allemployees of DOE, its contractors or sub-contractors who worked at Rocky Flatsfrom April 1952 through February 2005,and who were employed 250 workdays.

NIOSH evaluates these petitions andforwards its report to the advisory boardwhich determines whether the governmenthas enough information to accuratelygauge a worker's radiation exposure. Theadvisory board then recommends to theSecretary of Health and Human Services(HHS) whether or not the class of employ-ees should be granted SEC status.

Challenging NIOSH dataAt a June two-day public meeting in

Denver, Rocky Flats workers challenged

the credibility of NIOSH's data by tellingof times where their exposure was notmeasured or was measured inaccurately.

"People were exposed. I can prove it,"said Dennis Romero, a Local 8031 mem-ber at Rocky Flats. "I know how work wasdone on the job. I know how shortcutswere done. I know how management cir-cumvented things so they wouldn't getfines... Safety went out the window."

Last May, the board recommendedSEC status to Rocky Flats workers whowere exposed to neutron radiation from1952 to 1958. At the June meeting, theboard approved SEC status for "workerswho were monitored or should have beenmonitored for neutron dose from 1959 to1966." These two groups covered 4,000former Rocky Flats workers.

However, the board voted 6-4 to notrecommend SEC status for workersexposed to radiation and toxic chemicalsfrom 1967 to 2005. It concluded there wasenough sufficient data to do individualdose reconstructions. This recommenda-tion left 15,000 to 20,000 former RockyFlats workers without expedited compen-sation and medical care.

How many must die?"How many more workers have to die

before NIOSH is 100 percent certain theircancers and illnesses were caused by theiron-the-job exposure to radiation and toxicchemicals?" asked District 12 DirectorTerry Bonds.

International President Leo W. Gerardsaid our union "is prepared to get justice"for these nuclear workers who sacrificedtheir lives for our national security.

"The decision was heartbreaking," saidJennifer Thompson, the former RockyFlats worker who wrote the petition."We're definitely going to file an appealbased on the process and the science.We're not giving up until we achieve jus-tice for all Rocky Flats workers."

If HHS Secretary Michael Leavittdecides in August against the petition, theUSW plans to help the workers appeal hisdecision. The union also is working withthe AFL-CIO and Building Trades unionsto draft legislation to change the way theSEC is done.

"The Bush administration has reallyhurt us," said Michelle Dobrovolny, whohas a brain tumor and liver disease. "Weare the forgotten bunch and that's how weall feel. They don't care about us and whatwe did. We served our country."


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n 1961, President John F. Kennedyannounced the bold challenge of sendingastronauts to the moon within a decade.

In 1969, after only eight years of Americaninnovation, Neil Armstrong stepped out of alanding craft onto the moon's surface, tak-ing what he called "a giant step formankind."

If the country's energies and talents wereagain focused as they were by PresidentKennedy, something just as grand could beachieved — new energy-saving technolo-gies that lessen our nation's dangerous

dependence on foreign oil while creatingnew good-paying manufacturing jobs andimproving the quality of our environment.

That's the lofty yet doable goal of a newstrategic partnership between the UnitedSteelworkers, the nation's largest manufac-turing union, and the Sierra Club, thenation's largest environmental organization.

"It's fabulous. It's something that's wayoverdue,'' USW member Mike Russo saidafter hearing International President Leo W.Gerard and Sierra Club Executive DirectorCarl Pope tout the program with


I

s executive director of the SierraClub, Carl Pope was instrumentalin forging the unique alliance

between the environmental organizationand the United Steelworkers to fight forgood jobs and a clean environment. Hediscussed the project in the followingexcerpts from interviews conducted duringthe "Road to Energy Independence Tour"with International President Leo W.Gerard.

Why partner with the USW?We are both very large and we have

long traditions of fighting for the rightthing. We're both local. Both organizationsderive their strength from people who arerooted in their communities and they'rerooted around the same values, like fair-

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Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell in frontof Philadelphia's Independence Hall.

Both the USW and the Sierra Clubvigorously support the Apollo Alliance,which takes its name from the earlyspace program and aims to spur theeconomy and create jobs by investing inrenewable energy technologies, moreefficient buildings, manufacturing tech-niques and modes of transportation.

The Apollo Alliance was originallylaunched by the Institute for America'sFuture (IAF), a pro-labor progressive

advocacy group whose board of direc-tors includes Gerard. The IAF recentlyvoted to scale up Apollo's operations byhaving former California state treasurerand Democratic gubernatorial candidatePhil Angelides become its chairman.

The Apollo program has beenendorsed by members of the DemocraticGovernors Association in a Decembermeeting with Gerard and ApolloAlliance President Jerome Ringo.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardsoncalled the plan a "solid road map" to end

our reliance on foreign oil and predictedthe issue would be a major focus of the2008 presidential campaign.

"It is the top issue in the presidentialrace, the top challenge facing Americabecause it deals with national security,"Richardson added. "It is focused on stateefforts because states are the incubatorsof innovation, especially when there's anabsence of leadership at the federallevel."

The governors' endorsement followeda three-day whirlwind tour dubbed"The Road to Energy Independence —Renewables Now" — that took Gerardand Pope to St. Paul and Minneapolis,Minn.; Columbus and Cleveland, Ohio,and Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, Pa.

In union halls and on public stagesover the three days late last year, Gerardand Pope called for an innovative 21stcentury energy policy that would createa new generation of domestic manufac-turing jobs while reducing global warm-ing and air pollution.


ness and opportunity, security in thefuture. It is very powerful to bringtogether the concerns of people wherethey live, where our members are, andthe concerns of people where they work,which is what the Steelworkers bring.

Finally, we have a big overlap ofcommon members, folks who would liketo express both elements of their advoca-cy and activism through one alliance.

Trade agreementsOne impetus for the coalition is trade.

That was a very easy one for us. I'm notsure you could write a trade deal thatwould split us.

Fixing global warmingThere are no silver bullets for global

warming. There are silver BBs.We need to make cars, trucks and

SUVs with new technology that is effi-cient. Then we need to make sure thatthey're not just burning gas, they're burn-ing bio-fuels as well.

We need to make sure that new build-ings will be energy self-sufficient.

But we also need to retrofit old build-ings, especially schools and hospitals,public facilities that are right now wast-ing money heating the great outdoors.

We know how to do that. It will cre-ate lots of jobs if we do it.

America's energy policyThe energy sector is the least innova-

tive sector of the American economybecause the government keeps it thatway.

The reality is we live in a rapidlychanging world. The rule in today'sworld is to innovate or die.

Producing vehicles on assembly linesbuilt in the l950s is not innovation.When we make it difficult for electricalutilities to modernize the grid byinstalling digital switches, which everytelephone uses, we're not innovating.

When we make it difficult for glassfactories to find markets for innovativenew products that would keep housescooler in the summer and warmer in thewinter, we're stopping innovation.

Associate Member ProgramIt's been very exciting for a lot of our

members to be able to join theSteelworkers through the AssociateMember Program.

If you don't work in an organizedworkplace you can't join a labor union.For many of our members who had aninterest in unions but didn't know what itwas about, this has been a wonderfulexperience. It's an open door that's reallyimportant.

The future I'd like this collaboration to be a

model for others. I'd like to have these kinds of collabo-

rations — across class lines, across sec-tor lines — become the norm for theprogressive movement.

As far as our partnership with theUSW, I don't know nearly as manySteelworkers as I'd like to. I'd like toknow that whenever I went into a com-munity where there are Steelworkers andSierra Club members, that they kneweach other, that they liked each other,they trusted each other, and they all hadcommon experiences of doing things tomake their communities better places.

We have a future together. It's up tous whether it's a good future.

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"We need to put an end to the lie, themyth, the hysteria that you can't have aclean environment and good-payingjobs. In fact, it's not one or the other. It'sboth or neither," Gerard told a packedmeeting of labor leaders and electedofficials at United Auto Workers Local879 hall in St. Paul, Minn. across thestreet from a Ford truck plant that isslated to close in 2008.

U.S. lags behindThe United States is lagging behind

other countries in taking advantage ofnew green technologies in markets thatcould be filled by U.S. companies andU.S. workers.

Japan, for example, controls 43 per-cent of the solar power market, anindustry invented in the United States.European countries control an estimated90 percent of wind turbine production.

"If we use existing science and createincentives to do inventions and researchon the newest forms of energy efficien-cy, we could create tens of thousands, ifnot hundreds of thousands, of new non-exportable jobs,'' Gerard said.

The USW and the Sierra Club are alsojointly pushing for stronger worker andenvironmental protection in trade agree-

ments. We are working together, forexample, to stop illegal logging inIndonesia that harms the domestic paperindustry.

Gerard and Pope also called for high-er fuel efficiency in domestic-madeautomobiles, arguing that better mileagestandards would help create demand forAmerican manufacturers as well asimprove the environment.

The USW has an estimated 175,000members making products that couldend up in the domestic auto industryranging from metals to tires, plastics,leather and glass.

Innovate or die"We have a great stake in making

sure we can make cars in America, carsthat people want to buy, and unless wedeal with fuel efficiency, they won't buythem,'' Gerard said.

"Don't tell me we can put a personon the moon and find out that Pluto isnot a planet, but we can't put out a vehi-cle made in America with Americanworkers using American products thatgets 35, 40 or 50 miles to a gallon," hesaid to sustained applause.

Participants in the St. Paul meetingdiscussed the possibility of a community

effort to retool the Ford Ranger plantinto a manufacturing site for green ener-gy technologies such as battery-poweredcars, windmills or solar panels. Theplant, located along the MississippiRiver, has its own hydroelectric plant.

Innovation and modernization ofmanufacturing and energy productionand distribution are keys to building abetter future for American workers,Pope asserted.

Hybrid and other clean cars, publictransportation, efficient heating andlighting systems and clean renewablepower plants using solar, wind and cleancoal technologies are keys to energyfreedom. Producing them can createmore than 1.4 million jobs, according tothe Apollo Project, and strengthen oureconomy while simultaneously makingAmerica more secure.

Wind employs thousandsIn Germany, where more than 18,000

wind turbines are spinning, the windindustry employs more than 65,000 peo-ple and has overtaken coal mining as amajor employer, according to theGerman Wind Energy Association.

The German wind energy industry isthat country's second largest consumer

If a tree is felled illegally in Indonesia, does a paper mill worker in Alabama feel it?How about a Sierra Club member in Colorado?

You bet. They got together and did something about it too. But let's start with the tree. The Pacific archipelago of Indonesia is covered with

some of the largest forests remaining in the world. Vast swaths of them are in gov-ernment-owned parks and reserves, where they serve as a mammoth air conditioner,sucking carbon out of the atmosphere and hindering global warming.

To criminals, however, those trees look like dollar signs. They're easily cut outof isolated parks and loaded onto tankers with falsified shipping papers. Too often,they're taken to China and converted into the same sort of slick paper used in thismagazine, officially called coated free sheet paper.

It's cheap to make paper from stolen trees on which no taxes are paid and whichdo not have to be replaced with seedlings. It's hard to compete with that.

U.S. production closingAmerican companies that make coated free sheet paper from trees obtained legal-

ly and replaced with seedlings started closing parts of production lines and cuttingabout 750 jobs a year in 2004.

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of steel, said David Foster, a retiredUSW district director who is the execu-tive director of the Blue Green Alliance."Imagine how that makes the heart of aSteelworker beat.''

In the U.S., most of the progressbeing made in renewable energy is com-ing at the state level while the federalgovernment under the Bush administra-tion has dithered.

In Pennsylvania, where new statelegislation requires electric generatorsand distributors to provide alternativeenergy to retail customers, a big enoughmarket has been created to attractGamesa Corp. of Spain, one of theworld's largest wind turbine producers.

Gamesa has set up three new modernmanufacturing centers on 20 plus acresof the defunct U.S. Steel Fairless Worksnear Philadelphia to produce towers,blades and other parts. It is also operat-ing a separate manufacturing facilityacross the state in Ebensburg, north ofJohnstown. Total employment is pro-jected to be 1,000.

The USW won recognition atGamesa and negotiated a first contractthat included salary hikes, bonuses andbenefits, as well as giving the union aleg up in the growing wind energy

industry. Gamesa spokesman MichaelPeck called it a "world-class agree-ment."

"Our union is proud to partner withGamesa to further grow their domesticmanufacturing base and to promotewind energy as a source of clean,renewable energy and good jobs," saidInternational Vice President TomConway, who negotiated the agreement.

The wind turbines that Gamesamakes in Pennsylvania can each turnout two megawatts ofenergy, enough to

power close to 700 homes. Their steelbases are 260 feet tall to the hub. Theblade radius is roughly 130 feet.

"Right now we have a historicopportunity to forge a new direction,"Gerard said. "Investments in environ-mentally friendly alternative energy pro-grams at the state level, supported byfederal initiatives, can create a newsurge of quality job growth while signif-icantly reducing our dependence on for-eign oil."

Simultaneously, satellite pictures began showing wholemountain ranges of trees disappearing in Indonesia, and astudy by the United Nations' Environmental Program foundthat up to 88 percent of Indonesia's logging was done illegally,clearing as much as 68 million cubic meters of timber annual-ly, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

So when a tree is felled illegally in Indonesia, what both theSierra club member and the Alabama paper mill worker feel isfear. They're afraid of global warming and frightened ofAmerican mills closing.

They acted together to do something about those fears. TheUSW and the Sierra Club, which had formed the Blue GreenAlliance in June of 2006 for just this very sort of project,asked the federal government to impose extra costs on papersent here from China and Indonesia.

The USW and Sierra Club argued that it was only fair totack on the extra costs when the logs used in the papermakingprocess are stolen. They joined NewPage Corp., a Dayton-based paper company, in petitioning the U.S. Department ofCommerce to impose trade sanctions against China's glossypaper products sold in the U.S.

Equalize competition Any government's lax enforcement of environmental laws

should be treated the same way as an illegal subsidy, theyargued. When a country subsidizes a product, the U.S. may

impose trade sanctions on those imports to equalize competi-tion for American companies.

In May, the Commerce Department agreed to impose tradesanctions on glossy paper products that China sells in the U.S.The decision reversed a 23-year-old U.S. policy that hadexcused China, and other communist countries, from anti-sub-sidy laws.

The Commerce Department did not consent to the samerequest for paper from Indonesia. That did not stop the SierraClub and the USW, however. The team now is lobbying forlegislation that would enable Congress to order the CommerceDepartment to investigate situations such as illegal logging inIndonesia, which could then lead to sanctions.

In addition to the devastating environmental damage doneby the illegal logging in Indonesia, the Sierra Club recognizesthe political and economic impact it causes. "This kind of log-ging does not sustain development in Indonesia," said SierraClub Senior Representative Margrete Strand Rangnes, "Behindthe illegal logging are criminals and large corporations. Theyare not individual farmers and families. The money and logsare shipped right out of the country, and the profit goes out ofthe country, and the jobs are lost in the U.S. as well."

What the USW and the Sierra Club want is for the illegalplunder of Indonesia's forests to end. Stopping unfair and ille-gal trade will protect both the environment and good-payingU.S. jobs.

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ark Cieslikowski often feelslike he's been run over by oneof those Continental Tires he

used to make in Charlotte, N.C.The president of Local 850 has gone

round and round with the German-basedtire company in negotiations and is frus-trated by management logic that is ascircular as its principal product.

So it was satisfying for Cieslikowski,who had watched employment in hisplant dwindle from 1,080 to 160 overtwo years, to see retirees win their suitagainst Continental in July.

The court victory, which the companyattempted to appeal just one day later,means Continental must pay bargainedhealth care premiums for 2,000 retireesand their spouses from the Charlotte,Mayfield, Ky., and Bryan, Ohio plants.

Continental stopped paying its fullshare of the premiums last spring.Contractually, the company was obligat-ed to pay approximately $18,000 a yearfor retirees not yet eligible for Medicareand $4,200 for those old enough toreceive Medicare. Instead, Continentalsummarily decided to pay $3,000 foreveryone, regardless of age or circum-stance.

Retirees devastatedCieslikowski said that devastated

many retirees from Charlotte. They justdidn't have the money to make up thedifference in the premiums, and theycouldn't get insurance on their ownbecause no company would sell it tosick, elderly people.

"Because they had pre-existing condi-tions, they could not buy insurance," hesaid. "If you are a diabetic or have highblood pressure, lots of companies willnot insure you."

That left some people too young toqualify for Medicare, but old enough tohave invested a lifetime making tires forContinental without insurance at a

vulnerable time in their lives. That's when the USW and several

retiree representatives filed the classaction suit on behalf of everyone affect-ed.

Continental explained their behaviorto the judge this way: Contracts with theUSW at three plants had expired, so ithad no obligation to pay for health careat the $18,000 and $4,000 per year lev-els.

The fault with that logic is that,unlike other obligations that may endwith a contract, those that are vested donot. They endure beyond expirationdates.

Benefits vestedThe judge was Jack Zouhary of the

U.S. District Court for the NorthernDistrict of Ohio (Toledo). He did notbuy Continental's contention that theretiree's health care benefits were notvested, pointing to contract languagethat locked in the retirees' rights.

In addition, the judge points out in hisdecision, when Continental closed theBryan and Mayfield plants, it signed anagreement with the USW which statesspecifically that its obligations to retireesremained unchanged. Continental triedto twist that language into a relinquish-ment of retiree rights, but the judgerejected the argument.

Never willing to roll over even whendealing with an international giant,Cieslikowski cheered the court win overContinental, though he admitted to somereservations.

"To some extent I am guarded aboutit because I am not used to getting goodnews about this company," he said,"This company runs all over peoplewithout regard to moral issues orresponsibility. It is a foreign companythat uses this country's laws to its bene-fit. Now it is being told it is wrong."

M Ellis Nelson, retired after 31 years, wasforced by Continental's arbitrary healthcare cutbacks to spend $1,011 of his$1,126 monthly pension on health insur-ance premiums.

Bruce Nash retired after 34 years but hadto find a new job to pay for his healthcare premiums after Continental arbitrar-ily reduced the payments. His monthlypension from the company didn't coverthe cost of health care coverage.

Bill Granata gave Continental 34 yearsbut can't afford to pay for insurance forhis wife after Continental's cuts. He alsostopped regular visits to his prostate andskin cancer specialists because he can nolonger afford it.

Larry Little, a Vietnam veteran, retiredafter 32 years, then underwent quadruplebypass surgery. Despite his heart condi-tion, Continental's cutbacks forced himto seek a job to pay for insurance.

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he USW is taking steps to changethe oil industry's safety culturethrough testimony before

Congress and with the implementationof a 10-point safety initiative with BP.

In July, health and safety specialistKim Nibarger told the Senate Committeeon Environment and Public Works thatthe industry has not acted on lessonslearned from accident investigationsconducted by the U.S. Chemical SafetyBoard.

The root causes of accidents thatoccurred before the March 2005 explo-sion at BP's Texas City facility weresimilar to that fatal accident, he said.

"Until the petrochemical industrytakes a serious look at how they contin-

ue to operate, we will continue to seecatastrophic accidents," Nibarger said.

Enforce standardsTo create a safe environment for

workers, Nibarger said OSHA mustenforce its Process Safety Management(PSM) standard, which applies to com-panies that work with hazardous chemi-cals and gases.

He urged employers to treat the PSMas a minimum requirement and said theSenate committee should consult withthe USW on federal enforcement penal-ties and accountability requirements.

Our union wants Congress to makesure that relevant federal agencies adoptCSB recommendations and make statu-tory changes to give both major politicalparties representation on the board.

Nibarger urged Congress to give theCSB, which has been denied access tosome accident sites, clear lead authority

and control over evidence and acci-dent sites similar to the National

Transportation SafetyBoard.

BP safety summitHealth and safety at BP is set to

improve with the implementation of ajoint union-company 10-point plan onstandards for refinery staffing, new man-agement structures, joint process safetyculture, internal maintenance plans andbetter designed work schedules.

Local and international union leadersfrom four BP refineries and the TexasCity chemical plant met with executiveand plant management in June.

"After the Texas City explosion andreports from the CSB and the BakerIndependent Review Committee, webegan a dialogue a year ago to move for-ward," International Vice President GaryBeevers said. "We tried to correct thefailures in the industry on process safetymanagement. This summit was an accu-mulation of those discussions."

International President Leo W. Gerardhad a frank and positive discussion withBob Malone, chair of BP America, andthey helped develop the new health andsafety strategy.

Beevers said BP is making significantstrides to correct past problems and tomove forward in a positive way underMalone's leadership.

"It is this level of cooperation thatwill change BP's safety culture overtime," Gerard said.

New trainingLocal union bargaining committees

sat down with site management at thesummit to establish plans and set atimetable for implementation. Theyagreed to have more maintenance andoperations employees and to re-establishthe chief operator position at locationsthat do not have one. New training pro-grams will be put in place.

A four-person steering committeecomprised of international union leadersand executive-level management willoversee the timetable and progress foreach facility.

Beevers called the summit "a hugechange" and said it would probablyaffect the entire oil industry, at least indi-rectly.

"The entire industry is watching whatwe do at BP," he said. "We anticipate theprocess spreading to other companies."

T

Texas City, Texas explosionon March 23, 2005

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y first union card had the signature ofPhilip Murray at the bottom, and I car-ried it for many years after leaving the

pig iron conveyor belts of the National Steel Co.'sHanna Furnace in Lackawanna, N.Y.

Later I would come to the headquarters of theUnited Steelworkers of America in Pittsburgh,and found his picture was still on the walls eventhough he had been dead for 13 years.

When I sought out a dentist, I soon found outthat he had been named Philip Murray, anhonor his father had wished to bestow on the

man who had effectively changed his lifeand allowed a son to enter college and not

the mill.

Humble immigrantAnd the "old timers" who formed the

original Steel Workers OrganizingCommittee (SWOC) were still around innumbers. Many told stories of the hum-ble immigrant from Scotland who wentinto the mines at Castle Shannon, Pa.when only 14 and who in time was able to

draw thousands to hear his magneticspeeches.

The Allegheny County Council on May 1(an International Day honoring working people in


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stronger union movement is the goalbehind the AFL-CIO's Resolution No. 2.Adopted in 2005 at the federation's

national convention, the resolution offers asweeping plan that aims to increase the diversityof union leadership at all levels.

USW members and staff this summer attendeda series of federation-sponsored workshops meantto help ensure the resolution becomes reality.International Vice President Fred Redmondattended the Detroit event. Other dialogues wereheld in Atlanta, San Francisco and Philadelphia.

Attendees heard from speakers, studiedresearch, shared best practices for recruiting andretaining diverse union leaders and worked insmall groups to come up with ideas on how themovement can do better from the local level.

USW Local 3657 member Marcia McGeeattended the forum in Detroit and said she learned

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most countries) acknowledged this pioneer of the modern labormovement by honoring him with a new designation forPittsburgh's 10th Street Bridge, for decades the artery to thesteelmaking South Side of the city. A 75-foot bell tower erect-ed by the Steelworkers in the 1950s honors Murray in theCastle Shannon cemetery next to St. Anne's Church.

Following final dedication on Labor Day, the Philip MurrayBridge will provide an appropriate companion to three sisterspans that honor other greats in diverse fields who shared hisPittsburgh links.

The former 6th, 7th and 9th Street bridges are now known asthe Roberto Clemente, the Rachel Carson and the Andy Warholbridges. Each has a special connection to Pittsburgh and theforces that shaped 20th century America.

Special connectionsOne of the last true heros of baseball, Clemente embodied

the finest of Hispanic Americans, meeting his death in ahumanitarian mission to Nicaragua.

Carson is commemorated as the spiritual founder of themodern environmental movement, initiating much of her workand the book "Silent Spring" in her Springfield, Pa. homestead,where she helped create an increased awareness of toxics anddangerous workplaces.

Andy Warhol brought attention to the rich cultural and artis-tic tradition of largely blue collar ethnic communities throughhis world-famous art and painting.

Ironically, the region's younger generation might recognizeone or more of these bridge honorees, but it is unlikely thatthey would know of the man who lived in a modest suburbanPittsburgh home and who arguably changed the economics andpolitics of the second half of the last century.

If you entered the work force after 1950, you were affectedby the dynamics of bargaining that were launched by PhilMurray and his concept of industrial democracy. His reach wasimmense — for 16 years he led the Steelworkers and for 12 hewas president of the Committee — later Congress of IndustrialOrganizations, the CIO.

Shaped middle classConsider wages, for that was a time when workers could

shut down an entire national industry, which Murray and hisSteelworkers did in 1946, in 1949 and in 1952, to gain whatwould be in time the fundamental building blocks for socialpolicy achieved through collective bargaining.

Those strikes elicited outrage among the establishment andamong many citizens, but they shaped the middle-class stan-dard of living that included the non-union worker as well as thetrade unionist. Now disappearing, pensions based upon years ofservice and health insurance for families became realities inAmerica, with many employers emulating them.

Who was this Philip Murray, anyway? He made the cover ofTime magazine and was a frequent guest at the White House ofpresidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman.

Historian Melvin Dubovsky said that Murray was differentfrom his labor and industry peers: "He preferred to be amongordinary folk. In negotiations he persuaded, jollied and perse-vered … Murray practiced a form of social democraticCatholicism."

Lessons to learnOne of Murray's confidants in his first decade leading the

Steelworkers was Harold Ruttenberg, an economist who wasthe first research director of the USW. Murray to him, "was aman of the people, who had a touch of greatness, aLincolnesque quality about him and who was essentially aworking-class individual."

The Murray bridge will in a sense be a bridge to a pastindustrial century that represented both glory and power, prov-ing the foundation for America's middle class, now itself indanger of eradication. As with all history, it offers lessons forthose willing to learn.

Russell W. Gibbons was the last program director of the Philip MurrayInstitute of Labor Studies. He is a former editor and communicationsdirector of the USW.

much and brought a lot of informationhome that she spread to her union col-leagues. "We now have Resolution No. 2,and it is time to make this resolutionreal," she said. "We must keep the diver-sity forums going and get progress fromthis."

In Philadelphia, AFL-CIO ExecutiveVice President Linda Chavez-Thompsonsaid diversity is a vital issue for laborleaders. Almost half of union membersare women and one in five is a person ofcolor, she said.

"Often times because we're busy rep-resenting people or because we're busynegotiating contracts we lose sight of thefact that we're not doing enough to makesure that our leadership is diverse, that atall levels people can see themselves in

the leadership of their union," Chavez-Thompson told USW@Work.

"This is a very important dialogue forus. We're trying to make sure that welook like the labor movement that is outthere today."

Welcome allWilliam Lucy, secretary-treasurer of

the American Federation of State, Countyand Municipal Employees and presidentof the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists,also attended the Philadelphia session. Hesaid in order for labor to grow stronger— especially as it is under attack frommultinational corporations and others —the movement has to welcome and devel-op all workers.

"The new work force is made up ofyoung people, immigrants, African-Americans, women, gay and lesbian

workers, and the movement has a respon-sibility to represent their hopes anddreams and aspirations as a part of itsbasic work," Lucy said.

"Secondly, and equally as important, isto have those kinds of people at the tablewhen policies and decisions are beingmade that relate to labor's mission — itseconomic mission, its political missionand certainly the issues that it will dealwith on a social basis."

You can hear more from thePhiladelphia dialogue in POWERcastEpisode 22. Download it onwww.usw.org or from iTunes.


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Kelloggs Contract Ratifiedteelworkers who make Nutri-Grain Bars and Pop-Tarts in PikeCounty, Ky., for Kelloggs ratified

a new agreement that provides forimprovements in most contract areas.

The agreement ratified July 17 bymembers of Local 9345 included a$500 signing bonus, $2.50 in payincreases over four years, a $5 increasein the defined benefit pension multipli-er, and a freeze of out-of-pocket healthcare costs.

This is the first time that an agree-ment with this employer was ratified onthe first vote. Kelloggs bought the plant,which employs about 600 people, in1996.


News BytesNews Bytes

Sweet Outcomes if nothing at all had happened, as if a private equity company hadn'tswooped in and taken over the FiberMark converter plant in Lowville,N.Y. and arbitrarily slashed benefits, as if the average steelworker there

still hadn't lost about $5 in take home pay because of the cuts, the plant managerinvited all the workers to come on down to the annual summer trade show.

He propositioned workers on the 11 to 7 shift first — shut down an hour earlyand get free ice cream in the show tent outside. All 30 workers knew that if theyate ice cream provided by the company that had made their health insurance unaf-fordable, it would make them really sick. So they stayed at their machines.

That embarrassed the manager because no one showed for the sales shows. Sohe ordered the next shift to attend. That put Local 1988 President Roger Turck inan awkward position. He certainly didn't want to violate a company directive, buthe didn't want his union brothers to gag on company ice cream either. So heordered popsicles delivered to the plant and handed one to each worker on the wayto the tent.

The sales people might have been a little intimidated by the line of workersenjoying their own treats and declining ice cream offered by the company. Theplanned hour-long show was over in 10 minutes.

"What we did to them isn't anything like what they did to us," Turck said. "Theystole our wages and benefits but not our will to fight."

Local 1988 is not just winning the fight symbolically. The local learned shortlyafter the popsicle showdown that the NLRB agreed to hear their case against thecompany.

Women's Conference Set for Septembernion women from around the world will meet in Toronto, Ontario on Sept.23-26 at the Sheraton Centre Toronto. The Conference theme is "Women ofSteel: Building Power-Taking Action." The conference registration deadline

is Aug. 29. We expect the turnout to be even larger than the previous conferences.For information and registration, go to www.usw.org/womenofsteel.

teelworkers staff the 2007America@Work AFL-CIOUnion Industries Show at the

Duke Energy Convention Center inCincinnati, Ohio. The show is anannual expo of products and servicesproduced by union workers. Here,volunteers take a short break inbetween handing out free productsand holding several drawings forproduct assortments in the USWpaper booth. From left, VickieBrake, Samantha Herdt, RobertAtkins, Robert Odom, Calvin Welck,Sophia Welck, Carolyn Kirchner,Melissa Herdt and Corrinne Kirchner.

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Gerdau Settlement Leaves Two Open Contractsembers of Local 9777-29 in Joliet, Ill., ratified a four-year agree-ment with Gerdau Ameristeel, leaving two contracts still out-standing during the current round of bargaining.

Nine contracts with Gerdau have been settled since the company tried tobreak the union by locking out members of Local 8586 in Beaumont, Texasfor six months in 2005. At press time, negotiations were continuing forworkers at Sand Springs, Okla., and Calvert City, Ky.

Recent top management changes have led USW negotiators to believethe company may want to develop a more cooperative relationship.

Gerdau is a Brazilian company that has expanded into North America byacquiring existing steelmaking properties, many with USW representedworkers. It is now the No. 2 mini-mill producer.

Strike Leads to Pact at Platinum MineSW members struck Stillwater Mining Co. in Montana for six daysbefore ratifying a new four-year labor agreement with the only U.S.producer of palladium and platinum.

The work stoppage involved about 800 members of Local 11-0001 at aStillwater platinum mine near Nye, Montana, and a related smelter project.

The strike ended July 16 after members ratified the new agreement by a54 to 46 percent margin. It contained improvements over two previous ten-tative agreements rejected by the membership.

Miners got a 3 percent wage hike and support workers received 4 percentin the contract's first year. All workers won 4 percent wage increases in eachsubsequent year. Vacations were improved and benefits were maintained.Emergency leave provisions for new hires were added.

Stillwater is the largest producer of platinum metals outside of Russiaand South Africa.

Community SupportsAluminum Strikers

orkers on strike at Ohio Valley Aluminum Co.in Shelbyville, Ky., have received unprece-dented encouragement and support from the

community in a dispute over their first contract.Since the strike began June 1, a broad array of

civic, labor and community-based organizations haverallied to the cause, including attending a mass rallyJuly 11 at the Louisville corporate headquarters of theparent company, Interlock Industries.

Some 90 workers at the plant, which produces alu-minum billets, are represented by Local 1693. Theamalgamated local represents 1,600 members at awide variety of employers.

Working people and community members havedonated food and thousands of dollars in cash to helpthe families of strikers. A local doctor, David W.Suetholz of Taylor Mill, Ky., provided free medicalcare after the company stripped away workers' meagerhealth insurance when the strike began.

Sparrows Point Goes to Esmarko satisfy the government’s anti-trust concerns, steel giantArcelorMittal has agreed to sell its Sparrows Point plant nearBaltimore to an investor group led by Chicago-based Esmark Inc.

and Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corp.The sale, announced Aug. 2, ends months of uncertainty for the mill’s

USW-represented workers. Mittal had been looking for a buyer sinceFebruary when the Department of Justice ordered the sale.

District 1 Director David McCall, USW chair of the ArcelorMittal bar-gaining committee, said negotiations with both the seller and the newbuyer will be initiated and resolved in the near future.

Esmark and Wheeling-Pittsburgh agreed to merge earlier this year.“We are looking forward to our growing relationship with Esmark and

their commitment to invest in the acquisition,” said International PresidentLeo W. Gerard. “We have full confidence that the Esmark venture willgrow steelworker jobs in Baltimore and fulfill the commitment to theretirees.”

Sparrows Point is a former Bethlehem Steel plant capable of producing3.9 million tons of raw steel annually. Our Local 9477 represents about2,500 active USW members.

Contract with Carlyle ApprovedSW-represented workers at four Goodyear Engineered Productsplants have ratified a new five-year contract with the CarlyleGroup, a private equity firm that is buying the facilities.

The agreement was approved by more than a two-to-one margin atplants located in St. Marys, Ohio, Lincoln, Neb., Sun Prairie, Wis. andMarysville, Ohio. The facilities will become part of EPD Inc. once thesale is finalized.

he USW negotiating committee at the GoldenCrest Nursing Home in Hibbing, Minn., recent-ly settled a first contract. Golden Crest was one

of three lead cases before the National LaborRelations Board last year in the so-called KentuckyRiver decision that redefined the legal definition of asupervisor. Pictured are (back row) Nancy Francis,

Local 9349 presi-dent; Patty Rancourt,unit president; CathyWarner, District 11staff rep. (front row)Theresa Trejo, LPN;Colleen Clusiau,LPN and DebWaara, RN. LPNKristin Jensen is notshown.

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USW-represented miners picket Stillwater Mining Co.Photo by Billings Gazette

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Have You Moved?Notify your local union financial secretary, or clip out this form

with your old address label and send your new address to: USW@Work

USW Membership Department, 3340 Perimeter Hill Drive, Nashville, TN 37211

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44115_P01_36.qxp 8/6/2007 1:46 PM Page 36

Documents

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