IAM members recently gathered in York, PA to hold the 76th annual Pennsylvania State Council of Machinists conference. 

Over 100 delegates and guests attended the three-day meeting, with members from all over the state,.

“The participation was fantastic, and the support from Districts 1, 15, 65, 98, 141, and 142 has been incredible,” said Obie O’Brien, Pennsylvania State Council President. “We heard from many political speakers and our attendees were given lots of good information they will bring back to the membership.”

The big message this year was the importance of voting.

“We won’t tell members how to vote, but we sure will educate them on who in Harrisburg and Washington are supporting union labor,” said IAM Eastern Territory General Vice President David Sullivan  

The mid-term election this fall will be on Nov. 8 and members in Pennsylvania and around the country are strongly encouraged to register and vote. 

WATCH: Rich Howell, Vice President of the State Council gives a full recap 

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There’s no doubt that for most airline employees, the freedom and flexibility that our travel benefits provide is a key reason why we chose this line of work. In recent years, as airlines enjoy record load factors (and profits), traveling space-available has become more of a challenge, but with a little bit of planning and luck, it is something we all enjoy. We appreciate the freedom and flexibility to stay in touch with family and friends while we explore the world. Pass travel is priceless and priceless it should stay.

Pass travel programs allow employees to enjoy the products that we create, but they are still the company’s property. When an employee brokers the passes or treats them as personal assets, those actions can get them fired, or even arrested. IAM Committees are very good at preventing unjust terminations, and hundreds of members have been successfully defended against being unfairly fired. These good outcomes, however, do not come to members involved in theft or fraud.

Repeated violations of pass travel programs by employees can prompt the airline to restrict or limit them for everyone.

In summary, messing with your pass privileges is a bad move, so don’t be greedy. As tempting as it may seem to try to monetize this perk, don’t do it. The enhanced travel privileges we enjoy that allow us to choose our traveling companions can be changed at the airlines’ discretion, with notification to the union being the only requirement. You do not have to marry your traveling companion anymore, like the t-shirt says, but be cautious. And know who your buddies are.

Contact an EAP Representative if you have problems handling finances or family life. IAM District 141 EAP Staff and Volunteer EAP Coordinators can help you with resources in the community to address your situation and develop a plan of action to meet your needs. Find more information at https://iam141.org/eap/

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IAM Legislative Director Hasan Solomon was a guest on America’s Work Force Radio to recap the Machinists’ recent legislative conference and highlight the union’s activism on trade, retirement security, pensions, good jobs and right-to-work legislation.

“We brought in over 300 Machinists Union activists from across the country to pretty much speak truth to power,” said Solomon. “As you know, during the campaign we hear a lot of promises and now we’re trying to hold some of these elected officials accountable. We believe that we don’t work for them, they work for us, and it was pretty much a performance evaluation week last week on Capitol Hill.”

Listen to Solomon’s segment on America’s Work Force Radio.

Solomon emphasized that it was the IAM and organized labor that prevented the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) from ever coming to a vote.

“We stood up and were unified and organized and we made sure that anybody who supported TPP, we would not support them,” said Solomon. “Now the main topic is renegotiating NAFTA, which we believe is the worst trade agreement in the history of this country. And we want to make sure it is renegotiated right… But we need to be sitting at the table.”

The program also included a portion of IAM International President Bob Martinez’s comments on Capitol Hill, where he stood alongside Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-CT) and several other senators who co-sponsored the Keep Our Pensions Promises Act (KOPPA) in response to radical changes made by Republicans to multi-employer pension protections.

WATCH: IAM International President Martinez Pushes for Pension Protection Law

To listen to the entire broadcast with host Ed “Flash” Ferenc, go to America’s Work Force Radio.

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IAM members attending the Political Education Program at the William W. Winpisinger Education Center set a new class record for Machinists Non-Partisan Political League contributions during the week.

The class teaches IAM members how to become effective advocates for pro-labor legislation.

Participants are divided into teams to run mock campaigns with an election at the end of class. In addition to the campaign, teams also compete in raising MNPL contributions. The team that raises the most money for the week is declared the winner.

“Congratulation to the winning team, and the entire class,” said IAM Political Director Rick de la Fuente. “What’s really important about the class, isn’t the amazing job they did with the MNPL contributions, but how these members demonstrated what they learned about the political process and working with their representatives to fight for the working class.”

The winning team consisted of Greg Costenaro, Natalie Gonzalez, John Grandestaff, Bruce Hodges, Jonathan Kruse, Will Lukens, Ray Moffatt, Ali Rhodes, Manny Rivero and Sabrina White.

“Our team’s tactics were to raise as much money as possible by raffling unique prizes and never letting up with emails, phone banking and social media,” said team member Ali Rhodes. “We’d like give a special thanks to Sito Pantoja and District 142 for their generosity.”

The post New MNPL Fundraising Record Set at Winpisinger Center appeared first on IAMAW.

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JOBS – PENSIONS – HEALTH & SAFETY – WAGES

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MNPL Facts

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