E-NEWS FROM LOCAL 2111 - FALL 2007

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
(John Bachelor)

Greetings everyone!

My weatherman can beat up your weatherman!

At a recent Dundalk forum, when questioned about the company’s decision to stay open the evening of Tuesday the 12th of February, a company senior management type replied that they had their own weatherman and that the local weather folks could not be relied upon because their reports were too emotional.   Well that may be, but the bottom line is this, they blew it.  I walked out of my office at 20 minutes to 4 in the afternoon and it was beginning to ice up at that time.  Several folks remarked to me that they went to several sites that have ground sensors and they had indicated that the temperature readings were between 27 and 29 degrees.  I received reports of heavy icing from both the eastern and western fronts.  All in all, it was a rotten night to be traveling.
            Now what escapes me is why the company reps can’t walk outside and see for themselves that the conditions are becoming treacherous, and that leaves me with a lot of questions.  When you get to the bottom of it the question is one of common sense.  If you don’t know or you solely rely on one source of information you expose yourself as being uninformed.
            So much of that goes on around here and this is just another example of that.  In many ways we are all guilty of this.  However, if you are a member of the $100,000 club we expect you to be educated enough to know to use all the tools available (which includes common sense) to make decisions.
            The second part of this problem lies in the thinking process; to be exact, whether it’s more important to display loyalty to the idea that we are not going to close short of nuclear catastrophe (and I’m not certain even then) or to display a keen sense of right and wrong.  Certain staff responsible for decision making have a keen sense of the president’s feeling on closing, and that affects things in an odd way.  They are caught between the safety of students and staff versus protecting their own hide.  If you were a member of the $100,000 club charged with making the call where would your loyalty fall?
            To their credit, the president said that they made the wrong call.  But for the future who will suffer from this lack of common sense and what will be the cost?

 

A MESSAGE FROM YOUR BARGAINING TEAM
(John Bachelor, Pat Beard, Doug Frantz, Mark Trojan)

Bargaining between the community college and the members of CWA Local 2111 began Thursday, February 7th at 2pm. 

Your bargaining team requests your support in the following way.  We would like you to wear the shirt you recently received from the local on days that your team is bargaining with management. We will keep you informed by email and by the phone tree of each session.  Also at the hour when that particular day’s bargaining begins, we would like you to rise from your seat at your workstation, take a cup of your choice and a pencil and tap on the cup for ten seconds to demonstrate solidarity with your bargaining team.  The following items will be a subject for bargaining:

• Wages
• Benefits
• Working Conditions
• Safety
• Grievance Process
  

These are just a few examples.  We intend to explore many avenues of discussion centering primarily on issues that have arisen from the last four years. Remember, there is no Union without YOU! 

CWA HOLIDAY PARTY 2007
(Laura Pilat)

CWA members rang out the old year, 2007, in style.  This year’s party was a little different than past years.  This year, we decided to cater the event ourselves, to cut costs and expense.  The food was prepared by John Bachelor, President, and was excellent.  All the men were in the kitchen helping out while the females were out on the floor helping out in that way.  Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves as the camaraderie brought everyone together as a group effort.  

The highlight of the party was the door prizes given away at the end of the night.  This year’s big winner of the cash door prize was Kathy Wehner, of the Dundalk campus; she walked away with $146.00.  Then as an added bonus, some food items were given away such as:  steamed shrimp, potato salad, coleslaw, chips, pretzels, cake and chips.  Everyone was winning something!

There was the usual “12 days of CCBC Christmas skit” performed by 12 volunteers.  Many thanks and hats go off go to:

• Norm McCullough (Essex) Day 1
• Kirk Soistman (Dundalk) Day 2
• Clark Romans (Essex) Day 3
• Barbara Hutchins (Essex) Day 4
• Wanda Johnson (Hunt Valley) Day 5
• Pat Williams (Catonsville) Day 6
• Ruth Ambrose (Essex) Day 7
• Judy Woke (Essex) Day 8
• Sue Weglein (Dundalk) Day 9
• Candy Richardson (Dundalk) Day 10
• Donna Vignola (Essex) Day 11
• Doug Frantz (Catonsville) Day 12

 

Congrats to the five lucky people who won the $25.00 door prizes for the pencil games.  They were:  Josie Lepper (Dundalk), Cathy Frantz (Catonsville), Josie Lepper (Dundalk), Patty Trojan (wife of Mark Trojan, Essex), and Sharon Soistman (wife of Kirk Soistman, Dundalk).

New t-shirts were handed out at the party and afterwards to every member.  Our new blue contract negotiation t-shirts were given to everyone who attended to wear on days when our negotiating team were going to bat for all of us and our contract.

Thanks to everyone who made this party a huge success.  Working together brought us together.  We are looking forward to seeing you again next year.  Best wishes for a successful 2008.

CONGRATULATIONS JOE MAGUIRE

Congratulations to Joe Maguire, Technical Services Assistant at the CCBC Dundalk Library, and CWA Local 2111 member in good standing! Joe recently received a Masters degree in Psychology from Capella University. Joe's graduation was held at the Symphony Hall, Atlanta, Georgia on Saturday, March 1, 2008. Joe and his wife traveled to Atlanta to attend his graduation ceremony.
Congratulations Joe - from your CWA Local 2111 brothers and sisters on your achievements!

DO YOU KNOW…

…your rights during investigatory interviews with the company, otherwise known as "Weingarten Rights"?
The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) gives employees the right to have the assistance of union representation during investigatory interviews. Although not explicit in the Act, the right was declared by the US Supreme Court in 1975 in NLRB vs. J. Weingarten, Inc. The rules the court announced are known as Weingarten rights.
Employees sometime confuse the Weingarten rules with the Miranda rules. However there is a big difference in the two rules. Under Miranda rules police who question criminal suspects MUST notify them of their right to remain silent and to have an attorney present during questioning. Under Weingarten employers have NO obligation to inform the employees of their rights to union representation. The employee must ask for union representation in such meetings
An investigatory interview occurs when:

• Management questions an employee to obtain information and
• The employee has a reasonable belief that discipline or other adverse consequence may result from what he or she says.

Investigatory interviews relate to such subjects as:

Not every discussion with management is an investigatory interview. For example, a supervisor may speak to an employee about the proper way to do a job. Even if the supervisor asks the employee questions, this is not an investigatory interview as the use or possibility of discipline is remote.
However a routine conversation changes character if a supervisor becomes dissatisfied with an employee’s answers and takes a hostile attitude. If this happens, the meeting becomes an investigatory interview and Weingarten rules apply.
When a supervisor calls an employee to the office to announce a warning or other discipline that has already been decided it is not an investigatory meeting since the supervisor is just informing the employee of a previously arrived-at decision. Such a meeting becomes an investigatory interview, however, if the supervisor asks questions that are related to the subject matter of the discipline.
Having a steward present can help in many ways. The steward can:

The Employee Rights under Weingarten rules are as follows:

• The employee may request union representation before or during the interview. Remember the company does not have to offer union representation.
• After the request, the employer must choose from three options.
  • Grant the request and delay questioning until the union representative arrives.

If the employer denies the request for union representation and questions the employee, it commits an unfair labor practice and THEN the employee may refuse to answer.
Although some supervisors sometimes try to assert that the only function of a steward at an investigatory interview is to observe the discussion in other words be a SILENT witness this is WRONG. The steward has the right to counsel the employee during the interview and to assist the employee to present the facts. Legal cases have established the following rights and obligations of the steward.

1. When the steward arrives, the supervisor must inform the employee and the steward of the subject matter of the interview: for example, the type of misconduct, which is being investigated. (The supervisor does not, however, have to reveal management’s entire case.)
2. The steward can take the employee aside for a private pre-interview conference before the questioning begins.
3. The steward can speak during the interview. (But, the steward has no right to bargain over the purpose of the interview or to obstruct the interview.)
4. The steward can advise the employee not to answer questions that are abusive, misleading, badgering, confusing or harassing.
5. When the questioning ends, the steward can provide information to justify the employee’s conduct.

If called to a meeting with management, read the following statement to management BEFORE the meeting starts!!

ASK YOUR UNION

Q: How many times do I have to request vacation before I receive an answer?
A: You should be turned down only once for vacation time requested and an answer should be given to the employee within 10 business days following the request.  (See Section 9.3 - Use of Vacation Leave)  Your request should be submitted at least 10 days prior to the leave to be taken.

 

 

THANK A LABOR UNION IF YOU HAVE:

• Health Insurance
• Higher Wages
• Sick Leave
• Overtime Pay
• Pensions
• Paid Holidays
• Paid Vacations
• 8 Hour Work Days
• Social Security
• Jobsite Safety
• Ending of child Labor
• Increased Job Security
• Unemployment Insurance
• Family and Medical Leave
• Severance Pay
• Maternity Leave

 

The efforts of the American Labor Movement brought about all these benefits. Unfortunately most Americans take these benefits for granted.

INJURED AT WORK? DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT WORKERS’ COMPENSATION?
Please visit the Kahn, Smith & Collins, P.A. website for a variety of services for Union families.

CWA LOCAL 2111 E-NEWS
Remember, to please send your contributions and comments to Laura Pilat (LPilat@ccbcmd.edu) or Rich Barnett (RBarnett@ccbcmd.edu)

MOVING?? LET US KNOW!!
If you are moving or changing your name or your phone number or any of your contact information, please let us know. Even though you change your contact information with the college, that information is usually not shared with CWA. Returned and forwarded mail results in an extra expense and additional cost for the union. Please send your updated information to one of the union officers listed below. Thank you!

CWA LOCAL 2111 WEBSITE
Be sure to check the CWA Local 2111 website for…

CALENDAR…information about union events and meetings. Meetings start promptly at 6:00 PM. Topics of discussion, agenda items, and meeting locations will be posted on the website two weeks prior to the meeting.

GRIEVANCES…information and updates concerning grievances filed by your local on behalf of CCBC employees who are members of CWA Local 2111. Your right to union representation and redress is the backbone-benefit of your union membership!

YOUR UNION OFFICERS
President: John Bachelor
Executive Vice President: Pat Beard
Secretary/Treasurer: Norman McCullough
Vice President/Catonsville: Doug Frantz
Vice President/Dundalk: Mark Trojan
Vice President/Essex: Clarke Romans
Newsletter: Laura Pilat, Rich Barnett
Webmaster: Michael Redding

 

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ARCHIVED NEWSLETTERS:
Summer 2007
March 2008