International Operating Engineer (ISSN 0020-8159) is published by the: International Union of Operating Engineers, AFL-CIO 1125 17 th Street, NW Washington, DC 20036 Subscription Terms - per year Change of Address - Requests must be submitted in writing to the IUOE Membership Department (address above). Include your new address, registration and local union number. POSTMASTERS – ATTENTION: Change of address on Form 3579 should be sent to: International Operating Engineer Mailing List Dept. 1125 17th St., NW, 3rd Floor Washington, DC 20036 Publications Mail Agreement No. 40843045 Canada Post: Return undeliverables to P.O. Box 2601, 6915 Dixie Rd, Mississauga, ON L4T 0A9 Printed in the U.S.A. International Union of Operating Engineers AFL-CIO general officers James T. Callahan, General President Brian E. Hickey, General Secretary-Treasurer Jerry Kalmar, First Vice President Russell E. Burns, Second Vice President James M. Sweeney, Third Vice President Robert T. Heenan, Fourth Vice President Daniel J. McGraw, Fifth Vice President Daren Konopaski, Sixth Vice President Michael Gallagher, Seventh Vice President Greg Lalevee, Eighth Vice President Terrance E. McGowan, Ninth Vice President Mark Maierle, Tenth Vice President Randy Griffin, Eleventh Vice President Douglas W. Stockwell, Twelfth Vice President Ronald J. Sikorski, Thirteenth Vice President James T. Kunz, Jr., Fourteenth Vice President Got Big News ? from Your Local We want to hear about it. trustees Kuba J. Brown, Chairman Joseph F. Shanahan, Trustee Edward J. Curly, Trustee Brian Cochrane, Trustee William Lynn, Trustee International Operating Engineer appreciates the stories and photos we receive from local affiliates throughout North America. Send us your submissions or ideas for stories you would like us to consider. Send your submissions, plus photos (digital images are preferred), to Jay Lederer at jlederer@iuoe.org, or mail 1125 Seventeenth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C., 20036 From the General President The More Things Change... The year of change that really wasn’t IT’S HARD TO believe that another year is coming to a close. When it began, we were promised a time of great change. But as the old saying goes, “the more things change, the more they stay the same.” There has been plenty of drama coming out of Washington, DC all year, but not much has really changed. The economy has continued to chug along and demand for our skilled Operating Engineers remains high. However, there has been absolutely nothing done on the much promised and much anticipated trillion-dollar infrastructure proposal. At this writing, Capitol Hill is consumed with so-called tax reform, but none of the proposals deal with infrastructure investments. It’s a missed opportunity to create real middle-class jobs and doesn’t bode well going into next year. On a positive note, the concept of “apprenticeship” has come roaring into fashion this year. Seems everybody has suddenly discovered what we have known all along—apprenticeships are the best way to grow young talent into life-long careers in the skilled trades. This year’s National Apprenticeship Week in November garnered national and local media attention. Some IUOE locals, along with other unions in the building trades, have had great success marketing themselves in this new environment. The newly found interest in our apprenticeship programs is a real opportunity to showcase all of our top-notch training, including the preapprenticeship and pipeline programs. Our training is what makes the Operating Engineers stand out above the rest and how we best grow our market share. The Department of Labor also marked the week by convening the first meeting of the President’s Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion. Already, there have been some mixed signals about where our federally registered programs stand with this Administration and we will have to keep an eye on what this group produces. Fortunately, the building trades are well represented on the committee. This year was different in a serious way when, over a short period of weeks, both the United States and Canada were subjected to a series of deadly and destructive natural disasters. Many IUOE members and their families were directly affected by hurricanes and wildfires on a scale not seen in generations As is the case during events like these, many IUOE members in the affected areas braved the elements and brought their skill and determination to aid emergency first responders. Many more Operating Engineers have answered the call to help in the recovery efforts. I am pleased to report that to date 62 Locals and 142 individual members have stepped up and donated nearly 0,000 to the IUOE National Charity Fund. These funds have been enormously helpful to members who have suffered severe, and in some cases total, losses of homes and property. On behalf of General Secretary Treasurer Hickey and me, we are very grateful to [James T. Callahan] the generosity of our fellow Operating Engineers. I also want to highlight a special group of 36 Operating Engineers from Locals 14, 15, 478 and 825 who volunteered to help the people of Puerto Rico after hurricanes swept through and paralyzed the island for many weeks. These members joined 300 other union workers from other skilled professions who flew to the island together as part of an AFL- CIO sponsored relief mission. The two weeks these members spent assisting others is really what the labor movement is all about. Well done and thank you all! So, it’s been a year of ups and downs, challenges and opportunities. We don’t know what next year will bring, but I do know that we will face it together as a strong and vibrant union. I wish every member a peaceful holiday season spent with friends and family. See you next year. Work safe. 4 INTERNATIONAL OPERATING ENGINEER FALL 2017 5
