June 18, 2008
Mr. Terence M. O
Sullivan, LIUNA General President
905 16th
Street NW
Washington D. C. 20006
Dear Sir and Brother,
I received several
phone calls from former 36 members yesterday concerning their future in Hod
Carriers Local 166. I believe Mr.Trenkle, the LIUNA International
Representative, told a member
yesterday morning he knew of no problems with the merger and the members were
happy.
I called Mr. Trenkle
yesterday morning after receiving several phone calls. Mr. Trenkle said he had
made an assessment of the merger and thought everything is okay. I explained
that our members are not okay with the merger and are considering decertifying
the union and going to the press. Unfortunately my cell phone gave out.
Many members feel this
is cover up by The Laborers international Union.
I don’t know
what Mr. Trenkle based his assessment on; our membership bases their assessment
on sitting in hiring hall and not being dispatched in the order they signed in.
Our membership basis
their assessment on having to pay Cobra Coverage since many of them are loosing
their health care coverage from not being employed on jobs in their
jurisdiction since your transfer of their membership to 166.
I tried to telephone
your office, and the lady at who answered the phone at the Laborers
International Union said, I should put everything in writing I want to talk to
you about.
There are several
other very important issues that concern the membership of Local 166 and former
members of Local 36. It should concern everybody in both unions and you Mr.
General President O’Sullivan.
A Plaster Hod Carrier
pays $1.50 for dues check off and $1.10 for organizing $104.00 a week to the
union and $37.00 a month window dues. Local 166 had 165 members prior to the
transfer of the former 36 members. Masonry Hod Carriers pay a $1.00 an hour
dues check off and .60 cents an hour for organizing $64.00 a week and $37.00 a
month.
So a Plaster Hod
Carrier pays $453.00 a month to the union and a Masonry Hod Carrier
pays $253.00 a month to the union
for dues and organizing.
We are not clear who
is getting the organizing money. Our question is why are Local 166 members
paying more than any other Local Union in California? At the LIUNA Convention
.25 cents an hour was passed not a $1.10 or .60 cents an hour. I know other
Locals are having a hard time justifying .25 for organizing to their members.
Mr. General President
you and your assistant, International Vice President and Assistant to the
General President Rocco Davis, both make more than $300,000 a year, Do either
you pay a $1.10 an hour for organizing? How about .60 cents an hour for
organizing like the Masonry members in 166. How much does Rob Trenkle pay for
organizing per hour? I think these are fair questions and don’t mean to
be sarcastic.
Mr. Robinson, the
Business Manager of Local 166, is currently engaging in violation of ERISA laws
he is telling Contractors working in San Francisco and San Mateo Counties to
pay benefits to The Hod Carriers Local 166 Trust Fund. Cliff Davidson of
Davidson Plastering made this statement in front of several trustees and
contractors at a Plaster Trust Fund meeting. We were able to substantiate
similar accusations from members working in Daly City and San Mateo Counties
who showed us their check stubs and were complaining about the $44.00 a week
for organizing. I am faxing check stubs and blacking out all personal
information of the members to avoid any form of retaliation against them for
speaking out.
Mr. Robinson called a
State of the Former Local #36 Pension Plans meeting, since Mr. Trenkle had told
the one of the new Trustees Terrence Foreman the Local #36 was a bad plan and
he had never seen anything like it. I invited International Vice President
Rocco Davis and Mr. Trenkle to attend and ask any questions they might have for
the money managers, actuary’s lawyers. They had scheduling problem and
sent International Representative Ron Myers.
Mr. Robinson has been
a trustee for several years and knows exactly where the benefits are to be
paid. That’s why we have reciprocity with the pension plans. Mister
Robinson boasted that he gave 13th checks to members while the Local
36 plan did not he is absolutely correct. The 36 plan could not afford 13
checks. I say he is doing great job if he can loose 58 members in a year and
give 13th checks.
Another complaint we
have had from members is Mr. Robinson is deducting union dues six months in
advance from member’s vacation accounts. They claim as a condition of
employment they must sign a letter allowing him to deduct the monies in
advance. I am not a lawyer but I believe the California Labor Code has several
sections that cover these kinds of actions. 212,216, 221,222, 223 they might
have changed all these laws since I looked at them.
While we all
understand the need to increase membership we are concerned that Mr. Robinson
is actively recruiting apprentices and giving them jobs in violation of the
ratio’s established in both the Hod Carriers Local 166 and Local 36
collective bargaining agreements. When Hod Carriers trainees were dispatched to
employers under the Local 36 agreement they were dispatched at either 50% or
60% of the full the wages and the deductions for vacation, and dues were
withheld at 50% or 60%. The Hod
Carriers Local 166 Apprentice rate requires a member making $15.56 an hour to
pay $1.50 for dues check off and $1.10 for organizing. Where does all this
money go?
The other day a
community organizer made an astonishing claim that a church group in the
Western Addition of San Francisco gave Mr. Robinson several thousand dollars, I
think it was $10,000 in March to secure jobs and apprenticeship slots for Hod
Carriers from the community and they hadn’t been sent to work yet. We
have about 20 members on the out work list I haven’t seen the church
members sign in yet. More disturbing is several members on the out work list
are minority’s from the various community he is recruiting from.
It has become quite
obvious to us Mr. Robinson is using our union dues and organizing money to
further his own agenda. In the year 2006 Mr. Robinson had 223 members prior to
the transfer of members in March 2007 the local 166 had 165 members a loss of
58.
We both know every
union looses members and you have no control over that. I do not understand how
a local union with 223 members or 165 members can justify 2 office
administrators, Mr. Sam Robinson’s sister Ruby Hill at $13,472.00 a year
and her daughter, Tibet Hill, at $24, 820.00 a year. I bet they both qualify
for the LIUNA and District Council Pension plan.
I hope now you have a
better assessment of what is really going on in local 166 the members
don’t like all the nepotism and illegal dispatching either they are
afraid to speak up. The former San Francisco and San Mateo members fear nobody
and will say what is on their mind.
Mr. Trenkle told me
yesterday International Vice President Rocco Davis is trying to merge all the
Hod Carriers in Northern California into one local union. I took that to mean
the Local 270 members. I know Carlos B. Lujan called me one day and said I
talked to Rocco Davis and I am going to give him the 270 Hod Carriers with the
condition you or anyone related to you can never be an employee of the new Hod
Carrier Union. I just laughed and hung up. I hope Carlos B. Lujan and
International Vice President Rocco Davis tell the 270 Hod Carriers how much
dues and organizing fees they will be paying a month.
The former 36 members
are having a meeting this weekend to discuss decertifying from the union. I am
going to speak against decertification and suggest they form an education
committee and fight from within the system to achieve democracy and fair hiring
halls, and stop the illegal diversion of the Local 36 pension money.
“It is apparent
that Local 166 is ready, willing and able to more effectively represent and
serve those members”
Brother
O’Sullivan, I heard a figure of 7 _ million a year for organizing in
Northern California. For the record I seen billions of dollars in San Jose go
non-union, now I am back in San Francisco and Oakland is going the same way. I
am not trying to be critical of the Organizing Department but accountability
and credibility to the membership is a must.
The lady at your
office said put it in writing what you want to talk about this isn’t
everything but it is a starting point. My cell phone is (415) 239-2865 my Home
phone is
(415) 239-2685
Fraternally yours,
Alex Corns