The Vote Is In - 82% Vote To Approve The Contract!

After three days of meetings and voting, the results are in. At 5pm today, all ballot envelopes were opened and the results were 96 for the contract and 20 against.

As was explained at the meetings, according to the company - even after this contract MCC Newburgh will be the highest paid can plant in their system. The company made it clear during every bargaining session that they had a hard time increasing that margin much further or higher.

We give the people much credit for realizing that no matter what - having that written contract was the most important subject.

We were glad that everyone recognized that it was the company that thought you were overpaid, not the union. We honestly felt that some of that opinion by the company was only to not appear to be rewarding you for joining a union with improvements. You guys picked it right out too.

Thank you to all of the people who came up afterwords and thanked your reps for the hard work they put in. Those guys and gals gave up a lot of their free time for the benefit of everyone at the plant. IBEW Local 363 thanks them too for being at the table and showing the true feelings of the people.

The message finally has been personally delivered by everyone at MCC Newburgh - working under a contract really is the best option.

Now we move forward into the future with a new company, some new management and a new contract. We have a new foundation on which to build and a voice that we can now call our own - IBEW Local Union 363.

The fact is that YOU - the people who work at MCC Newburgh - are IBEW Local 363 in that plant. YOU are the union - all of you.

Sometime soon, your reps will come to you with the paperwork you will need to complete for your union life insurance policy and IBEW and Local 363 membership. Please work along closely with your reps in regard to completing and returning them to him or her.

Welcome to the IBEW and to Local 363 and congratulations on having a written contract at MCC Newburgh.

Stay Strong, Stay Solid

Additional Meeting Date Added

To accommodate the people who are working their off days and to create another opportunity, we are adding an additional day to the meetings. This additional day is an option for anyone who would like to participate but mainly for those working outside their normal off days on overtime.

The third meeting will begin at 10 am on Monday September 12, 2011. This should give everyone time to attend.

The company wants an answer on the contract ratification by Sepember 15. Part of the contract depends on it being ratified by that date. That was part of the company proposal with a probable contract date of October 1 or before.

We will be mailing a flyer to each persons home tomorrow so that everyone has been notified.

The contract will be very easy to understand for everyone and we will go over it as for long as you would like. I am no hurry at these meetings. I want you to understand it so you know how it covers you.

I will be sending out the mailing tomorrow with all three meeting dates and times. Here are the updated dates and times for our meetings:

September 9, 2011 1:30 pm

September 10, 2011 3:30 pm

September 12, 2011 10:00 am
( additional meeting date )

These dates will allow all to attend based on the crew schedules and make allowances for those working overtime or who may also have a conflict by having the option of an additional meeting.

The meetings will be held at the IBEW Local 363 Building located at 67 Commerce Drive South, Harriman, NY 10926.

See you all there. You can come to whichever meeting is best for you.

Talking Is Done - Contract Meeting Vote Scheduled

The talking is done and we have a draft contract to present and review. Here are the dates and times for our meetings:

September 9, 2011 1:30 pm

September 10, 2011 3:30 pm

September 12, 2011 10:00 am ( additional meeting date )

These dates allow all to attend based on the crew schedules.

The meetings will be held at the IBEW Local 363 Building located at 67 Commerce Drive South, Harriman, NY 10926.

Please pass the word to all of your co-workers. I am posting this in the cafeteria, on the blog, emailing everyone and I am planning to send out a flyer.

See you all there.

Almost Everybody Is Right

Believe it or not, almost everyone on here or involved in the conversation is right about a portion of what they say. I say almost because there are a couple who are plain wrong and just try to fan the flames.

The fact is that there is nothing to argue about with each other at this time. Nobody should be against anyone or what they want. They are the same things that we told the company you wanted anyway. ALL of YOUR ideas hit the table. Every one. Now we are waiting for a confirmation of a compensation package from the corporate higher ups.

Our language is set and the Articles of the contract are in place and ready for review. Although some may never get it - the written contract is an extremely valuable document. Like I said many times before - I wouldn't sell mine for any amount of a yearly raise. Why? Selling that would give me nothing in return for the long run, my future. Mull that one over good - multiple times.

I know people are frustrated and that many are upset over the direction you think the company will be pointing you in.

Wait until you have concrete information before you react to it. I spoke the truth. They did tell us numerous times while we presented different compensation packages that you were already extremely well compensated and the highest paid MCC plant they have.

I believe that you should know that and factor that in to your expectations of what they are comfortable with in regard to your pay. Once we know all of the information, we will bring it to you for your approval.

One more thing, please keep the comments clean.

Stay Strong, Stay Solid, Stay together

The Talking Heads Have Spoken

Your union, IBEW Local 363 and your reps have bargained all of the language pertaining to hours and working conditions. Even though it was a long process, we believe that we have examined each Article of the contract with an eye toward your best interest in every one.

Make no mistake, this was no picnic for your co-workers at that table and it took a lot of dedication and drive to do what those guys and ladies did. we fought for every inch. It got heated a few times but on a whole, everyone respected the other side. We wanted to come out of those negotiations with a mutual respect and understanding for each others concerns. That was our plan and we feel that we have followed it through.

We are waiting on the company reps to caucus with their corporate people about your financial compensation. They have their own opinion about what is fair and right for you. That will take place in the next week or so. What I can tell you is that they believe that you are extremely well compensated already and are struggling with adding to that. I believe you guys need that contract more now than ever. Soon we will review it all and you will vote and decide that question.

Next Negotiation August 15th

The next session of negotiations will be held on August 15th at the Homewood Suites Hotel at Stewart Airport - just down the road from the Newburgh plant.

We will get a late afternoon start on Monday and start at 10am on the days after that. If you would like to visit - please come by. If we are in between breaks we will invite you into the board room where we hold our meetings. We have done that in the past and have had some good discussions and even enlightened a few people on some issues.

We hope to move ahead, clean up the attendance policy language and some other minor wording issues and then get to some financial issues.

Our goal is to complete the negotiations during this session. I believe we have a decent chance at accomplishing that. I must stress though - and I am telling you this for your benefit. I am not rushing it.

That would be a mistake. We will negotiate until we have the contract we will bring back - we know what you guys want and we are going to let the company know what that is.

Stay Strong, Stay Solid

Please Follow This Mans Lead - Perfect!

Joe D. said...

Ive been away awhile and just got back in town. Im trying to catch up with everything. Im dissappointed to see some negative blogs. No matter what people believe in, if anyone has a problem or disagreement with the consensus of the people who voted in this union,please bring your thoughts and concerns to light without tearing down eachother.

We are a union. We have a consensus and we will achieve the goals of the consensus. We are not perfect, but we are willing to try to make things better for the members of this union. That is better than whinning about problems and not trying to make things better. There is always going to be disagreements between people, different points of view,different priorities. We can and have reduced those differences just by talking to each other.

We can and have been talking with the company about things that are important to us all. The company and every individual that works at our plant has a mutual need. We all need to produce a quality product that someone wants to buy.If we dont do that all of us are out of business. Period. Including our union. Sam knows that. The company knows that. Your reps know that.You know that. There. We are all on the same page.

Lets finish this negotiation and take a look together at what the company and the reps that the consensus has asked to represent them have worked on. We have voiced our concerns and they have been heard. The company will sitdown with us very soon and discuss the final aspects that are so important to everyone.

Whatever the final offer is,I truly hope that the company keeps in mind that our consensus, our people,our membership, us individuals have worked hard during all this time to keep our quality product coming out.We deserve the respect of the company. The only way to respect us is to complete our contract with good and respectable compensation that the consensus has definitely has earned.

Thank you Joe D., you are an example of what IBEW Local 363 wishes for and wants at this plant. Thank you for coming back from your vacation and going right back to the grindstone.

Thank you again Joe and all of the other Joes out there, for helping us help the good people of MCC Newburgh.