Resolutions That Work
Thinking about quitting smoking or losing weight to start off the millennium? Before you resolve to do anything, take a look at some resolutions that a few of your union brothers and sisters have promised for 2000. They have resolved to make positive changes at the workplace for themselves and their co-workers.
Henry Lykes, president of Local 1659 (Council 25), Wayne County, Michigan
Become more conscious and aware of what goes on at the worksite, outside the worksite, and internally within the council, the union and especially the International.
Julie Curtis, Local 1067 (Council 93), Massachusetts Community State Colleges
We need to educate our members about what their rights are. If they know what their rights are then they can sometimes take care of problems themselves. I think management needs to be educated about what our rights are, too. As much as we work together, we still are having problems.
Leo Martinez, Local 1593 (Council 64), Topeka, Kansas
Really strive that extra mile to help improve the public’s perception of government workers. I also plan to volunteer to help maintain community services.
Teresa Poland, Local 2048 (Council 61), Des Moines, Iowa
With all the violence around the state with students in the schools, I’m going to try a little harder to reach more of those kids. I’m not a school official or anything, I’m a bus driver. But by just saying good morning you start getting a smile from them.
Maj. Shirley Coody, president of Local 3056 (Council 17), Angola, Louisiana
As president of the local, I’d like to get the union members working more closely together so that they’ll have more of an understanding of what each is trying to accomplish and hopefully work together to accomplish it.
Tom O’Keefe, president of Local 535 (Council 76), Denver
Unite the union and get more people involved. We do have some activist blood out there in some of our new people. Through better communication we can cultivate that and steer them into the places where they can learn to be responsible.
Jerry Meyers, Local 2843 (Council 61), Dubuque, Iowa
Find a way to get workers to come into this kind of work. I work in a county nursing home. I wrote Vice President Gore, Senator Harkin and the mayor and city manager here in Dubuque. I told them that I am almost 40 years old, and most of the employees who are doing the same job are between 35 and 40. We can’t get new employees 19 and 20 year olds. They’re not interested in this kind of work. It’s not real glamorous and it’s not a real high-paying job.
Bryan Lamirande, Local 1444 (Council 93), Coos County, New Hampshire
When we go into negotiations and reach a tentative agreement on an issue, either that day or at the next meeting, the language to what we’ve agreed to is going to be written down and both management and labor are going to sign their names under it. And if they can’t put it in writing, I’m not going to move on to the next issue.
Branson Kitchens, president of Local 1644, Atlanta
We need to continue to organize internally to get 80 percent eligible membership. We need to work on getting a raise for the membership; we haven’t had a raise in 10 years.
By Jimmie Turner
