Ordinary Wins, Extraordinary Local
How do you measure a union local’s greatness? By any yardstick, Local 1805 (Council 31) measures up.
ALTON, ILLINOIS
Mike Amburg was a corrections supervisor with an unblemished record of 16 years at Illinois Youth Center Pere Marquette when he was fired for allegedly staging a fight between two juvenile delinquents. It was July 1997.
“I’m a single parent and my son depends on me for support,” says Amburg, who was forced to take an $8-an-hour job as a welder to make ends meet.
“I contacted my union representative,” says the 17-year member of AFSCME Local 1805 (Council 31). His steward, George “Ed” Good, and Council 31 fought the case all the way to arbitration, where the arbitrator ruled against management. In June 1998, Amburg was restored to his position.
“The union paid my expenses and provided me with legal staff,” says Amburg. “They were always calling and checking on me. They were very supportive. Having that support kept me from giving up.”
It is ordinary successes like this that make Local 1805 an extraordinary group, and an example to locals throughout the nation.
Local Pres. Ed Good — the steward who represented Amburg — believes in the words of the local’s constitution: “Unions are under a solemn obligation: to represent members forcefully and effectively in negotiations with management and to conduct internal union affairs according to democratic standards.”
These are high standards. The members and officers of Local 1805 work hard to live up to them. Members like Amburg would say that they’re succeeding.
ONE VOICE. John Werner, vice president of Local 1805 and chief steward for the department of natural resources, believes the mission of a local union is “to hold all the workers together so we speak as one voice.”
That’s no easy achievement. This conglomerate local just east of St. Louis has close to 1,000 state workers spread across four counties, 26 agencies and 59 worksites. The local has no office, since no location would be convenient for a majority of members. And members work in a wide assortment of professions — everything from secretaries to parole agents to scientists. Moreover, 360 of those 1,000 workers were new to the local in January, when the members of previously independent AFSCME Local 2000 became a part of Local 1805.
Keeping this local union running smoothly could be a full time job for any executive board. But this board’s seven members work full time for the state. The work they do for the union — and there’s a lot of it — is unpaid and on their own time. Local leaders have cre-ated an effective union by building an extended network of stewards and activists, promoting strong membership communication, and implementing fiscal checks and balances. Says member Richard Arnold, “I’m getting my money’s worth.”
A STRONG NETWORK. Arnold is right: Joining a union is a great way to increase your paycheck. Nationwide, union members like those in Local 1805 make an average of 33 percent more than non-union workers.
But a good union improves more than pay. This local is constantly fighting to improve working conditions. Labor/ management committees exist at most agencies, providing workers with a way to affect the daily details — and the long-term aspects — of their jobs. In the last contract, the union bargained a faster grievance procedure.
No matter how great it looks on paper, though, a contract is only as strong as the people enforcing it. Stewards are a key part of that enforcement.
Good believes a local’s first responsibility is to “supply the best resources we can to the members and get them interested and organized.” He relies on a network of stewards to help achieve these goals.
Each of the 26 state agencies within this local has its own chief steward; larger agencies have multiple stewards. They keep in touch with fellow members by bulletin board and by walking around at lunch. Most attend monthly meetings and bring news back to the membership.
Werner, himself a chief steward, says, “A steward makes sure people understand the contract, and is someone to talk to you and help you with grievances. We’re always there for our members.”
OPEN COMMUNICATION. Communicating with the members isn’t just a job for stewards, however. The local gets the word out through monthly meetings, a newsletter, and regular visits to worksites by the local president and the Council 31 staff representative.
Meetings are held on the second Thursday of each month. The regular date makes it easier to remember, Good says. The newsletter — which is mailed two to four times a year — includes the union’s most recent financial statement, and a list of officers and their phone numbers.
To catch up with those folks who can’t make it to the meetings, the local’s president and staff representative visit as many worksites as possible. Since he works full-time, Good makes these visits on his lunch hour. He estimates that they visit close to 80 percent of all worksites each year. Right now, he’s focused on visiting each of the local’s newest members — the folks who used to be a part of Local 2000. He says, “You try to provide that hospitality.”
POLITICAL ACTIVISM. Membership Coordinator Mary Laurent helps implement the phrase in the local’s constitution that says, “For unions, the work place and the polling place are inseparable.” She does this by serving as chair for her local chapter of PEOPLE, AFSCME’s political action committee. PEOPLE stands for Public Employees Organized to Promote Legislative Equality.
Laurent believes part of a union’s mission is to “try to get members involved in politics because it does affect their jobs.” Members participate in phone banks, campaign door-to-door, endorse candidates and contact their legislators about bills affecting them. The local also boasts high PEOPLE participation: 133 members, over 10 percent, contribute money to PEOPLE. And 103 of those contributors are members of PEOPLE’s VIP program, which means they give $50 or more each year.
FISCAL INTEGRITY. When members like Arnold talk about getting their money’s worth from the union, they point to the fact that the union’s officers “give a lot of their own time for nothing in return.”
Officers are cautious with members’ money. When asked about the local’s financial checks and balances, Treas. Steve Deitrich ticks off a long list: a written monthly report of revenues and expenses presented at the membership meeting; two officers’ signatures required on every check; checks that can’t be signed until there’s a name, expense and amount on them; checks that can’t be made out to cash; a receipt required for every expense; and, at every meeting, having the name and amount on each check read aloud before the members vote to authorize it.
In addition, three elected trustees audit the books every four months. These officers serve staggered three-year terms.
Says Deitrich, “People who paid dues deserve to have that money accounted for. If they went to buy a car, they’d look at it. They deserve no less than our doing the same.”
By Alison S. Lebwohl
