Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union
September/ October 2019
Volume 21 Number 5
the PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
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BCTGM Continues the FIGHT for Safe Workplaces
On September 25, 2019 while working at the Fiera Foods bakery in Toronto, Ontario, a temporary worker was killed when he was crushed to death while cleaning a machine. Sadly, he was the fifth temporary worker to be fatally injured while working at the company in the last two decades. A 2017 Toronto Star investigation into the company found that temporary workers at Fiera Foods received little to no workplace safety training, were paid under the table through payday lenders, and were often considered “temporary” for their entire employment, for months or even more than a year. Sadly, these practices happen at employers across North America, usually in non-union workplaces. Workers in the North American food processing and agricultural sectors are subject to some of the most harmful hazards faced by workers in any industry. Fatal combustible dust explosions, exposures to hazardous chemicals, repetitive motion disorders, asphyxiation by grain engulfment and respiratory diseases are all hazards workers in our industries must face on a daily basis. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2017, 5,147 workers lost their lives on the job as a result of traumatic injuries. Everyday in the U.S., an average of 14 workers die because of injuries suffered at work. This does not include those workers who die from occupational diseases, estimated to be 95,000 each year. These are staggering numbers. The BCTGM International Union, and all of our Local Unions, place the safety of our members as one of our most important priorities. In BCTGM-represented facilities there are avenues that we can take to keep our members safe. Joint health and safety committees, if run properly with worker and union input, can eliminate hazards, study near misses, and engage in root cause analysis to free the workplace of hazards. Our members are protected by smart shop stewards and local union officers that know their legal rights under OSHA. They can speak out against hazardous conditions knowing they are protected by both a collective bargaining agreement, as well as the law. Our local unions request the company’s injury and illness logs (OSHA Form 300) to ensure that accurate records are being kept and to identify any troubling injury trends. And our local union leaders fight back when employers try to implement behavior-based safety programs that suppress the reporting of injuries. All of these actions help keep our workplaces a little safer than they might otherwise be. Non-union workplaces do not have any of these safeguards and are too often exposed to dangerous hazards that lead to injuries, illnesses and sometimes death. These employers know that OSHA is unlikely to investigate their facilities. And now, under the current Trump Administration, things have gotten much worse. 2
Many of OSHA’s senior executive positions are now empty and filled with temporary “acting” staff, including the top position at the Agency. Many of the career staffers, who have dedicated their working careers in the fight for safe workplaces, have retired or left and have not been replaced. The number of OSHA inspectors is at the lowest level since the inception of OSHA in the 1970’s. According to David Michaels, who led OSHA for eight years during the Obama administration, the Department is suffering from “malignant neglect” under the current administration. The results are not surprising: fewer and shorter inspections, ignoring common workplace hazards like repetitive motion disorders and heat stress, and a massive decrease in the number of high-penalty cases. For all intents and purposes, the Trump Administration has abandoned its role in keeping our workplaces safe. This is a dereliction of duty. Workplace injuries are preventable. We need employers to respect OSHA standards and eliminate hazards by getting to the root cause. Secondly, we need a strong OSHA to keep these employers honest. Sadly, the hollowing out of OSHA has allowed employers to ignore the law, and is resulting in injuries and fatalities that should not be happening. The BCTGM will remain vigilant in our fight for safe workplaces. We must be just as vigilant in securing an OSHA that will protect all workers in the workplace. To do any less would dishonor all of those good, hardworking men and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice on the job.
- David B. Durkee, BCTGM International President
BCTGM News
Official Publication of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union 10401 Connecticut Avenue, Kensington, Maryland 20895-3961 (301) 933-8600 www.bctgm.org David B. Durkee, Editor Corrina A. Christensen, Assistant Editor BCTGM General Executive Board President David B. Durkee • Secretary-Treasurer Jethro Head Vice Presidents Shad Clark • Roger Miller Ron Piercey • Brad Schmidt • Anthony Shelton BCTGM General Executive Board Members Joyce Alston • John Bethel • Thomas Bingler • Richard Davis Pierre Luc Ducet • Paul LaBuda • Mary Trujillo Earl Lublow • Letitia Malone • Gary Oskoian • Paula Steig Doyle Townson • Jeff Webb • Donald Woods BCTGM News (ISSN 1525-4860) is published bi-monthly by the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union, 10401 Connecticut Avenue, Kensington, MD 20895-3961. Periodicals postage paid at Kensington, MD and at additional mailing offices. Subscription to new members only. Postmaster: Send address changes to BCTGM News, 10401 Connecticut Avenue, Kensington, MD 20895-3961.
BCTGM News
BCTGM, IUF Affiliates Protest CocaCola’s Human Rights Violations Led by the IUF, unions representing Coca-Cola workers around the world held a spirited demonstration on September 12 outside a Coca-Cola Company-sponsored conference on business and human rights at the company’s global headquarters in Atlanta. Representatives from the BCTGM International Union and Local 42 (Atlanta) participated in the protest which also included other IUF North American affiliates. The group joined IUF President Mark Lauritsen and representatives from the IUF’s International Secretariat outside the Coca-Cola offices. The IUF, which represents the vast majority of union workers in the global Coca-
Left to right: L. 42 Pres. Darrell Lane, member Darrell Johnson, Intl. Rep. Zach Townsend, Southern Region Intl. VP Anthony Shelton, member Lewis Evans, L. 42 Organizer Darrell Copeland, member Stacey Porter, and L. 42 Bus. Agt. David Cooper. September/October 2019
Cola system, declined an invitation to participate in the conference designed to put a positive spin on the company’s operations at a time when Coke is systematically violating the rights of its workers and those employed by its bottlers in Indonesia, Haiti, Philippines, the U.S. and Ireland. IUF General Secretary Sue Longley reaffirmed the IUF’s support for workers in the global Coca-Cola system struggling to exercise their rights saying, “It is sheer hypocrisy for Coca-Cola to host a human rights conference when Coca-Cola workers in four countries have been struggling for years to exercise their basic rights against strong company opposition, harassment and intimidation. It’s time for the Company to take concrete action in place of public relations exercises and deliver on its human rights obligations.”
L. 42 Organizer Darrell Copeland, Retired IUF General Secy. Ron Oswald, Southern Region Intl. VP Anthony Shelton and Intl. Rep. Zach Townsend.
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Solidifying the BCTGM’s Future Nineteen new local union officers from throughout the U.S. gathered at the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) in Linthicum, Md. in September for an intensive
one week educational conference. The training, administered by the BCTGM Research & Education Department, focused on developing the leadership skills of newly elected local union officers.
The intensive daily classroom sessions are made up of workshops, presentations, guest speakers, small group activities, and both group and individual interactive projects. The program focuses on local union management, organizing, workplace health & safety, arbitration, communication and social media, political action and preparation for contract negotiations. There was also a special session on the financial record-keeping responsibilities for financial secretaries.
The new officers were split into separate groups for the day focused on contract negotiations. Pictured here are the teams offering closing arguments during a mock negotiation session.
Alex Kellogg, Vice Pres./Bus. Agt. Local 81 (Traverse City, Mich.) (left) and Jamie Moreno, Bus. Agt. Local 9 (Seattle) (right).
BCTGM Intl. Director of Organization John Price led a two-day workshop on organizing.
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through Continued Education The training received excellent reviews from the local union leaders, who cite interactive learning as the overall favorite aspect of the week-long training experience. “The three most valuable topics covered this week concerned gaining a better understanding of financial laws; organizing to build strength in numbers; and negotiations, making sure we know and understand what to do and not to do during contract negotiations,” reflects Alex Kellogg, Vice President/
Business Agent Local 81 (Traverse City, Mich.). Jacqueline Johnson, Financial SecretaryTreasurer of Local 36G (Buffalo, N.Y.), said the most useful subject to her as a new leader concerned contract negotiation tactics. “I have enjoyed my time here meeting other union brothers and sisters that I know I can call on if I have a need. I didn’t realize how much the International is willing to be there for local union leaders like me should I need it,” concluded Johnson.
Small group discussion is an important element of the week-long training that many officers credit as being crucial to their educational experience.
Jacqueline Johnson, Fin. Secy.-Treas. of L. 36G (Buffalo, N.Y.) (left) and Kerry Williams, Pres. L. 374G (Lancaster, Pa.) (right).
The BCTGM Local Union officers participated in the BCTGM’s email campaign to Congress urging support for the Butch Lewis Act of 2019 (S. 2254).
September/October 2019
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BCTGM Intl. Rep. David Woods leads a discussion on establishing bargaining points.
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Stewards Help Build the Strength of the Union Stewards in Baltimore and Lancaster, Pa. have successfully completed education programs developed by the BCTGM International Research and Education Department. Topics covered during the International’s steward education program include grievance investigation, understanding the contract, legal rights, health and safety in the workplace and communicating with union members. All programs feature presentations, small group activities and active discussions and debates. In Lancaster, Pa., BCTGM International Representative Zach Townsend led a stewards training for Local 374G focused on reviewing the important roles and responsibilities of shop stewards. “Steward education is vital to every local union,” notes BCTGM Director of Research & Education Matthew Clark, who led steward a training seminar for Local 68 in Baltimore. “Stewards make collective bargaining 6
agreements meaningful by helping their coworkers enforce the contract and defend their rights on a day-to-day basis,” Clark adds. According to Local 68 Financial Secretary/Business Agent and GEB member Gary Oskoian, the steward training was an overwhelming success. “We had a number of new stewards in this class and they were thankful for all they learned. No matter how many years our stewards have been in these classes, they truly enjoy the education they receive,” reflected Oskoian.
BCTGM News
Pictured here, left to right, are Kirill Buketov, IUF-UITA-IUL International Officer/Tobacco; James Ritchie, IUFUITA-IUL Assistant General Secretary; Baldemar Velasquez, Farm Labor Organizing Committee (FLOC) President, Jacek Labedzki, Poland Representative NSZZ Solidarnosc, BCTGM Intl. Reps. David Woods and Randy Fulk.
BCTGM Reps Attend IUF Tobacco Meeting
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CTGM International Representatives Randy Fulk and David Woods were among representatives of 10 unions representing workers in tobacco growing, manufacturing, sales and marketing in Europe and the Americas who met September 30 – October 1 in Geneva, Switzerland. The meeting was among union affiliates with members employed by Philip Morris International. The IUF unions discussed general trends in the tobacco sector and reviewed the state of Philip Morris business. Most importantly, the group focused on how to defend and expand workers’ rights at Philip Morris including the right for information, collective bargaining, wages, permanent employment and gender equality. The unions exchanged information on the company’s constant restructuring and more recently, the announcement by Philip Morris to eliminate cigarette manufacturing facilities. The second day of the meetings included management representatives of Philip Morris Global Human Resources.
According to Fulk, the IUF affiliates demanded that they be fully engaged in negotiations around any transformation from traditional tobacco production to smoke free products. Other requests made by the unions to Philip Morris involved employment guarantees, including retraining where necessary, respect for the rights and working conditions of tobacco growing workers and limitations on subcontracting in the company’s sales system. The meeting is the result of the April 2019 International Tobacco Workers’ Meeting in Berlin, Germany. That meeting recommended to the IUF Governing Bodies to establish the IUF Tobacco Workers Division comprising manufacturing, growing and sales unions, and pledged to strengthen union networks within the sector in the face of continued consolidation and plant closures within the global tobacco industry. The PMI union group proposed they meet again in September 2020 to coincide with the next international tobacco workers’ conference in Cracow, Poland.
The two-day meeting included representatives of 10 unions representing workers in tobacco growing, manufacturing, sales and marketing in Europe and the Americas.
The BCTGM was represented at the IUF Tobacco meeting by Intl. Rep. David Woods (left) and Intl. Rep. Randy Fulk (right).
September/October 2019
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BCTGM Stands Strong in SOLIDA On September 16, nearly 50,000 UAW went on strike against General Motors with a force unseen in decades, virtually shutting down GM’s domestic production. Nearly 50,000 UAW members went on strike seeking higher pay, greater job security, a bigger share of the automaker’s profit and protection of healthcare benefits. Apart from costing GM more than $1 billion, the strike has forced General Motors to idle U.S. operations along with nearly 10,000 workers in Canada and Mexico. The UAW has not stood alone. BCTGM members from Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Tennessee,
In Charlotte, N.C., International Representative Randy Fulk and Local 317T’s President Derrick Byrd and Vice President Jeff Jarrett visit striking UAW members.
L. 3G members at the Kellogg plant in Battle Creek, Mich. collected $910 in a single day for striking UAW members and caravanned to the UAW L. 602 Lansing Delta plant in Lansing, Mich. to deliver the funds and walk the picket line.
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North Carolina, Indiana and New York have visited picket lines, delivering union-made snacks, monetary donations and good will. According to BCTGM Southern Region Vice President Anthony Shelton, a day on the picket line at the General Motors facility in Springhill, Tenn. involved supporters dropping by with snacks and waters. Shelton, together with International Representative David Woods and Local 25 Financial Secretary/Business Agt./ GEB member Jeff Webb visited the UAW members on the eighteenth day of the strike and made a second visit to the Springhill strike line in mid-October. They delivered BCTGM made bread, snacks and baked goods
Walking the picket line with UAW L. 774 members outside their GM plant in Buffalo, N.Y., BCTGM L. 36G Pres. Scott Baer and Intl. VP Roger Miller.
BCTGM Southern Region Intl. VP Anthony Shelton, L. 25 Fin. Secy./Bus. Agt./GEB member Jeff Webb and Intl. Rep. David Woods visited striking UAW members outside the General Motors plant Spring Hill Tenn.
BCTGM News
ARITY with Striking UAW Workers from the Local 25-represented Bimbo Bakeries Retail Store in Columbia, Tenn. to the UAW Union hall. At a picket line outside UAW Local 602 Lansing Delta plant in Lansing, Mich., BCTGM Local 3G members from the Kellogg plant in Battle Creek, Mich. delivered $910 and union-made product to the striking UAW Local 602 members. Reports from other BCTGM members around the country say that spirits remained high despite the arrival of fall and colder temperatures on picket lines. Strikers in their UAW shirts and supporters cut up pallets for firewood and planned daily activities to keep support strong.
In Longhorn, Pa., L. 6 and 464 walk the picket with striking General Motors workers.
Local 58G Vice President Lisa Gregory walking the picket line this morning with UAW members on strike against General Motors in Toledo, Ohio.
September/October 2019
At a UAW picket line in Indiana, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka told workers, “Your fearlessness is a reminder that the only way to fight back is by fighting back. We’re not shutting up. We’re not backing down. We’re going to march, shout and fight every day until our brothers and sisters get what they deserve. One day longer. One day stronger.” At press time, UAW negotiators had reached a tentative agreement that was scheduled to be presented to the GM workers. Meanwhile, the striking workers remain united in solidarity, holding picket lines twentyfour hours a day, determined to see a fair new collective bargaining agreement.
BCTGM Intl. GEB member/L. 149 (Memphis) Pres. Letitia Malone, L. 252G (Memphis) Pres. Rob Eafen, L. 252G VP Darren Brown and Intl. Rep. Jason Davis walked the picket line with UAW L. 2406 members in Memphis.
Local 372A joined striking GM Workers in Kokomo, Indiana and delivered $300 in food and water to the strike line.
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Nestlé Purina Workers Celebrate
Another Successful ORGANIZING In early October, maintenance workers at the new Purina pet food plant in Hartwell, Ga. voted to join BCTGM Local 42 (Atlanta). This organizing win came on the heels of another victory by Nestlé quality control workers at the Fairburn, Ga. pet food facility, who also voted to be represented by Local 42. The Hartwell facility opened in early 2018 as a distribution center while Nestlé completed construction on the new production site. In May 2018, workers at the facility reached out to the BCTGM about forming a union. Local 42 organizers met with the maintenance workers to answer questions, educate them on the benefits of joining the BCTGM, and explain the difference a union contract makes. A majority of the workers showed great interest in joining Local 42 and signed union authorization cards. Despite this overwhelming support, Nestlé refused to recognize the union. Local 42 filed a petition for election with the National Labor Relations Board for early October. However, once Nestlé realized the high level of support for joining the union, the company launched a vicious anti-union campaign. This included shipping in executives from Nestlé headquarters in Arlington, Va. to hold captive audience meetings and intimidate union supporters. In addition to using such blatant anti-union scare tactics with maintenance employees who would be
Intl. Rep. Zach Townsend (left), L. 42 Organizer Darrell Copeland (right) and Nestle Purina worker and new L. 42 member John Vasser (center).
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voting in the union election, the company also utilized such strategies on newly hired production workers, fearful they too would want the benefits of belonging to the BCTGM. According to BCTGM International Director of Organization John Price, employers pressure employees to vote against unionization even when those same employees have already shown support for the union. “These employers use scare tactics and intimidation to convince workers to vote against their own self-interest,” said Price. To counter these anti-union tactics, Local 42 organizers met regularly with the workers, recounting positive experiences at other BCTGM-represented Nestlé Purina plants, while calling out the company’s falsehoods. The dedication of the organizers paid off as the majority of workers who attended these voluntary BCTGM meetings voted to join the union. According to BCTGM International Representative Zach Townsend, Local 42 has begun negotiations for a first contract for the maintenance unit. “And at the same time, we’ll continue to help the other units in the facility join the BCTGM and realize their goal of dignity, justice and respect on the job,” adds Townsend. Nestlé is expected to invest more than $300 million at the Hartwell facility, which will be among the most modern pet food factories in the U.S. In Oklahoma City, BCTGM Local 366G represents workers at the Nestle Purina pet food facility.
Outside the sprawling Nestlé production facility is L. 42 Organizer Darrell Copeland, L. 42 Bus. Agt. David Cooper, and Intl. Rep. Zach Townsend.
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BCTGM Retirees on Capitol Hill: ‘A Pension is a Promise’
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etired BCTGM members, UMWA, IBEW, Teamsters and other union retirees from across the country gathered on Capitol Hill on October 16 to urge Senate action to protect the pensions that workers have earned. Democratic Senators at the press conference included Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI),Patty Murray (D-WA), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Ron Wyden (D-OR). “You have Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader, and the President of the United States who don’t want to solve this, who will continue to block us from doing things. These workers
didn’t cause this. The problem, fundamentally, is far too many people in this body don’t understand collective bargaining, that you give up something in wages today to have health insurance and a pension. They have earned that, and many of these workers will lose half their pensions if we don’t act,” said Senator Brown. BCTGM retiree Mike Offenback delivered a passionate statement on behalf of present and future middle class retirees. “Congress needs to understand: I worked hard for 37 years for the pension I was promised. We earned it – we deserve it!,” proclaimed Offenback.
BCTGM retirees, in neon yellow “Protect Our Pension” shirts helped fill the Senate hearing room.
Democratic Senators at the press conference included Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI),Patty Murray (DWA), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).
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BCTGM Joins Fed Up Feds on The BCTGM joined with hundreds of unionized federal employees who are fed up with the Trump administration’s relentless attacks on America’s workforce on Capitol
Hill on September 24 to demand an end to the administration’s anti-worker policies. “Hey, hey, ho, ho, union busting has got to go! Hey, hey, ho, ho, union busting has got to go!” chanted members of AFGE and more than a dozen other unions and allied groups who stood Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi addressed the crowd.
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united against the attacks on government workers and their unions. “We are rising up today for dignity, for fairness, for respect, and for a real voice on the job,” AFGE President J. David Cox Sr. addressed the crowd. “An injury to one is an injury to all!” AFGE members traveled to Washington D.C. from across the country to join the rally and meet with members of Congress to seek support in the fight against the administration’s union-busting executive orders. AFGE is working with members of Congress to roll back these union busting tactics. U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) promises to fight all attempts to undermine the rights of Federal workers.
BCTGM News
Hill to Protest UNION BUSTING “This administration is trying to crush our federal workers, brothers and sisters. The executive orders, the federal shutdown, and now political hacks are tearing our union contracts apart,” said Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO. “They’re trying to impose collective bargaining agreements that aren’t collective and weren’t bargained for, and sure as hell weren’t agreed to.” Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi addressed the crowd, along with other Democratic Party leaders including Senators Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Mazie Hirano AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka vows to fight the Trump administration’s attacks on workers.
(D-Hawaii) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), as well as Reps. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), and Jamie Raskin (D-Md.). “We must remain vigilant and demand protection and respect for professionalism and nonpartisanship, in the nature of our federal service,” said Pelosi. “We respect our public service employees, who are engaged in meeting the needs of the American public.” Following the rally, Senator Sherrod Brown came over to the BCTGM group and expressed his commitment to supporting the union’s efforts to help get pension legislation enacted.
AFGE President J. David Cox Sr. proclaims, “An injury to one is an injury to all!”.
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) is a true friend to the BCTGM and all of labor. Pictured here with Brown (left) are BCTGM Intl. Assistant to the Intl. Pres. Harry Kaiser, BCTGM Intl. Dir. of Research & Education Matthew Clark and BCTGM Intl. Dir. of Digital Media Michelle Ellis.
September/October 2019
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Announcing the 2020 BCTGM International Union Scholarship Program
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he BCTGM International Scholarship Program is an example of the BCTGM’s commitment to higher education. Since 1962, the International Union has helped fulfill the educational dreams of students and union members throughout North America.
The International Union will deposit a one-time sum of $5,000 for each scholarship winner with the accredited college, recognized technical or vocational post-secondary school at which the award winner has been accepted and will be attending.
The 2020 BCTGM International Scholarship Program will award five $5,000 onetime scholarship awards. One of the five scholarships may be awarded to an active member of BCTGM.
Interested individuals should note that the International Union Scholarship Office must receive all applications by January 31, 2020. Other program requirements (personal profile, ACT/SAT scores, academic report, essay) must be submitted to the International by March 31, 2020.
The program is open to members of the BCTGM and to the children of union members, all of whom must meet the eligibility requirements established by the General Executive Board (GEB) as well as the Rules and Procedures which are approved by the GEB.
To learn more about the 2020 BCTGM International Scholarship Program, review the official rules and regulations and download application information, visit www.bctgm.org.
BCTGM General Executive Board Increases Scholarship Awards At the 107th session of the BCTGM International General Executive Board on September 21, 2019 in Washington, DC, the Board approved increasing the BCTGM International Scholarship awards from five $2,000 awards to five $5,000 awards.
“College tuition is getting further and further out of reach for working families. This is something we can do to help our members’ kids want go to school, or learn a trade.” -David B. Durkee
DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS: JANUARY 31, 2020 14
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September/October 2019
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: e t a n e S e h t o t BCTGM ’ ! e s i m o r P A ension Is Printed in the U.S.A.
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The fight to protect our pensions is in the hands of the United States Senate where the Butch Lewis Act of 2019 (S.2254) has been introduced. It is crucial that BCTGM members and retirees contact their Senators and urge them to support S. 2254. On October 16, BCTGM Retiree Mike Offenback was invited to speak during a U.S. Senate press conference on pension reform:
“I worked 37 years in a bakery in Philadelphia. Congress needs to understand: I worked hard for the pension I was promised. We earned it – we deserve it!”
This legislation is important to ALL BCTGM MEMBERS with collectively bargained pensions! Contact your U.S. Senators today and ask them to support the Butch Lewis Act of 2019 (S. 2254).
Visit bit.ly/SenateSaveOurPension or use your smart phone to scan the QR code and take action now!