Friday, December 19, 2008

Obama Names Picks for Transportation Labor Posts



CHICAGO - Swiftly completing his Cabinet, President-elect Barack Obama named four officials to oversee transportation, labor, trade and small business policy in his new administration Friday but warned that economic recovery may take years.
Little more than a month before he takes office, Obama noted his speed in putting his full economic team in place, saying he had done so at an earlier point than any president in history because of the magnitude of the troubles the country faces.

"Daunting as the challenges we are inheriting may be, I am convinced that our team and the American people are prepared to meet them," he said. "It will take longer than anybody of us would like — years, not months.
It will get worse before it gets better." "But it will get better if we are willing to act boldly and swiftly," Obama said — and he promised to do just that.

At his fifth news conference in as many days, Obama announced his selections of Republican Rep. Ray LaHood of Illinois for transportation secretary, California Rep. Hilda Solis for labor secretary, former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk for U.S. trade representative and venture capitalist Karen Mills to head the Small Business Administration. AP

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Bad News!!!

You control what you'll see on election day.


Saturday, September 20, 2008

Humberto Yeppes

Mass for Humberto Yeppes, 59, of West New York, will be today at 10 a.m. at St. Augustine Church, Union City. He died Wednesday at Palisades Medical Center, North Bergen.

Born in Pereira, Colombia, he moved to the United States in 1965 and lived in New York City before moving to West New York 30 years ago.

Yeppes worked as an asbestos remover.

He was the first Vice-President and founding member of Local 78 LIUNA, New York City.

Surviving are his wife, Yolanda Soto; three sons, Mauricio Alejandro, Hector Batres and Stanley Batres; two daughters, Helen Batres and Karla Batres; two brothers, Fabio and Octavio; five sisters, Mery, Nelly, Nuvia, Myriam, and Nancy; and five grandchildren.

Humberto Yeppes Video:

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Merger of Local Union 1030 into Local Union 78

Effective from September8, 2008 forward, members of former Local 1030 must make payment of dues and other fees directly to Local 78, Mr Pawel Gruchacz, Secretary-Treasurer, 30 Cliff Street, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10038.

Click here for the Report of the Merger of Local 1030 into Local 78

Friday, May 30, 2008

Edison Severino - May 1, 2007 Immigration Rally



Edison Severino at the Immigration Rally in New York City. May 1, 2007

Friday, May 16, 2008

Why Workers Organize


By Edison Severino

When people ask me if unions have a future in this country, my answer is an unequivocal yes. My experiences with Local 78, Asbestos, Lead and Hazardous Waste Laborers, and other workers trying to organize have proved a quintessential case in point.

When the asbestos abatement workers in New York first organized, our demands went beyond the basic wage and benefit issues that are usually connected with labor unions. We wanted better pay, but more than anything else, what fueled the organizing campaign was our need for respect, the universal need to be treated by our bosses as another human being, not just a unit of production.

The New York City asbestos industry was almost entirely non-union when the Laborers International Union of North America targeted it for unionization in 1995. Virtually all of the workers in the industry were immigrants, predominantly from Eastern Europe and Latin America. We didn’t speak English, and many of us were undocumented. The supervisors, meanwhile, were almost all native-born American. The power dynamic was tilted so much in favor of the bosses that the working conditions and the degree of disrespect reached an unsustainable level. Supervisors turned the working area into their own little fiefdom.


Edison Severino addressing asbestos workers at 130 Liberty, Manhattan.


Asbestos abatement is physically-demanding and dangerous work. In 1995, the going rate was $12 per hour, with no benefits. Meanwhile, construction workers working in the same building were making five or six times that. Shifts often lasted twelve to sixteen hours, and just the mention of the word “overtime” would get you fired.

Supervisors had various methods of squeezing as much production out of workers as possible. Some supervisors made us wear numbers on the outside of our suits. If they saw a worker resting or slacking off the slightest bit, they would call his or her number. That meant you were fired. Others divided workers into pairs, giving each pair a certain area to remove. At the end of each day, the pair that had done the least work was told not to come back. If it was legal and economically advantageous to brand us, there are some supervisors who might have done that.

In the most serious manifestation of this disrespect, supervisors often downplayed or even ignored the health risks that asbestos poses. A large portion of every asbestos abatement project is devoted to protecting the general public and the workers from asbestos exposure. These measures, while necessary, are costly. In order to get the job done quickly and cheaply, supervisors would flout the safety regulations, putting the workers in grave danger. We were often told not to wear the full-face masks because they slowed down our production. Of course, these masks also have the “side effect” of protecting us from inhaling asbestos fibers.

Working under these conditions on a daily basis, we were eager to start organizing when the Laborers’ representatives came knocking. Hundreds of workers immediately made the commitment to fight for better conditions and signed union authorization cards. After months of job actions, the campaign came to a culmination in the strike at the Exxon building in midtown Manhattan in February of 1996. Through the snow and cold, hundreds of workers marched against contractor Asbestos Containment Services Inc., calling for an end to the disrespect, low pay and dangerous conditions.



Despite frenzied efforts by the contractor, we maintained our unity and held the line. By the time the snow began to melt, we went back to work, but only after the balance of power was dramatically altered. We returned with a signed union contract laying out the rules of employment, and with a shop steward and union representatives whose job was to enforce the contract and represent us collectively.

After the campaign, LIUNA sent me to Alabama and North Carolina to help out in a campaign to organize chicken processing workers. It was there that I came to realize that our situation in New York was not unique. While the chicken plant workers complained about low pay, more than anything else they talked about not being allowed to take bathroom breaks. How much would it have cost the company to allow a worker to take a five minute break? But this was not about cost savings. The company denied the workers this basic human decency because they only saw them as production units, closer to machines or work animals than as men and women.

As long as the bosses write the rules of employment, there will be abuses of power like those suffered by asbestos workers in New York City and chicken processing workers in North Carolina and Alabama. Wherever people are treated not as fellow humans but as cogs in the production machine, they will come together and fight for more control over their working conditions. That is the essence of a workers’ union.

Edison Severino is currently the Business Manager for Laborers Local 78, the largest asbestos, lead and hazardous waste local in the country, with over 3,400 members and 90% market share in New York City and Long Island.

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Report on Inquiry into Payment Practices of New York Insulation

Click here to open and download Book 1, which includes the first group of NY Insulation employees who made complaints.

Co-op City

Local 78 on Strike Against KZ&V

Sunday, January 27, 2008

INFORMACION PARA NUEVOS MIEMBROS

Local 78
30 Cliff Street 6th Fl, New York, NY 10038 Tel. 212-227-4803

Bienvenidos hermanos y hermanas a la Local 78, este website es para proverle informacion basica sobre nuestra Union.

Por favor vea este Video antes de leer las demas informaciones...

Humberto Yeppes Video:



LOCAL 78: Aqui encontrara informacion clara y detallada. Usted realizara sus pagos mensuales en esta oficina, usted podra enviar sus cheques o money orders, tambien podra llamar por telefono y hacer sus pagos mensuales a travez de alguna tarjeta de credito (Visa, Mastercard). Recuerde que sus pagos deben estar al dia y si usted no realiza sus pagos antes del termino del segundo mes usted quedara automaticamente suspendida/o y no podra desempeñar ningun trabajo con union, para evitar esta situacion es aconsejable que pague unos meses adelantados. Nuestra oficina tambien le orientara sobre la lista de desempleo, si necesita reportar algun accidente en el area de trabajo, entre otros topicos. Para la lista de espera (Out of Work List) de NEW YORK cada persona debera registrarse personalmente en la Oficina de la Local cada DOS (2) semanas y para los miembros en New Jersey la lista es revisada cada 20 dias despues de su ultima registracion. Para mayor informacion usted debera hablar con Ngullen para. Tambien recuerde que algun tipo de cambio en su archivo, tal como direccion y telefono debe ser notificafo a la Union para actualizar su informacion y asi pueda recibir nuestros correos u otras noticias importantes.

Ademas todos los miembros estan obligados a proveer a la Local 78 con copias a colores de sus licencias (ciudad y estado) examen medico, y todos los documentos requeridos por las compañias bajo contrato.

Transportacion: Trenes A o C hasta Broadway/Nassau o Trenes #2,3,4,5 hasta Fulton Street

ENTRENAMIENTOS: Como miembro de la Local 78, usted tiene entrenamiento gratuito, incluyendo las clases que usted necesita para mantener sus licencias y tambien para aprender nuevas destresas y asi expandir sus posibilidades de trabajo, tal como; remocion de plomo, uso y preparacion de andamios etc. Tambien podra aprender Ingles como segundo idioma, prepararse para tomar el “GED” o equivalente a escuela superior, clases de manejo defensivo (esta clase tambien puede ser tomada por su esposo/a.
Aviso: Los miembros que deseen tomar el refresh de Supervisor o el de asbestos, deberan separar espacio en la clase con anticipacion y ademas deberan traer consigo sus licencias de asbestos,y su libro de union. Los certificados de entrenamiento tomados en otras escuelas (DOH 2832/NJ DOH ASB 24) deben ser presentados para el curso de repaso inicial. En caso de que haya cambiado su nombre y/o seguro social, documentacion legal debera ser presentada en el dia de la clase.

Mason Tenders Training Fund (SCHOOL) (718) 383-6863 Fax: (718) 383-6942
42-53 21ST. Street Llame a la escuela para el horario de clases
Long Island City, NY 11101 O recoja una copia del horario en nuestras oficinas

Transportacion: Tren #7 hasta Queensboro Plaza o el tren E hasta 23rd Street/Ely Avenue

BENEFICIOS: Como miembro de la Local 78 usted empieza a ser elegible para su paquete de beneficios a partir de completar 400 horas de trabajo estas horas deben ser completadas entre Mayo 1ero y Octubre 31 esta cobertura empezara desde Enero hasta Junio. El otro periodo debera usted tambien completar 400 horas de trabajo entre los meses de Noviembre 1ero hasta Abril 30, este periodo de cobertura medica empezara a partir de Julio a Diciembre. Para cualquier informacion acerca de sus beneficios de salud, dental, anualida y pension usted puede llamar a las oficinas de los fondos (Mason Tenders Trust Funds). Usted debe asegurarse que nuestra oficina de los Fondos (Mason Tenders Trust Funds) reciban su tarjeta de informacion o Data Card, para que su esposa e hijos que sean cubiertos por el plan medico, ademas tendra que proveerles con su partida de matrimonio y partida de nacimiento de sus hijos (Originales).

Mason Tenders Trust Funds (212) 452-9700 Fax (212) 452-9714
520 8th Avenue, Suite 600
New York, NY 10018

Transportacion: Tren A o E hasta la 34th Avenue o trenes #1,2,9 hasta 34 Avenida

MASON TENDERS DISTRICT COUNCIL: En caso de que los beneficios no le sean pagados, o esten parcialmente pagados usted puede contactarse con los representantes Joe Bianco o Dave Bolger y ellos exigiran a las compañias el pago de sus salarios o beneficios.
Usted puede verificar si sus beneficios estan siendo pagados con solo mirar sus colillas de pago, ademas le recomendamos que no bote o pierda sus colillas, por si algun momento sus deducciones no sean correctas.

Mason Tenders District Council (212) 452-9400 Fax (212) 675-0520
520 8th Avenue, 6th Floor
New York, NY 10018

Transportacion: Tren A o E hasta la 34th Avenue o trenes #1,2,9 hasta 34 Avenida

MEDICAL OFFICE: Como miembro de la Local 78 usted puede ser reembolsado por sus examenes medicos usted debera ir al centro medico indicado para poder recibir estos servicios. Usted debera pagar primero y luego debera ir con los resultados y recibo original al la Escuela de la Union (Mason Tenders Training Fund) para que le reembolsen su dinero, ademas tambien pueden recibir el examen respiratorio (FIT-TEST). Para ser enviado a un projecto de remocion de plomo usted debera hacerse examenes de sangre el cual sera pagado pur su empleador y puede ser realizado en el mismo centro.

Nuevo Centro de Salud

Greenpoint Medical Center Dr. Carlos Serrano M.D.
Brooklyn, NY 10011 37-22 88th Street
(718) 383-4600 Fax: (718)452-9714 Jackson Heights, NY 11372
Tel: (718) 507-9878

Transportacion: Tren G to Nassau Avenue o tren L hasta Bedford Avenue

REUNIONES MENSUALES DE MIEMBROS: Las reuniones mensuales se llevan a cabo el 4to martes del mes, excepto Julio y Agosto. La reunion para los Shop Stewards empiezan a las 6:00 PM y la reunion para la membresia general empieza a las 7:00 PM. Estas reuniones se realizan con la finalidad de reportar lo que sucede en la Union y ademas para que los miembros puedan comentar sobre aspectos, preguntas e inquietudes que puedan tener en cuestiones concernientes a la industria. Estas son llevadas a cabo en la siguiente direccion:

FIVE STAR RESTAURANT & BANQUET (718) 784-7444
13-05 43rd Avenue
L.I.C New York, 11101
Transportacion: Tren #7 hasta Queensboro Plaza o el tren E hasta 23rd Street/Ely Avenue

INFORMACJE DLA NOWYCH CZLONKOW LOKALU 78

Local 78
30 Cliff street # 6th Floor, New York, NY 10038 Tel. 212-227-4803

Kolezanko/Kolego witamy Cie w Lokalu 78. Ta informacja powinna byc pomocna w dostarczeniu Ci podstawowych informacji, ktore beda Ci niezbedne jako czlonkowi Unii. Prosze zachowaj te ulotke aby wrocic do niej jesli bedziesz potrzebowal skorzystac z tych informacji.

Local 78: Nasze biuro znajduje sie przy 30 Cliff Street, na 6-tym pietrze, to tutaj oplaca sie skladki czlonkowskie. Prosze pamietac o biezacym placeniu skladek. Zgodnie z Konstytucja Unijna skladki powinny byc oplacane pierwszego dnia miesiaca. Jesli nie placi sie skladek przez dwa kolejne miesiace podlega sie zawieszeniu. Skladki z zawieszeniem wynosza $56 za kazdy miesiac spoznienia. Jednoczesnie jest sie zawieszonym z prawa do pracy.

Dojazd: Metro A lub C do stacji Broadway/Nassau Street lub #2, #3, #4, #5 do Fulton Street.
Prosze pamietac o powiadomieniu lokalu jesli zmienile/as adres lub numer telefonu. Bedzie nam latwiej skontaktowac sie z Toba, jak rowniez umozliwi nam to wyslanie powiadomienia czy gazetki unijnej pod wlasciwy adres.

Szkolenia- jako czlonek Lokalu 78 masz prawo, o ile nie jestes zawieszony, do bezplatnych szkolen, wlaczajac wszystkie kursy na odnowienie licencji, oraz kursy, ktore, pozwola Ci zdobyc nowe umiejetnosci, takie jak kursy na usuwanie olowiu, kursy na rusztowania itp., mozesz rowniez wziac udzial w kursach jezykowych, komputerowych, przygotowac sie do GED (High School Equivalency Diploma), oraz Defensive Driving Course.

Czlonkowie, ktorzy chca wziasc udzial w kursie na odnowienie licencji Asbestos Handler lub Asbestos Supervisor musza miec ze soba licencje i ksiazeczke zwiazkowa. Dyplom z kursu (NYS DOH 2832 NJ DOH ASB 24) musi byc przedstawiony w przypadku pierwszego kursu odnowienia licencji , zarowno jak i innych kursow oferowanych w innych szkolach. W przypadku zmianny nazwiska lub numeru social security, musi byc przedstawiona odpowiednia dokumentacja.

Mason Tenders Training Found (Szkola Unijna) 42-53 21st Street Tel.: (718) 383 6863 Long Island City, NY 11101 Fax.: (718) 383 6942
Dojazd: Metro N-R do Queens Borough Plaza, 7, E do Eli Ave., lub G do LIC Court Sq.
Prosze dzwonic do Szkoly aby dowiedziec sie o oferowane kursy, lub wziasc grafik kursow z biura Lokalu 78.

Benefity- Jako czlonek Lokalu 78 masz prawo do ubezpieczenia zdrowotnego po przepracowaniu minimum 400 godzin w ciagu polrocza. Okresy w jakim liczy sie godziny do ubezpieczenia wygladaja nastepujaco: od 1 maja do 31 pazdziernika, zeby miec ubezpieczenie od stycznia do czerwca przyszlego roku, oraz od 1 listopada do 31 kwietnia, zeby miec ubezpieczenie od czerwca do grudnia.

Aby upewnic sie czy mamy przepracowana odpowiednia ilosc godzin i czy przysluguje nam ubezpieczenie prosze skontaktowac sie z Mason Tenders Trust Funds pod numere telefonu (212) 452 9700 wewnetrzny #2. W niektorych przypadkach trzeba bedzie przedstawic odcinki od czekow jako dowod przepracowanych godzin.

Broszura wyjasniajaca szczegoly dotyczace ubezpieczenia, annuity, oraz emerytury jest dostepna w biurze Mason Tenders Trust Funds.

Mason Tenders Trust Funds
520 8th Avenue, 6Floor Tel.: (212) 452 9700 po polsku prosic Michelle New York, NY 10011 Fax.: (212) 452 9499

Dojazd: Metro E, A, C, 2, 3 do 34-tej Street. POmiedzy 36-ta i 37-ma Street.
Spotkania Unijne obywaja sie w kazdy 4-ty wtorek miesiaca o godzinie 6:00P.M. dla Shop Stewards i o 7:00P.M. dla wszystkich unijnych czlonkow. Na tych zebraniach mozecie dowiedziec sie panstwo o wszystkich wydarzeniach unijnych.

Zebrania odbywaja sie w:
Five Star Restaurant & Banquet 13-05 43rd Avenue L.I.C. NY 11101