Category Archives: IBEW 2222 News

Jack O’Shea Golf Tournament

 

THANK YOU TO OUR EVENT SPONSORS

 

 

 

 

 

The 2023 Jack O’Shea Golf Tournament was another huge success this year. A huge thank you to the tournament committee, all of our sponsors, and of course the golfers as well for making it a great day!

 

With all of your help we raised over $21,000 for the IBEW 2222 Benevolent Fund, which is used to support charities our members are involved with.

Thank You!!!

 

Urge your Legislators to Support The Right to Organize

Call your State Legislators today and ask them to support the following legislation

The legislative staff at the Massachusetts State House reached out to IBEW 2222 to discuss the possibility of forming a union. Presently, legislative staff are not included in the list of public employees permitted to unionize under the Massachusetts Labor Relations Act, though employees in the executive and judicial branches are. This is unacceptable!

There is pending legislation, An Act to Collective Bargaining Rights for Legislative Employees, which simply provides the legislative staff the same right as every other worker in the Commonwealth, the right to decide for themselves whether or not they would like to organize.

 

Legislative Staffer, Emily Kibbe, speaks at the Greater Boston Labor Council’s Labor Day Breakfast.

 

Please call your State Representative & State Senator and urge them to support:

 

House Bill H.3069 & Senate Bill S.2014An Act Relative to Collective Bargaining Rights for Legislative Employees

 

Click Here to find your State Representative & State Senator
(click on their name for contact information)

 

Special thanks to our bill sponsors, Senator John Keenan @SenJohnFKeenan and Representative Patrick Kearney @RepKearney, as well as our cosponsors listed below. If your legislators are already supporting our bills, please be sure to thank them for standing up for the rights of workers to organize.

H.3069 Sponsor & Cosponsors - As of September 27, 2023
NameDistrict / Address
Patrick Joseph Kearney4th Plymouth - Lead Sponsor
Kevin J. Holland, IBEW Local 2222 AFL-CIO159 Burgin Parkway, 3rd Floor, Quincy, MA 02169
Rebecca L. RauschNorfolk, Worcester and Middlesex
Samantha Montaño15th Suffolk
David Henry Argosky LeBoeuf17th Worcester
Alyson M. Sullivan-Almeida7th Plymouth
James B. EldridgeMiddlesex and Worcester
Erika Uyterhoeven27th Middlesex
Rodney M. Elliott16th Middlesex
Christopher Richard Flanagan1st Barnstable
David F. DeCoste5th Plymouth
James K. Hawkins2nd Bristol
Marc R. PachecoThird Bristol and Plymouth
James C. Arena-DeRosa8th Middlesex
Margaret R. Scarsdale1st Middlesex
Russell E. Holmes6th Suffolk
Mike Connolly26th Middlesex
Peter Capano11th Essex
Carmine Gentile13th Middlesex
Ryan Hamilton15th Essex
Lindsay Sabadosa1st Hampshire
Carol Doherty3rd Bristol
Steven Owens29th Middlesex
Danillo Sena37th Middlesex
S.2014 Sponsor & Cosponsors - As of September 27, 2023
NameDistrict/Address
John F. KeenanNorfolk and Plymouth - Lead Sponsor
Michael D. BradySecond Plymouth and Norfolk
Anne M. GobiWorcester and Hampshire
Walter F. TimiltyNorfolk, Plymouth and Bristol
Michael O. MooreSecond Worcester
Rebecca L. RauschNorfolk, Worcester and Middlesex
James B. EldridgeMiddlesex and Worcester
Paul R. FeeneyBristol and Norfolk
Paul W. MarkBerkshire, Hampden, Franklin and Hampshire
Patrick M. O'ConnorFirst Plymouth and Norfolk
Marc R. PachecoThird Bristol and Plymouth
Patricia D. JehlenSecond Middlesex
Estela Reyes4th Essex

 

 

LABOR GUILD CLASSES – REGISTER TODAY

The Labor Guild School of Labor-Management Relations Fall Term begins Tuesday, September 12th

For over five generations, The Labor Guild School of Labor-Management Relations has been providing members of the labor movement with relevant, top-notch, and practitioner-led education.  Courses range in content, providing knowledge and skills for building just, ethical workplaces in Massachusetts and beyond.  Instructors are experts in a wide range of fields, coming from the ranks of labor lawyers, union officers, arbitrators, and more.

This term all classes will be held online via Zoom. Classes begin Tuesday, September 12th, and run through Wednesday, October 13th.

Each class meets on the same day of the week for five weeks from 6:00 to 8:00 PM  

For more information, a list of course offerings, and to register, please CLICK HERE.

Classes are $50/class. IBEW Local 2222 will reimburse our members upon successful completion.

 

5 Steps for IBEW Members to Run for Political Office

So, you decided to run for office. Lawyers and businesspeople do it every day. Your union is asking working people to step up and so you are.

Now what?

Some people planned to run for office from the day they were born. They volunteered for campaigns in high school, went to a fancy college and then law school and have wealth or connections to wealthy people.

This article isn’t for them.

Answer ‘Why You?’

The first and most important step is to have an answer for the question “Why are you seeking to make a difference?” Your answer only needs to be short, memorable and true.

For some people, it will be the idea that people who work for a living should have a voice in the decisions that get made here. As a union member, you speak for a community that needs to be spoken for and often isn’t. In your reason why, you will find your message, and then you will repeat it hundreds, maybe thousands of times. Make sure you like it.

That said, running for office isn’t about the words; it’s all about relationships. The best message won’t win against strong relationships. Unfortunately, the best time to build connections is a lot like the best time to plant a tree: 20 years ago. The second-best time is now.

“The best candidates are often the ones who are asked to run because of the work they’ve already been doing,” said Ninth District International Representative Gretchen Newsom. An example in San Diego is a mom who sought to have a stop sign installed at a busy intersection — she cut through years of red tape, got it done, and was asked to run for City Council. Tasha Boerner is now a California Assembly member and continues to be a close ally of the IBEW.

Talk to Your Business Manager

This is especially important if you were not born rich or haven’t been deeply involved in politics.

“You might not have those relationships, but the business manager or president of your local probably will,” said Fourth District International Representative Steve Crum.

The business manager will also help you understand how to get support from the local, in people and money, and when you can speak to the membership.

“Your local is your base,” Crum said.

Pick the Right Office

You need to identify a position you can realistically win where you can you do the most good for the most people.

“There are so many positions that have a direct impact on union jobs that are overlooked,” Newsom said. “School boards, community planning boards, community councils, business development councils, chambers of commerce, citizens bond oversight boards, township trustees and county commissioners. And don’t forget your local.”

Many of these positions handle bids and zoning. Each is a part of the often hidden but hugely important machinery that decides whether your local tax money stays local or goes out of town to nonunion contractors.

Know the Numbers, and Make a Plan

The next step is to learn some basic numbers and never lose sight of them.

When is Election Day? How many registered voters are there? What was the turnout and vote breakdown of your race for the last two election cycles? How many votes do you need to win?

Then, Crum said, find the key organizations and the key community events.

Talk to your Central Labor Council and the Building Trades to find opportunities to speak to members of other unions and get endorsements. Listen at least as much as you talk.

You have your deadlines. You know how many votes you need. You know how many doors are waiting to be knocked on.

The best teacher may be experience, but it doesn’t have to be just your own experience.

Across the country, the AFL-CIO runs Labor Candidate Schools. The one in New Jersey has been running classes for nearly three decades, and more than 75% of the 1,000 people who have graduated from the program won their races.

But you don’t have to live in New Jersey to go to candidate school. There are highly effective programs in Oregon and Ohio, and the AFL-CIO is expanding them nationwide. Call your state AFL-CIO to find out what is on offer.

Do the Work

Now there is nothing to do but do it.

Knock on those doors.

Make those phone calls.

Then do it again. And again.

We’re working people. Work.

 

SAG-AFTRA Strike – New England Rally

Rally – Wednesday, August 9th at 3:45 – Boston Common Bandstand

Come join the Massachusetts Labor Movement and show our strength in solidarity with SAG-AFTRA at their New England Rally on August 9th at 3:45pm. We will be gathering at the Parkman Bandstand in Boston Common. Special Guests will be joining us. Be sure to wear your union’s logos and colors. Join us in the fight for the future of work.

Lead Exposure Testing

Pam Cox, Executive Director, Environment, Health, and Safety for VZ, emailed employees with information related to blood testing to detect the presence of lead. For your safety, if you have worked around lead, please be tested. To set up a test, please fill out the form linked in the email. Each employee will have up to 4 hours of paid time to complete the test.

Please see your steward or call the office with any questions. 617-929-6000

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