Members of Locals 20 and 30 attend stewards training intensive
Strong unions need strong stewards. As rank-and-file volunteers, stewards ensure that the contract is upheld and that important information is shared between members and the union leadership. Stewards are often the first union representatives that new workers see on the job—and the people they go to when they need help concerning issues that arise in the workplace. Networks of local stewards are frequently the key to activating members and getting them more involved in the life of the union.
Last summer, the leadership of Locals 20 and 30 discussed stewards trainings with the International Officers. Both locals had contracts expiring within the next year and wanted to grow their stewards’ networks.
“It had been several years since we conducted a comprehensive stewards training,” said Local 30 President Tommy Marshall. “Recruiting new stewards can be challenging so we reached out to some newer employees in the mine who demonstrated an interest in the union. We felt that this was important to bolster the ranks.”
The training was held on November 13. Local 30 hosted the event at their union hall and provided breakfast and lunch to all workshop attendees during the one-day intensive. Participants learned basic labor law and grievance handling skills—from investigation to arbitration.
Staff from the ILWU Education and Organizing departments coordinated the workshop and were joined by Dawn Feikema, Vice President of Local 63 Office Clerical Unit, and Mike Vera, a patrolman from the Inlandboatmen’s Union, Southern California Region. Feikema and Vera gave presentations on the legal rights of union stewards and the grievance process and helped facilitate discussion throughout the workshop.
Stewards can play a particularly important role during contract negotiations, relaying information and making sure that members are aware of what is at stake at the bargaining table. Competent stewards can also help invigorate members and get them more involved in union activities—something in which both locals saw long-term value.
Bringing the two locals together for a stewards’ workshop seemed a good fit. Although their worksites are nearly 150 miles apart, Locals 20 and 30 share the same employer: Rio Tinto. The company operates the largest open-pit mine in the state—US Borax in Boron, CA. Local 30 represents workers in the facility.
The borates extracted from the mine are trucked to a private dock at the Port of Los Angeles, where members of Local 20 load the products onto ships.
Even though the two locals operate under separate collective bargaining agreements, both know the importance of working together to achieve their shared interests. It’s especially important when dealing with a multinational mining company like Rio Tinto—the world’s second-largest metals and mining corporation.
“We’ve learned that it’s critical to keep lines of communication open between our locals,” said Marshall.
Mike Gonzalo, President of Local 20 agreed. “Since we have the same employer, it’s helpful to learn different tactics and experiences from Local 30. We learn from them, and they learn from us.”
The hands-on training involved roleplaying and group discussion, including analysis on how to handle difficult grievance scenarios and how to manage the steps in the grievance process.
Twenty stewards attended the training. Some were brand new to the role, while others brought decades of experience. Demetrius Freeman, Chief Steward for Local 30 was able to share insights from work in the union with some of the emerging leaders in the workshop.
“We just negotiated a contract and this is a good time to look at the long-term and bring unity to the union. We have seven years before our contract is due, and now is the time to hit the ground running to get more people engaged.”
Reflecting on the workshop, Gonzalo commented, “Both locals’ newly appointed stewards not only learned the process of grievance filing, workers’ rights to representation, and investigation of grievances but also built camaraderie by working together and learning strategies for dealing with the same employer.”