The Pacific Coast Pensioners Association (PCPA) held their 51st Annual Convention from September 16-19 in Portland, OR. A total of 154 people attended this year’s meeting including 88 PCPA delegates who tackled issues ranging from Long Term Health Care Insurance to...
On August 10th at an event held at ILWU Local 19 in Seattle, Coast Committeeman Cam Williams on behalf of the Coast Committee and the Longshore Division, presented a $100,000 check to the University of Washington’s Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies to establish a...
For many years, I’ve shared my thoughts in these President’s Columns, but this one has been the most difficult. By the time you read these words, I’ll be making two big changes in my life; preparing to step down as your President and retiring from the union that I’ve...
More than 20 years ago, The Dispatcher warned that an experiment imposed by a bloody dictatorship would fail. We were right, and the Chilean people are angry. Editor’s note: The following article looks at Chile’s disastrous experiment with privatizing their...
A large group of clients, community leaders, pet owners and union members came out on April 12 to show their support for a successful organizing effort by nearly 100 workers at the Bay Area’s largest animal hospital. The event took place on the sidewalk in front of...
When I arrived for my first meeting of the Tiki Tenants Organizing Committee in Tacoma this past April, a group of 50 people were already gathering in the outdoor courtyard and sitting in a circle of mismatched chairs. I didn’t see anyone I knew, but was quickly...
Ship’s parted line snaps back in Longview, ending two lives and impacting many more At the peak of summer on the Columbia River, a ship’s mooring line snapped without warning in the middle of the night, killing two men on the job and injuring two others. Our brothers...
The ILWU’s 37th Convention met in Portland, Oregon on June 4-8. A total of 349 delegates and 40 fraternal delegates attended, along with up to 100 observers who witnessed the triannual meeting. The ILWU convention is the union’s highest decision-making body that meets...
An estimated 60 ILWU members attended the semi-annual Labor Notes “Troublemakers” Conference in Chicago on April 6-8. This was the biggest Labor Notes Conference to date, drawing 3,000 rank-and-file union members, leaders and grassroots activists from across the US...
