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  1. #1

    Default FPL will win again without communication

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    Gary once said that as our leader he would ensure that we would have communications among all members. I don't see it happening. Here we are in a year when our system comm. should be concerned with our negotiations and they're working on how we can make show ups work. This is how we have allowed the Co. to beat us for the last 18 years. They set up blinds and set out feed and traps that will distract those who should be focused on our needs. Every contract year there is this distraction, whether it's storms or mergers or lay offs, we never keep our eye on the ball and we're not doing it again. Unions long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience has shown that we are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which we are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations (to seize and hold by force or without right) should throw off these Unions*1. In other words those who have the ability to take action have the responsiblity to take action, and this hasn't been done because the company throws out blinds. The despots (a ruler with absolute authority) who lead us without communications are leading us by the nose because we as sheep do not demand or question their leadership. We have and always will be the David going into the Valley of Elah*2 without any stones to fight our Goliath, without demanding that all of us are informed as to what our so called leaders are doing. Insist that your despots (who are also sheep to SC-U4) insist that they and you know what our position and strategy will be. I am tired of them telling me that they can't let their constituency be allowed to know what we need because the Co. may find out what they think is best for us. I find this kind of thinking contemptible and unprincipled. If you and I continue to allow this to happen than we have allowed our own to place us in the position of indentured servants who will always owe those who employ us. We, as dues paying members must throw off the bonds that SC-U4 have put not only on us, but those who we have voted to represent us in our local unions. The locals do not work for the council, the counil works for the locals. Ask, no demand that your officers, LJASC, stewarts keep you and your brothers and sisters, (most of the membership don't even know what this means) informed about what SC-U4 and those who follow this banner and are supposed to be representing us, tell them so they can tell us what is going on. It is time to rise up and insist on representation for all of us or it is time for a tea party. If we don't take responsibility for this, than we are surely doomed to our sins of the past, just give it away. General Westmoreland told his officers in Vietnam to write their own obituaries and to fight with courage, he told them they could either go out of country feet first or on their knees. How long will we stay on our knees. This is my manifesto, SC-U4 knows who I am, my local leadership knows who I am, my Ljasc knows who I am, please I implore you wake up and represent us the way you should, diplomacy is not always the answer.
    *1. A lose translation of a part of the Declaration of Independance
    *2. From the first testament

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Houston, twenty yrs at HL&P then 3 yrs on the road.
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    I don't know where your language on Seniority Stands... But this must be first and foremost in your negotiations. The Local 66 contract with CenterPoint stands as a testament to what can go wrong with the Unions ability to negotiate.

    The CenterPoint Contract reads "Where skills and abilities are equal, seniority will prevail pertaining to promotions and lay offs".

    Because "Skills and Abilities" are not defined, CenterPoint can and has chosen to lay off whom ever they wish. If you a Union Voice... ,you are in jeapordy of becoming un employed on CenterPoint Property.

    With this in their arsenal, the Union Voice has been neutered...

    Do not let this happen to your contract if it has not already. If it has work to change it... They will fight you to the death over this language, because they know in it resides the power to have your voice heard.

    Pay attention to all undefined language! Make sure the contract defines all terms. Any open ended language is not binding, nor worth the paper it is printed on!

    Do not let your view of the dollars alter your position on language... Do not... as Florida Power and many other Utilities have done... Sell your soul down the river for short term gain... In this day and age... the Lineman shortage has us in a position to bargin ... Terms at this Point are more important than dollars... They will have to pay the dollars to compete in this job market... they know that... So they will be looking at the language in our contracts to see how they can lure us in for the short term while retaining the ability to jerk the rug from under us any time they like...

    I went from being instrumental in implementing a Safety Program that saved em millions, representing them at the International Linemans Rodeo, Training fellow lineman on cutting edge fault locating equipment... to the bottom of their rating system... and being laid off after twenty years of service...

    all because the language in the contract allowed one fella who did not see eye to eye with me, to rate me on un defined skills and abilities. Some of the guys who lost their jobs went to court to try and make em define the skills and abilities upon which they were judged to no avail... Bad language is bad language... if you got it in your contract... Fix it... or pay the price.

    Believe you me... havening the rug jerked out from under you after twenty years of sacrifice and service is a hard pill to swallow. If you have been a lineman for a major Utility for any length of time, you understand that spending your life at their beckon call is a sacrifice... You gave the best years of your life serving at all hours of the day and night... Spending Holidays away from you family etc. ... Utilities no longer value or reward that kind of loyalty... So, it is up to us to make our own conditions... and by contract hold them to it! Don't be a causality... Walk tall... keep your Nuts in tact.
    Last edited by CenterPointEX; 04-03-2008 at 01:37 PM.
    2Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial matters? 3Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! 1Corinthians 6

  3. #3

    Default You Centerpoint are right

    We already have grey and vague language, not only in our contract but also in our employee handbook. Our negotiating comm. has never addressed the clarification in either of these contracts and they need to. Sure I want them to better salaries and benefits, but we must have security and that won't happen to it's addressed. Sorry about your plight, but if you're searching for security I don't know that FPL is where you want to be.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Houston, twenty yrs at HL&P then 3 yrs on the road.
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    For me Stoner... it's over... I will never again be chained to a Utility... The only reason I stayed before was for the pay off at the end... The Seniority, the Vacation, the Benifits etc... but at the ripe old age of 47 I understand that there is no time left for me to get back in the position I was in... They F@cked me and there is no recourse for me other than to petition folks like yourself that it would happen to no one else. I am doing the contracter thing now and making a living... It's a tougher row to hoe on the contracting side... My hats off to the folks who have done their whole career at it... I just hope whomever it was that felt it meek, right and salutory to take my retirement away is enjoying it... I would hate to think they stuck my nickles in their pocket and are miserable because of it.. How about it Mr. Bilski... is life good for you?
    Last edited by CenterPointEX; 04-04-2008 at 08:08 AM.
    2Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial matters? 3Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! 1Corinthians 6

  5. #5

    Default Agreed

    I agree with you Stoner, there is alot of things that could have been put into place long before now.Seems SCU4 is more concerned about getting the mandatory callout to work by trying it with those certain yards that are doing it as a "pilot". Just a way for the co. to get that going that's all. Until we as a whole watch each others back instead of our own,it won't be any different. I am doing my part,it's gonna take more though !!!

  6. #6

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by CenterPointEX View Post
    My hats off to the folks who have done their whole career at it... I just hope whomever it was that felt it meek, right and salutory to take my retirement away is enjoying it... I would hate to think they stuck my nickles in their pocket and are miserable because of it.. How about it Mr. Bilski... is life good for you?
    I'd say they ARE enjoying the financial and egotistic benefits they achieved through destroying your future financial security, and it doesn't matter how much you console yourself with the misguided belief that they will be punished once they are dead, it ain't going to happen.

    What we really need is to punish those responsible in a manner that curtails their current lifestyle in its tracks. Unfortunately the only way to achieve that in this modern anti-skill culture is through violence. Then of course there's a whole "justice" system in place to protect them from a backlash by the "menials".

    Let me know if I get too "revolutionary".
    Portable defibrillators were first invented to save the lives of linemen. Where's yours?

    www.bigclive.com

  7. Default Scu4

    Stoner you may be right about this but to discuss this where all the company people can see it is not a good IDEA. Please take your concerns to the meetings and get evryone to go and make changes there. There are elections coming up in some areas now is a good time to get the chages done. We can not change anything on here it has to be done in the HALL

  8. #8

    Default Globe your'e very naive

    I'm sorry but I have no idea how long you've been in this trade, but your comments make it clear that you have no idea what's wrong with today's structure. SC-U4 and the international could care less about you or me, it's a business and they're as bad as FPL, it's the bottom line for them. My loosely translated quote from the declaration of Independpendence was an indeterminate way of what may need to happen without myself seeming as a member who might be a threat. I feel that we as members must declare, give me liberty or give me death, we will not stand for taxation without representation, are there any more of these loosely translated quotes I must give you so I don't have charges filed on me, because I might be a threat, and there might be a better way to be represented. I am a lineman, every contract year there is a subject that will tie up our system comm., try show ups, that will keep them from focusing on there priorities. This is every contract year, wake the, wake up , grow up. There is better representation out there.

  9. Default

    Stoner I may be naive but I still say this is not the place to say what you are saying. The co. reads to and they eat up this stuff. By the way I have been in this trade longer than you I don't totally disagree with you it just needs to be taken care of at the hall not on the web. Think about it why give the man more ammo to shoot us with?

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Dec 2003
    Location
    Houston, twenty yrs at HL&P then 3 yrs on the road.
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    883

    Default

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    If... the men controlling the discussion on the floor are bought and paid for by the company... they will shut down discussion when it turns away from the companies course... This happened in the last contract vote for the outside contract at local 66... The discussion and the crowd started to turn against the companies offer... The men on the poduim became loud and boistereous... They began to use scare language to tell us how CenterPoint would retaliate... How we had certain contracts garonteed and if we didn't take their offer they would begin to seek out Rat replacements... etc... etc... after the meeting I moved quickly towards the fella making the bulk of these statements... he moved quickly out of room... my Point is... this forum is a place to express fully without interuption what it is you want and or need.
    Last edited by CenterPointEX; 04-07-2008 at 07:45 PM.
    2Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial matters? 3Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! 1Corinthians 6

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