Where do I start? The transition continues and as a matter of fact it continues with “no” let up. Just one would think the simple issues of reorganization seen to become bogged down.

We have ordered new letterhead and business cards for your elected E-Board Officers and hopefully with the concurrence of PT Management the enablement of your Shop Stewards to wear identity badges or pins to designate them as such.

The top two Officers Lane and myself have changed subscribers for cell phone usage (cost/capability greatly enhanced) as the previous service provider due to the possible change of Officers was on a month to month basis. We sincerely hope this has not inconvienced you as members.

I have met on several occasions with our accounting firm to assure proper safeguards and duties of not only myself, but the Financial Secretary Treasurer and the reporting and accountability of the Officers of this local.

I have met with Maintenance members in their lunchroom while on breaks and attended the upcoming shop meetings of February 2, 2005. (8:50 am and 5:30 pm)

February 1, 2005, VP Lane Chase, FST Don McKnight and E-Board Officer Joe Digiulio and I met with the new VP of Maintenance Reid Hooks. Mr. Hooks seems to be an individual with a grasp of the Union/Management relationship and the value of a positive motivational management style.

Monday January 31, 2005 VP Lane Chase, Operator Toni Chase and myself conducted a new member orientation session. Take the time to welcome our new members aboard both in Operations and Maintenance. In the future, it is the Union leaderships hope to not only be afforded time to meet our new members on their first day of employment, but to be able to meet again with our members “after or nearing the completion” of their training or probation to address issues that they may have encountered during that time period. That said, as we had stated in the member/employee orientation, don’t hesitate to contact us at anytime if you have a question, issue or problem.

E-Board Officer Mike Cochran reported in the January Longview meeting, CUBS the agency to which our members are employed are also in the process of picking up a new Operator.

The upcoming Labor/Management meeting of February 8, 2005 on the Unions part will address the issue of running times in the peak hours especially PM. Circling around the block with barely enough time if any for restroom breaks are as it is described in transit jargon “recovery time”. Another issue we hope to address is the clarification of cell phone usage. (ie What is a break? What’s the end of the line? This needs clarification for all parties involved.)

Management is bringing to the table a “new concept” in the way of addressing what it perceives as a way to lessen the On-Job injuries (OJI’S). It is called “Pre-care”. It is a three stage process. 1st stage preventative and education 2nd stage pre-employment physical capacity assessments and 3rd treatment of OJI’S. Needless to say at first glance I have many questions, but I assured Marnie, I and the Union would approach this concept with an open mind.
You have questions? Drop them in our Union drop boxes and we as Officers will try to get you answers.

I received a call from a member regarding abuse from a customer. This particular customer felt that because she used our “hybrid” service (not Bus plus) that the Operator was not doing their job in delivering groceries to her door. This resulted in numerous complaints from this individual directed toward the Operator and caused considerable unrest among other riding passengers. Of course this was blown off by Management and they went about trying to placate this individual. Still more verbal abuse and false complaints continued against this Operator. The solution: Pierce Transits Anti-harassment policy. Paragraph two states: can take many forms (i.e. innuendos or sabotaging an employees work, verbal behavior such as slurs or epithets). Paragraph 5 states: harassment negatively affects morale, motivation and job performance. It is inappropriate, offensive and often illegal and will not be tolerated at Pierce Transit from among other “customers”.
File a formal complaint section 9.0 Complain Procedures Pierce Transit Personnel Manual September 2004 page 59. If this does not address the issue please contact the Union office.

There is much more happening. We will have some upcoming grievances. One particular to “all” is the holiday pay issue. Per our negotiated contractual agreement we approach Article VIII Grievance Procedure Section C Step 2. The intent of the grievance procedure is to address the issue at the lowest level. Not reaching an agreement puts us in the position of the formal grievance filing and hearing process. We will keep you our members apprised of this ongoing issue.
There is much more happening with upcoming negotiations and other housecleaning issues.
We will still or will have to approve Shop Stewards and delegates to the Pierce County Labor Council (PCCLC) at our next E-Board meeting. The beat goes on.

Union Members/Rumor Control
This serves to clarify a position that on more than one occasion has reared its “ugly head”. It is not the intent of the leadership of this local to expel any member regardless of job classification.
I as a Union Advocate have “never” advocated weakening this local or any other Union/Labor Organization by advocating erosion of the ideas of Unionism. In my tenure (17 years) as Shop Steward, E-Board Officer and General Elected Officer no one can say I have advocated that position.
The saddest part about this is, once again instead of going or coming to the source we choose to spread rumors and discord among the membership.
My frustration, we have good, educated members and all one has to do is pick up a phone, send an e-mail or ask one of your elected Officers or myself the position of this local on any disruptive issue such as this.

Isaac O. Tate, President B.A.

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Lane Chase
Vice President/A.B.A.
V.president@atu758.org

I WOULD LIKE to take this opportunity to thank Joe Digiulio for stepping in and representing a member while we were out of town, at the Northwest Conference. We had barely left town and we were getting calls from the member and Joe about the situation. There was also a bus accident during this period and Joe checked on the operator’s welfare, in addition to covering the maintenance area. It seems as though Murphy is alive and well, you leave, something is going to happen. Joe did a good job and was very professional in his handling of the situations, it was much appreciated.

THE NORTHWEST CONFERENCE was interesting and the agenda for the training meeting was discussed and set. One thing at the conference became immediately clear; we all have the same problems and issues that we are dealing with. One of the main concerns that this conference deals with are what you call the, “Cross Border Issues.” This is a phenomenon that, when one country changes the rules, the other one follows suit. For example Canada has some areas that have recently adopted 18 hour work days, in other words they have to be available for 18 hours in order to get their 10 hours of drive time. So we are watching this closely. Needless to say our days are long enough.

PRESIDENT TATE AND I recently attended the P.T. Board meeting concerning the selection of a new CEO. Isaac gave a presentation on behalf of the membership which was professional and to the point. The presentation was based on information received from many different sources, and we felt that this was necessary to protect the interests of the local and Pierce Transit.

PIZZA, PIZZA, Was that the cause of the exciting turn out at this month’s union meeting? If so let us know we can do it again.

GRIEVANCE; One has been filed concerning the holiday pay issue. This covers the holidays of Christmas and New Years for the Members of ATU 758 who were shorted pay during this period. We will keep you posted on this as it develops.

THE RESPONSE from the first news letter article has been first-rate. I have received suggestions from several members for the upcoming negotiations. Keep thinking and keep them coming, your input is important, and appreciated.

WHAT’S NEW Look for a map for locations of meetings.

Working on an Activity Report, (grievances, representations, meetings, etc.)

Lane Chase, Vice President A.B.A.

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A Bit of Humor from Recording Secretary
Sonya Ogden
recsec@atu758.org

YOU MIGHT BE A TRANSIT BUS DRIVER IF…
1. When you get off of work you are still stepping on the floorboard to turn your blinker on.
2. While driving home in your vehicle, you keep pulling into bus zones/stops.
3. You can tell with one glance, who has lost their transfer or does not have the fare.
4. Your passengers show you their education level by their uplifted finger.
5. You make ADA call outs on a road trip with your family.
6. It is OK to be late, but bad to be early.
7. Every four months you hold a shake-up to determine your children’s chores.
8. Your sinuses do not want to go to work with you.
9. When one of your kids finally leaves home for good you hold a shake-up for the new living arrangements.
10. You collect Union dues from your kid’s allowances.
11. Your middle name starts with “A” and ends with “Hole”.
12. Out of your uniform and in civilian clothes at a local Safeway and a passenger walks by and ask you what time is it. (This one happened to me)
13. At shake-up time you as a full time Operator are cautious about stepping out into cross walk at the base for fear of a B-Boarder running you over.

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My first thirty days as Executive Board Officer. If you have ever wondered what an Executive Board Officer does. I will tell you what I’ve done my first thirty days. First we were sworn in to office and given the Bylaws and the union Constitution & General laws just to start of the reading material. In this Local we have monthly meetings the first Thursday of each month. We also attend the regular meetings of each month. We talk to all members and try to answer any questions that they might have. The way I see it an Executive Board Officer is ready for any given situation. Check your Bylaws under article 5 for the official version of what E- Board officer do.

This month I had the opportunity to sit in on the Accident Safety Review Board (ASRB) meeting. That was wonderful to see the working (ASRB) in action. Thank you Accident Safety Review Board for letting me sit in. Also I went to Olympia to see Amalgamated Transit Union Legislative Council talk about Senate Bill 5263. It was about random drug testing and pre employment drug testing. I also had the opportunity to meet with and talk to some of the lawmakers and representatives. To hear the legislature talk positive about transit that was good to hear.

Also this month I’ve been reading the Shop Steward Manual and trying to familiarize my self with the Personnel Manual, Master Agreement, Constitution and General Laws, the Grievance Arbitration Book and any other Shop Steward or union material I can get. I feel positive about the next three years. I would like to thank all the members for their support. I would like to thank Mr. Willie Hawkins for saving ATU Local 758 a lot of money by cleaning the pool table in the Driver’s lobby. Thank You Willie! Also this month I have talked to some members and helped them with there issues. Things are going well. If you have any questions or just want to talk call me (253) 861-0425 or just stop me in the drivers lobby.

Tyrone Ross, Executive Board Officer

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This year The United Way of Pierce County is sponsoring a "Willie Stewart and Jerry Beckendorf" Scholarship program.  If you have a high school senior or know of someone you can sponsor, contact Katie Vukelich at extension (253) 597-7496.

Lamarr Bond, Executive Board Officer

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As a shop steward, I find there are a lot of members who do not exercise their Weingarten Rights. These are your rights to union representation whenever you go into a meeting with a member of management where the meeting may lead to disciplinary action, but you have to ask for it. Too often we find ourselves not wanting others to know, but silence is not golden, your Union officers and shop stewards can not help if we don't know. We are not responsible for your circumstance, but we may be able to help keep it from going past the talking stage. The choice is yours.

Joe DiGiulio, Executive Board Officer and Shop Steward

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I would like to ‘thank you’ for allowing me to serve on our ATU 758 Executive Board.
If you work in any of the following jobs, I represent your interests.
-Service Supervisor
-Safety and Training Instructor
-Scheduler
-Specialized Transportation Dispatcher
-Standing Files Supervisor
-Special Events Coordinator
-Dispatch Coordinator and Dispatch Coordinator (Shuttle)

I would like to assure you that I intend to do my best to represent you, and encourage you to help me to have a clear understanding of your concerns. We will face many critical issues in the upcoming year…the first will be contract negotiations. In the next couple of months, your Executive Board will be turning to you for guidance about critical issues you would like to see taken to the bargaining sessions. This is one of the most important contracts we have ever negotiated. Through the Social Security Mock Vote, both represented and non-represented employees voted more than three to one in favor of entering Social Security. You have given us a true mandate. The next step we must take is to include this most vital of issues, in our contract negotiations. There may be many other items of concern to you in addition to contract negotiations. I encourage you to share these with me or with another member of the E-board, so that we may convey these to the monthly meetings for discussion and possible action. You may reach me by e-mail at Joanorchids@comcast.net, or by calling the union office 588-3651 and leaving a message.

By E-Board Officer, Joan O’Brien

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Following the run off election our President/B.A. Isaac Tate, posted a letter on the Union Bulletin Boards asking members to submit in writing their desire to fill three vacant E-Board positions. Maintenance Pos I/ Facilities Maintenance/ Shuttle CSR. After speaking with several Shuttle CSR members, explaining my willingness to represent them and their approval, I then sent an e-mail to Isaac Tate asking that I be considered for filling the CSR/ designated E-Board vacancy. I was then appointed to the position by, your E-Board Officers.

Presently I’m reviewing Shuttle CSR job descriptions, results of a survey regarding Shuttle Holiday/ Vacation signing procedures developed in conjunction with Pierce Transit and the Holiday/Vacation sign-up committee composed of our CSR’s, as well as the present Holiday/ Vac. Leave policy our CSR now have with P.T. On Jan 27th, I attended the WA State ATU Legislative Council meeting in Olympia followed by a reception for elected WA State Officials. Our primary focus was on House Bill 1266 –Positive alcohol or drug test results of Commercial Driver License (CDL) Holders.

In addition as an Operator: Several drivers have expressed concerns about the new low floor maxi brakes being hard to reach, set & pull. Maintenance reminds us to do VCR’S identifying the problems so they can seek a solution. I’m forwarding the issue to Operations Safety Committee. Early bus start up on cold days and Cell phone use in P.T. vehicles, I’ll take to the E-Board meeting. A driver’s car was hit/scraped in P.T.’s Bldg 4 parking lot by the North fence. When an incident/accident such as this occurs it can lead to serious consequence if not acknowledged to the owner. Example: someone else may have witnessed and reported it to Management and or the incident/accident may have been recorded on P.T. security cameras, therefore, requiring that P.T. address the issue. Please be considerate of others when parking vehicles and make an effort to contact the owner of the other vehicle if contact occurs. It could quite possibly save someone a lot of grief. (Driver, Simone Tate would appreciate hearing from the person whose vehicle became acquainted with her grey/black Subaru.)

Georgia Twaites, E-Board Officer/CSR Position

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