Celebrating their 65th: Local 6 members, pensioners and supporters gathered in Oakland on Saturday March 3 for their annual convention. The local faces difficult challenges but recent victories provide hope and point to a winning approach.
Dozens of delegates, pensioners and supporters gathered on Saturday, March 3 for the Local 6 65th annual convention in Oakland.
Disappearing jobs
Decades of declining union manufacturing and warehousing jobs have put pressure on the proud Bay Area local that helped lead the historic “march inland” after longshore workers secured a powerful contract in 1934. The dockworkers’ victory inspired others to join the union who worked at warehouses and factories away from the docks. Tapping that power – from the docks through the supply chain – made the ILWU a uniquely powerful union then, and it remains a source of strength today.
Over 40 delegates were registered at this year’s convention to represent a membership of just under 2,000. The convention opened before 9am and went well into the afternoon. Some of that discussion was provided by the Local 6 Organizing Committee that was formed two years ago to suggest strategies and initiate projects that could help more workers join the union.
“There are still plenty of warehouse and industrial jobs in the Bay Area,” said Pedro de Sa who chairs the Organizing Committee, “but most are now nonunion shops – so our challenge is clear and organizing remains the key to our survival.” The Committee made four short presentations to highlight recent successes at Local 6.
Successful campaigns
The first presentation told the story of Local 6 members at the “Rock Tenn” garbage collection and recycling facility in Oakland who were working for months without a new contract. That changed when the Local 6 Organizing Committee joined forces with the ILWU International Organizing Department to organize a campaign that involved members and pressured the company to reach a better contract last fall. The campaign climaxed with a short but effective strike, called a “paro laboral” by the Spanish-speaking workers.
A similar story was told by Local 6 member Arturo Lobato who outlined the organizing effort by 600 of his coworkers who won a new contract at Bayer’s pharmaceutical plant in Berkeley. Their employer is a powerful multinational corporation that was reporting big profits but still demanded major concessions. Local 6 workers organized workers around the country – and eventually the world – to pressure the company into signing a fair agreement.
The ongoing struggle by workers at another powerful employer, Waste Management, was reviewed with help from Alejandra Leon, a single-mother who supports her family on an hourly wage of less than $12.80 an hour – the average being paid to most of the company’s 200 recycling workers in Alameda County.
The summary of “lessons learned” and “next steps” was outlined by Local 6 member Carey Dall, who explained the need to begin organizing now to save the Local 6 “Master Contract” that expires in 2013. Dall cited a resolution recently adopted by the Local 6 executive Board that called for prioritizing work on the Master Contract, beginning with a series of membership meetings and recruitment of Contract
Action Team (CAT) volunteers to help educate and motivate members to take action. Employers have signaled that they may try to eliminate the pension plan, so the stakes for Local 6 workers are enormous.
Community & political support
In addition to workers building unity and taking action on the job, another key to the recent successful campaigns at Local 6 came from community and political support. Waste Management workers, for example, have been meeting with political leaders from nearly a dozen cities, counties, and special districts who control the company’s lucrative business concessions.
Because so many meetings had recently taken place with politicians supporting the contract campaigns, there was little need to fill this year’s convention with political appearances. State Senator Ellen Corbett from San Leandro was the only politician who spoke at this year’s event. She generously thanked Local 6 for providing her with an early endorsement many years ago when she was just launching her political career.
ILWU Secretary-Treasurer Willie Adams made a surprise entrance midway through the event. He had just arrived from Australia and came straight from the airport with his luggage in tow. Adams encouraged Local 6 members to stay united as they struggle with difficult decisions in the weeks and months ahead. “We have to remember that we’re working-class, and that means we have to take care of each other and keep our union strong.” He added, “What was achieved in the past is a legacy that is passed to the next generation, so each of us inherits the responsibility of keeping the union strong.”
Additional historical perspective was provided by ILWU historian Harvey Schwartz, who staffed a book table offering copies of “The March Inland” and “Solidarity Stories,” both based on oral histories of ILWU members compiled by Schwartz. A number of Local 6 members purchased copies which Schwartz signed with a message of encouragement inside.
Budget challenge
Local 6 Secretary-Treasurer Fred Pecker said the decision to de-emphasize politicians at this convention was intended to make more time available to discuss important issues. Some of that discussion came late in the day when the Local’s budgetary challenges were openly discussed. While no specific proposals were offered, Pecker made it clear that a new course was needed. “The budget tells us that we can’t continue down the same road without making major changes,” he said, “and the new organizing shows us which direction we need to be heading.”