IBEW 1245 HOME |
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HISTORY FOCUS: •PACIFIC GAS AND ELECTRIC •SACRAMENTO MUNICIPAL UTILITY DISTRICT •SIERRA PACIFIC POWER
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Attacking the Neanderthal (continued) |
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15. PETITION FOR ELECTION In April of 1942 the UWOC petitioned the NLRB to represent PG&E physical employees in the East Bay. PG&E, remembering its success against the UE in the system-wide election in 1937, wanted to repeat the system-wide format in order to overwhelm this small pack of East Bay trouble-makers. The NLRB, siding with the UWOC, approved an election limited to the East Bay. However, the NLRB noted that the entire PG&E system would be the “optimum unit” for a union, leaving the door open for the unionists to organize on a system-wide basis when they felt strong enough to do so. By this time, of course, the IBEW had decided that it, too, would attempt to organize PG&E workers in all Divisions, including the Bay Area. The IBEW chartered Local 1245 in April of 1941 in large part to compete with the UWOC. Local 1245 held its first organizational meeting on May 10, 1941, in the Labor Temple in Sacramento. But, as the IBEW was soon to learn, the train had already left the station: the Bay Area was going with the CIO. On June 2-4, 1942, PG&E physical employees in the East Bay voted. Fifty-four employees voted for “no union.” The IBEW received 201 votes. The UWOC received 809 votes, an overwhelming majority. Winning the election, of course, was only the beginning of the battle. The NLRB certified the UWOC on June 20. In keeping with its tradition, PG&E adamantly refused to bargain with the union. |
16. WAR LABOR BOARD
But even if PG&E hadn’t changed, something in the world had. America was now at war with Germany and Japan. And the federal government was concerned to make sure that labor unrest did not disrupt the war effort. After the war began, the National War Labor Board was empowered to mediate labor-management disputes and regulate employers’ labor policies. On October 16, 1942, the National War Labor Board ordered PG&E to bargain, under the threat of imposing a mediation panel. By Christmas, there was still no movement at the bargaining table and a mediation panel imposed a settlement. Two years after a handful of union-minded men met over drinks at the bar of the Plaza Hotel, the UWOC had its foot in the door of one of the leading utilities in the world.
During 1943 and 1944 virtually the entire PG&E system was organized by divisions, with various locals of the UWOC reigning in the Bay Area and IBEW Local 1245 winning in the outlying areas. Certifications were issued during those years at the following PG&E divisions: East Bay, 1557 employees, UWOC After winning various elections by division, both unions set about consolidating their gains. On May 26, 1944, IBEW Local 1245 negotiated its first master contract covering all PG&E divisions that it represented. On August 15 of that year, the UWOC also negotiated a master contract for all of its PG&E locals.
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