Updated: January 18, 2008
The vote taken at the Dec. 12 Outside Line unit meeting was unanimous in adding the 25˘ an hour increase that was allocated for a projected increase in the Lineco premiums. This increase was not needed and per the contract was to be applied to wages or NEAP. The 2008 Lineco Employer contribution increases 25˘ from $5.00 to $5.25. Section 4.11 of the current contract states that if the increase is not needed the difference will be applied to the NEAP or to the members’ wages.
Calls for the month of December are as follows:
Journeyman
Linemen: 17
Apprentice Linemen: 2
Cable Splicer: 0
Equipment Specialist: 5
Groundman: 10
Total calls: 34
Injured Workers Fund
The trust account has been set up and all Injured Workers Fund Authorizations cards for members working on referrals prior to the membership approval have been collected and forwarded to NECA to start the collection process. All new referrals after the Sept. 13 vote have the fund authorization language included. The Outside Line Unit made a motion at the Oct. 10 unit meeting to donate the unit’s 2007 social fund of $100 to the Injured Workers Fund account as the first deposit into the account We should start to see account balances on this trust next month.
Joint Safety Committee Meeting
On Oct. 31 a Joint Sub-Committee convened in Escondido Ca, to discuss proposed rule revisions to the outside line construction Safety Rule Book (Red Book). Committee was put together to discuss FR Clothing and equi-potential grounding. Notes from that meeting are available on-line at the IBEW Local 1245 website at www.ibew1245.com/newsarchive/OL_Report_Revised_12-20-07.htm
Cal-Nev JATC Report
We currently have 327 outside line apprentices registered in our JATC program. We have 7 apprentice traveling out of our jurisdiction for work; 75 apprentices are working out of Local 1245; 229 are working out of Local 47; 13 are working out of Local 396; 17 are off of work. We graduated 47 apprentices in 2007 to journeyman lineman. We have indentured 53 apprentices into the program.
We have 31 traffic signal maintenance apprentices registered: 6 are working for Republic Electric in Local 1245’s jurisdiction; 24 are working for Republic Electric in Local 47’s jurisdiction.
Other News
The COMET training scheduled for Jan. 5 was bumped off track by the winter storm that hit the same weekend, keeping many members busy with storm-related repairs.
Outside Line members and staff attended a First Aid/Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation training session hosted by the California-Nevada JATC. The eight-hour class, held at Weakley Hall, had 17 people in attendance.
First contracts have been negotiated with Cam Constructors (Outside Line agreement) and PMC (Pole Test and Treat Agreement. Others are in process.
Pole test and treat contracts have been renegotiated—and approved by the International Office—with Davey Tree, Utility Pole Test, Republic ITS, and Osmose.
First Aid & CPR is the second Saturday of every month at our Riverside and Sacramento facility.