Kittery Water District Employees Form Union with IBEW 1837
March 17, 2020 - Workers at the Kittery Water District have formed a union with IBEW Local #1837. The 15 workers include office staff, filtration plant workers, laborers, meter readers, service technicians and others.
“We’re proud that the workers at Kittery Water District asked us to help them form a Union and negotiate a collective bargaining agreement,” said IBEW 1837 Organizer and Business Representative Matt Beck. “Even though they like where they work, they understand that having a union contract gives them to ability to protect what they already have and negotiate to make... Read More
IBEW 1837 Member Poised to Serve in Maine Legislature
January 23, 2020 - Kevin O’Connell, a longtime member of IBEW Local #1837, First Class Lineworker at EmeraMaine and former Brewer mayor, has been nominated as the Democratic candidate for the House District 128 special election. The vacancy in that seat is a result of the passing of the late State Representative Arthur C. "Archie" Verow.
“I’m proud to carry on the legacy of service that was so important to Archie,” said O’Connell. “In him, we had a representative that represented the values of this city. I am committed to doing my best to be that person for Brewer.”
O’Connell, 59, who was... Read More
Operating Technicians at WABI-TV Ratify 2-Year Contract
November 19, 2019 - Operating Technicians at WABI-TV in Bangor, Maine, ratified a new 2-year contract this week with raises of 2.5% each year and a $250 signing bonus. The starting pay rate for Operating Technicians was also increased.
As part of the new agreement, the Union and WABI-TV's owner Gray Television agreed that non-bargaining unit employees may perform covered work on an intermittent basis so long as bargaining unit members are not displaced as a result and the number of bargaining unit positions are not reduced. In addition, any time a Technician is not... Read More
IBEW 1837 Members at Emera Maine Approve Contract Extension if ENMAX Sale is Approved
October 16, 2019 - IBEW 1837 members at Emera Maine have ratified a 2-year contract extension that is contingent on the successful sale of the company to ENMAX of Calgary, Alberta. That proposed sale is currently being considered by the Maine Public Utilities Commission and may close over the next few months.
The extension includes a 3% annual wage increase in each of the two years of the agreement in all classifications with no other changes in the terms and conditions of the contract. The health insurance plan will also remain in place with no increase in cost for the... Read More
Lawmakers, Union Reps and Customers Express Concerns About Proposed Emera Maine Sale to ENMAX
August 7, 2019 - Senate President Troy Jackson, Rep. Seth Berry, IBEW Local 1837 and Emera ratepayers held a press conference in Orono to share their concerns about the proposed sale of Emera Maine to ENMAX of Calgary, Alberta.
Mainers are worried about the proposed sale of Emera Maine to ENMAX and the impact it could have on Emera Maine’s workers as well as the ratepayers of Maine’s second largest electric utility.
Specifically, they are concerned that ENMAX is paying too much ($1.3 Billion, all financed by debt) and is too small a company to provide the service Emera Maine’s ratepayers need... Read More
Staffing at Central Maine Power to Increase Under New Agreement with IBEW 1837
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local #1837 and Central Maine Power Company (CMP) have agreed to an extension of their staffing agreement that coupled with a staffing plan submitted to the Maine Public Utility Commission, includes a substantial increase in the number of workers employed at Maine’s largest electric utility.
IBEW 1837 Business Manager Dick Rogers has been advocating for increased staffing for several years in discussions with CMP and the Public Advocate’s office as well as in testimony before the Maine Public Utilities Commission and the Legislature’s... Read More
Consumer-Owned Electric Utility Proposed for Maine; Union Contracts to be Protected
January 28, 2019 - At a news conference at the Maine State House, Rep. Seth Berry, House Chair of the Energy and Utilities Committee, announced that he was submitting legislation to form a new consumer-owned utility.
The Maine Power Delivery Authority would not be run by the state and would not be financed by tax dollars in any way. If enacted, Maine Power would acquire all transmission and distribution assets of Central Maine Power and Emera Maine, compensating them fairly. All IBEW 1837 members would continue to be covered under the terms of their collective bargaining agreements... Read More
Nearly Five Years after Layoff, IBEW 1837 Member Returns to Brookfield with Gratitude to Union
September 26, 2018 - It’s all too common for some people to question the need for unions in 2018. “Unions had their place in days gone by but they’re no longer necessary,” they say. But don’t say that to Bill Brady at Brookfield’s Renewable Energy. Bill is one member of IBEW Local 1837 who clearly understands the value of union membership and having union representation in today’s workplace.
When Brookfield announced their intentions in 2014 to pare back staffing at their Maine hydro facilities, IBEW Local 1837 proceeding to enter into a determined round of negotiations with the Company... Read More
3-Year Contract Extension for IBEW Members at Wyman Station
September 22, 2018 - IBEW 1837 members working for NextEra Energy at Maine’s Wyman Station ratified a 3-year contract extension earlier this week.
The idea of an extension to the collective bargaining agreement was initially proposed by Union Stewards at the oil-fired power plant. IBEW 1837 Business Manager Dick Rogers brought the idea to the Company, who initially offered a 1.5% wage increase each year for three years with no other changes to the contract.
After some discussions between Rogers and the Company, the offer was improved to a wage increase of 2% in each of the first two years and... Read More
IBEW Members at WGME-TV Ratify New 3-Year Contract
September 20, 2018 - IBEW 1837 members working for Sinclair Broadcasting Group’s Portland, Maine, television station ratified a new 3-year agreement this week after rejecting a previous offer from the company by a 37 – 5 margin and authorizing a strike. The overwhelming strike vote was the first at WGME-TV in 30 years and helped to persuade the Company to improve their wage offer beyond what they’ve been offering their other employees.
Wages for those at or above top scale will increase 6 ¾% over the 3-year agreement while other employees in the wage progression will receive larger step... Read More