IBEW 1837 Elections Select Local Leaders for Three-Year Terms
June 13, 2008 - Cynthia Phinney was re-elected as Business Manager/Financial Secretary and Ray Colello was re-elected as President of IBEW Local 1837 following a mail-in secret ballot election. Ballots were counted on June 13, 2008 with Election Judge Rebecca Johnson helping to supervise the tally at our Union Local office in Manchester, Maine.
Also re-elected to their posts were Vice President Bill Tarallo, Secretary Pamela Paquette and Treasurer Donald Leighton. Elected to seats on the Executive Board were Donald M. Palmer, Anthony Sapienza, Kerry R. Guptill, Barry A. Crawford, William "... Read More
Series of Anti-Union TV Ads Aired in Maine & New Hampshire
June 6, 2008 - Television viewers in Maine and New Hampshire have been forced to endure a seemingly endless barrage of anti-union commercials in recent weeks. The TV ads, funded by the so-called “Center for Union Facts,” are being broadcast by television stations in Bangor and Portland. Viewers in New Hampshire can also watch those stations either over the airwaves or on cable.
 
The Center for Union Facts is a front group for a notorious Washington D.C. lobbyist namedRichard Berman. The center is supported by business groups and anti-worker interests who seek to inflict the maximum... Read More
IBEW 1837 Members from Maine and New Hampshire Invited to Hear Rich Trumka
June 9, 2008 UPDATE- Richard Trumka's appearance at this weekend's Maine AFL-CIO COPE Convention has been cancelled, but there will still be a Labor-to-Labor Walk on Saturday morning, June 14, leaving from the Wyndam Hotel in South Portland. All IBEW 1837 members are encouraged to participate. For additional information, please call the Union Office.

Formerly a three-term president of the United Mine Workers, Trumka currently serves in the top leadership of the national AFL-CIO. The talk will be at the Wyndham Hotel, 363 Maine Mall Road in South Portland (formerly the Sheraton Hotel, ... Read More
IBEW 1837 Members Help Bring "Labor 2008" Into Their Workplaces
May 29, 2008 - The Democratic Party may not have officially chosen their presidential candidate yet, but IBEW 1837’s Worksite Coordinators have already begun to take a look at some of the issues in this year’s presidential campaign. In the case of the presumptive Republican nominee, they don’t always like what they see.
“I’m concerned by John McCain’s plan to tax our health insurance benefits as income,” said Bob Toole, an IBEW 1837 Worksite Coordinator at Bangor Hydro Electric. “I’m anxious to help get the word out to other IBEW members about this and other election year issues that are... Read More
The Current Newsletter - Spring 2008
The Current is distributed quarterly by IBEW 1837 stewards at worksites. You can also download the most recent edition here. Highlights include:
 

The Current Newsletter Front Page - Spring 2008 Issue

NLRB Denies Right of PSNH Working Foremen To Join Union
Special Feature: IBEW 1837 Members Help Bring "Labor 2008" Into Their Workplaces
Automated Meter Reading Has A Big Impact on Workers
Workers Ratify First IBEW 1837 Contract at Granite Ridge Energy
IBEW 1837 Local and Unit Offices to be Filled at Elections Held in June
Union/Company Relationship Deteriorates at WGME-TV, Channel... Read More
Automated Meter Reading Has Big Impact on Workers; CMP Asks PUC for Rate Increase to Implement System
May 9, 2008 - Bangor Hydro Electric and Unitil have already made the switch to various forms of automated meter reading, resulting in the loss of dozens of Union jobs. Now, Central Maine Power has asked the Maine Public Utilities Commission to grant a significant rate increase to pay for the installation of an automated system at Maine’s largest electric utility.
CMP has thus far refused to talk to IBEW 1837 about how this will affect their employees if it is approved by the PUC. A decision is expected sometime in May. The Company currently has approximately 100 Revenue Data Readers on staff... Read More
New Hampshire Union Office Move to Dover is a Nice Step Up!
April 28, 2008 - After 10 years in our Rochester office, IBEW 1837 has relocated our New Hampshire office to Dover. Along with that move came an improved facility for conducting union business and working with our members in the Granite State.
 
Since 1998, IBEW 1837 rented space atop a dental office on Main Street in Rochester. Although the location was fine, the space was somewhat cramped and antiquated, making it difficult to hold meetings with our members or store some of the important documents associated with our local. When our dentist/landlord decided to expand his dental... Read More
Workers Ratify First IBEW Contract at Granite Ridge Energy
April 1, 2008 - Workers at Granite Ridge Energy in Londonderry, New Hampshire have ratified their first union contract, a three-year deal with substantial wage increases for most workers. The power plant workers voted to join IBEW Local 1837 on August 4, 2006. The represented workers include all maintenance and operating personnel at the plant.
 
“Our new members at Granite Ridge have shown tremendous determination in staying together through this long process, resulting in good language for the contract,” said IBEW Assistant Business Manager Tom Ryan. “I’m also pleased that we’ve been... Read More
IBEW 1837 Pursues Appeal of NLRB Decision on PSNH Working Foremen
IBEW Local 1837 will pursue an appeal of the March 20th National Labor Relations Board decision that rejected the bid of PSNH Working Foremen in Hooksett, Milford and Derry to join the Union. The Working Foremen work shoulder-to-shoulder with our represented Lineworkers and perform nearly identical work for the Line Department.
The Union has studied the Regional Director's decision finding that the Working Foremen are not employees, and have no right to organize or to be represented by a union. We feel there are some serious errors in that decision, and have instructed our counsel... Read More
NLRB Denies Workers' Right To Join Union
The National Labor Relations Board has rejected the bid of Working Foremen in the Line Department of PSNH to join IBEW Local 1837. The Working Foremen work shoulder-to-shoulder with our represented Lineworkers and perform nearly identical work for the Line Department.


 
In a ruling dated March 20, 2008, the NLRB's Regional Director disagreed with the Union and agreed with Public Service Company of New Hampshire, finding that the Working Foremen - Line were statutory supervisors. Under the terms of the National Labor Relations Act, workers determined to be supervisors are not eligible... Read More