Valley Power
Thanks to our suporters
I want to express my sincerest thanks to each and every person who offered support in the strike against Valley Power. Supporters are too numerous to name. Some have gone above and beyond to support the strikers and their cause. I want to thank our Business Manager Russ Burns and the rest of the officers for their unwavering support. I would also like to give a special acknowledgement to my hard-working staff in the Oakland District office for giving their hearts and souls to this effort, day after day, as well as all of the other Local 3 districts who helped for 90 weeks straight, side-by-side with the strikers.
And of course, thanks to the strikers themselves – the men and their families who made a tough decision, took a stand and refused to give up. Valley Power is a company that exemplifies what is happening across our great nation. This is the type of irresponsible greed that is largely responsible for the economic collapse we are now suffering. What was allowed to happen at Valley Power is tragic and disgraceful.
Here was a group of workers, who by their own free choice, were represented by a union for some 45 years. Upon acquisition, Valley Power refused to recognize the long-standing Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which had been largely responsible for the growth and success of the business at that time. Some 80 highly skilled employees had been providing vital services to the community, which in return, offered good-paying jobs and profitable returns to the company owners.
Then greed took over. The law failed. Over the course of our dealings with Valley Power, more than 30 Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) charges were filed by the union against Valley Power. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) failed to uphold the intent of the law, which is to protect workers’ rights and helped the company by dismissing charge after charge, and expressing their impatience with “this annoying little group of workers” who thought they had protected rights.
I believe that if we would have had the Employee Free Choice Act as law, Valley Power would be here today, providing good jobs to our union members, vital services to the community, tax dollars to the local economy and good profits to its shareholders. The Employee Free Choice Act would have made a difference here. The company would not have been allowed to bargain in bad faith for 3-½ years with no intention of reaching an agreement. The NLRB would have been mandated, with the necessary tools, to implement a settlement long before the company could destroy this important business in the economic engine that drives our community and this great nation.
Let’s make sure we don’t allow this type of story to be repeated. Let’s demand passage of the Employee Free Choice Act now!
Thank you for your unwavering support,
Pete Figueiredo