nwlaborpress.org | June 15, 2007

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June 15, 2007 Volume 108 Number 12 News
		Carpenters drywall hangers go on strike Some 1,300 members of Exterior and Interior Specialists Local 2154 in Portland, and Carpenters Locals 1715 in Vancouver, 1065 in Salem, and 1273 in Eugene, 306 in Redmond and 2067 in Medford went on strike June 1. The major issue is money.
Major bargaining this summer in Oregon For more than 45,000 Oregon workers, it's contract season. At least 42,000 workers have union contracts expiring on a single day — June 30. Custodial outsourcing at Portland schools proves costly mistake When the Portland Public School Board voted July 8, 2002 to fire the district’s 300 custodians and contract out, district officials said the move would save $4.5 million a year. Five years later, it’s becoming clear how far off the mark that was. Portland School District implements contract on DCU Portland Public Schools imposed its final contract offer June 11 on about 119 maintenance workers, continuing a wage freeze that has been in effect since 2004. It's the only group of District employees that is not slated for a wage increase. And in a letter to members, the district's labor relations director laid out what would happen if they decide to strike. Labor bills fight for attention as Oregon Legislature winds down With much of labor’s agenda still waiting approval in the final weeks of the 2007 Oregon Legislature, union lobbyists in the state Capitol were in something like a 24-hour-a-day vigil. The state labor federation’s number one goal looked like a done deal — a bill requiring union recognition when a majority of public employees sign authorization cards. Nurses tell public hearing of their problems at Legacy Nurses from Legacy Health System shared emotional testimony of their struggle to attain safe hospital staffing levels and to unionize in speaking at a public hearing May 31 at Portland Community College’s Cascade Campus in North Portland.