Labor exec in Portland to address union dispute

by Bill Graves, The Oregonian

Monday July 20, 2009, 6:23 PM

Randi Weingarten, one of the nation's top labor leaders as head of the 1.4 million-strong American Federation of Teachers, was in Portland on Monday to help settle a conflict with one of the union's Oregon affiliates.

The AFT on July 7 removed three senior officers and the 17-member local executive board of the Oregon Federation of Nurses and Health Professionals Local 5017 and seized the local's finances through a "protective order."

The AFT has charged that local leaders violated union bylaws by meeting in July and improperly using dues money to promote a move to sever from the teachers union. The action marks the fourth time in AFT's 93-year history that it has placed a local union under a temporary administratorship.

A three-member committee composed of three of AFT's 36 national vice presidents will conduct a hearing in about a week to decide whether the temporary takeover is warranted and to determine how local leadership should be restored. Weingarten appointed Mark Richard, a Florida labor lawyer, as trustee of the local.

AFT locals have the right to break away, but they must follow proper procedures in doing so, said Weingarten in an interview with The Oregonian.

"The goal here is to make sure members have a right to make a decision," said Weingarten, who just completed her first year as AFT president. "It is not about the leaders. It is about the members' democratic rights and their economic rights."

Kathy Geroux, who was removed as president of Local 5017, declined to comment. But she and union leaders released a statement defending their actions, saying the bylaws allow special meetings.

"We believe that everyone on the executive board will be vindicated of all the charges made," Geroux wrote.

The local represents about 3,000 registered nurses and health care workers at Kaiser Permanente in Oregon and Washington and another 125 at Providence Milwaukie Hospital. Weingarten says she wants to swiftly settle the internal union dispute so the local can focus on upcoming labor negotiations with hospitals in 2010.

Most of AFT's members are public school teachers. The union also represents some university professors, and it has an AFT Healthcare division that represents 70,000 workers nationwide.

The national union has become heavily involved in health care reform efforts underway in Congress, Weingarten said, noting that she and other labor leaders met with President Obama last week. AFT members also lobbied 50 congressional offices representing 25 states last week, she said.

The union is pushing for a health reform plan that includes a public health insurance option, a controversial proposal opposed by health insurers and many members of Congress. The AFT also knows "the hidden costs of cost cutting" in health care can mean overworked nurses, Weingarten said.

"We push very hard for safe staffing levels and push against mandatory overtime," she said, "because we know what that does in terms of deleterious effects on patient care."

The important fact not mentioned in this particular article was the Oregon local's Executive Board was acting against the expressed wishes of it's constituents. Further, I have to believe this could happen in California. Maybe to a near by district. CFT has a better reputation amongst the people I've talked to and after finding out that Sanchez came to our board meeting and did little more than beg his position (see below.) I am embarrassed by that. He made no aggressive speeches didn't talk about confrontational out comes. He came, was politely ignored and the DO and board will do what they want they no there will be no repercussions. The CTA exists in support of itself for the its own benefit at the expense of the locals and the members. No wonder the AFT feels the need to break their "no raiding" agreements.

I would lead that parade!