June 2006THE

Meet your newly elected SPeeA officers

Although all three of the newly elected SPEEA officers have been union activ-ists for years, you may not realize that

they share a combined total of 50-plus years of SPEEA membership. Find out more about your new president, treasurer and secretary below.

You can also find out more about the seven mem-bers of the Executive Board at www.speea.org.

Cynthia Cole, president Although newly elected president, Cynthia Cole has been serving on the Executive Board for the past four years as the Northwest Region Vice President from 2002 to 2006.

Cole, an engineer who works in Integrated Defense Systems, served as an Area Rep for 14 years, was a picket site co-captain dur-ing the 40-day strike and was elected a Council Rep in 2001. She also served on the past two Prof Negotiations teams and continues to represent SPEEA on the Joint Benefits Committee.

Born in Georgia, Cole grew up in Lancaster, Calif., near Edwards Air Force Base. She gradu-ated from California State Polytechnic University with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and earned her master’s in business administration in technology and engineering management from City University. Before joining Boeing, she worked for Rockwell International on the Space Shuttle program in Palmdale, Calif.

When she came to work at Boeing in 1978 and learned that a union represented engineers, she signed up right away. “I was well motivated by the better compensation and benefits package,” she said, “and wanted to be part of the advocacy group.”

Bob Wilkerson, treasurerBob Wilkerson, newly elected SPEEA treasurer, served as the Northwest Council treasurer from 2003-2005 and more recently served as Northwest Council chair, elected in 2005.

Wilkerson, a manufacturing engi-neer at The Boeing Company, has a background in budget development and oversight.

He joined SPEEA when he went to work at Boeing in 1986, but didn’t become active in

the union until just before the 1999 negotia-tions and 2000 strike. Since then, he has served as an Area Rep, Designated Alternate, Kent Picket Captain Coordinator, Council Rep and committee chair. He is also the vice chair of the Northwest Governing Documents and the SPEEA Organizational Planning committees.

Born at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska, Wilkerson grew up in Sedro Woolley, Wash. He decided early in life to become an aerospace engineer. He was graduated from Central Washington University with a bachelor’s degree in electronics engineering technology and a master’s degree in engineering technology. He has been a union member since high school (when he worked at a restaurant and joined the culi-nary union) and college, when he worked summer jobs fabricating oil well equipment as a member of the International Association of Machinists.

Dave Baine, secretaryDave Baine, recently elected SPEEA secretary, was involved with SPEEA even before join-ing the union. He took an active role in helping to organize the Facilities and Safety, Health and Environmental Affairs (SHEA)

engineers in 1999.

He joined SPEEA on the first day after the elec-tion and then volunteered as an Area Rep. Baine has been a Council Rep for five years at The Boeing Company’s Frederickson plant where he works as an equipment services engineer.

Since joining SPEEA, Baine has become an active supporter of the local labor community. He is a SPEEA delegate to the Washington State Labor Council and the Pierce County Central Labor Council, serving as a trustee of the latter. He chaired the SPEEA Labor Delegates Committee, was vice chair of the former SPEEA NW Transportation Committee, and was a member of both the SPEEA and Northwest Council Legislative and Public Affairs (L&PA) committees.

Born in Wolverhampton, Staffordshire, England, and raised in Port Townsend, Wash., Baine graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in mechanical engineering. He also attended California State Polytechnic Institute. A veteran of the Navy, he served two tours of duty in Vietnam.

early retiree medical options in progress

Representatives of the 2005 SPEEA Prof and Tech negotiations teams continue to meet with Boeing labor and benefits representatives to discuss early retiree medical options for new hires. The early retiree medical coverage currently in place will not be available

as of Jan. 1, 2007 for new hires. In the final contract, a letter of understanding calls for a joint team to develop an option by looking at tax-advantaged alternatives. “The alternatives should be more portable, so that if the employee leaves Boeing prior to qualifying for early retirement, the account goes with them,” said Kristin Farr, SPEEA staff focal for benefits.

President Cynthia Cole

Executive Director

Charles Bofferding

Executive BoardBob Wilkerson Treasurer Dave Baine SecretaryMark Schuetz NW Regional VPLarry Marrell NW Regional VPJill Ritchey NW Regional VPBill Hartig MW Regional VP

SPEEA Council OfficersJimmie Mathis ChairJudi Hurd TreasurerTBD Secretary

Midwest Regional Council OfficersDebbie Logsdon ChairGeorge Anthony TreasurerRhonda Greer Secretary

Northwest Regional Council OfficersJoel Funfar ChairPaul Wojciechowski TreasurerJudy Campbell Secretary

SPEEA PublicationsBill Dugovich Communications DirectorLori Dupuis Graphic/Web DesignerRich Kremnetz Printing/Mail ManagerKaren McLean Publications Editor

speea@speea.org www.speea.org

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JuNE 2006SpotLite 2

3 JuNE 2006

published monthly by:Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace, IFPTE Local 2001, AFL-CIO, CLC 15205 52nd Ave S • Seattle, WA 98188 • (206) 433-0991

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Volume 48, Number 6; JuNE 2006

Index Page

By Cynthia Cole, SPEEA President

President’s Corner

Meet your newly elected SPEEA officers .. 2

Portland partnership efforts grow at grass-roots level ....................................4

SPEEA raises awareness of workers’ issues ................................... 5

Union members are key votes, Inslee says ................................... 5

The Horatio Alger meme1 vs. the data ..... 6

Trade picture from Washington state: Exports and foreign content going up .................. 7

Labor movement needs to hit home, organizer says ........................................ 8

SPEEA Council Reps and HR generalists forge connections........... 9

SPEEA staff reaches 20th anniversary ................................... 10

Conference maps out ways for leaders to connect ............................11

SpotLite

SPeeA reinforces top issues with lawmakers in D.C.

Recently, I was in Washington, D.C., to attend the annual spring conference of the Council of Engineers and Scientists

Organizations (CESO). CESO is made up of 12 engineering and scientist organizations, including SPEEA. Each of our member organizations gave reports on our first day, Monday. Also attend-ing from SPEEA were Charles Bofferding, Jill Ritchey, Jimmie Mathis, Keith Neal, and Dwight Rousu from the Puget Sound and Chris Black and Rhonda Greer from Wichita.

Whenever we attend this conference, we also set aside time to talk with elected representa-tives about key legislative issues that impact our membership. Tuesday and Wednesday, we spent meeting with members of Congress, as arranged by Kristin Farr, SPEEA’s legislative director. (Kudos to her for skillful spacing of our meet-ings. In spite of the tight security and various construction projects around the Capitol, we could walk to all of our appointments and still arrive on time!) We discussed key issues with every one of the Washington and Kansas delega-tions, meeting with either the senator or repre-sentative or a key staff member.

The issues we addressed were:

• Protections for retiree medical benefits after workers retire

• H-1B and L-1 visa reform

• The Employee Free Choice Act

• Current trade agreement legislation

Regarding retiree medical benefits, SPEEA supports legislation that would prohibit com-panies from curtailing or eliminating benefits under their retiree health plans after a worker retires. For employees who have not yet retired and have considered these benefits for decades when planning for their retirement, we asked our lawmakers to consider going one step further by sponsoring legislation to protect their employer-paid benefits.

The H-1B foreign technical worker visas and L-1 intra-company transfer visas issue remains at the center of the often debated topic of how many highly skilled U.S. technical workers continue to face unemployment or under-employment, while businesses fill jobs with workers from other countries. Currently, the H-1B and L-1 visa issue is a part of the Senate version of the immigration reform act.

SPEEA members pressed the case for collect-ing the facts and data to get the complete pic-ture on the number of visas required. We asked senators to decouple H-1B and L-1 visa limits from immigration reform. We would like to see testimony presented at the committee level to work toward a better solution than the current seesaw affect of raising and lowering the limits without addressing the accountability issues. No one agency oversees the numbers of the visas, the pay these workers are receiving, or the process of first seeking Americans to fill the jobs.

The Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) supports the rights of workers to organize and bargain collectively without the threat of intimidation from management. SPEEA members, as well as members from the other CESO organizations, stressed that today’s technical union workers see themselves in partnership with the management of their companies. Being represented allows us to have a voice at the table and to work together with the employer.

Lastly, on the trade agreements, we shared infor-mation that many of the past trade agreements have resulted in lowering of wages and work-ing conditions for foreign, as well as American, workers. There are not enough worker protec-tions in these laws and the long-term results of these trade acts are often not foreseen.

These meetings provided SPEEA leaders an opportunity to present data and make points that our elected politicians had either not previ-ously heard or had not well understood. Face-to-face discussions in Washington, D.C., are a

great opportunity for SPEEA to build on both established and new relationships in the politi-cal arena.

I personally realized that giving data on certain issues to members of Congress does not mean an impression is made on them or that they remember hearing our previous input. Part of the process involves continually renewing our rela-tionship with them. As a result, we are planning to attend the fall CESO conference, as well.

The three meetings I enjoyed the most, due to the quality of the dialogue were with Rep. Jay Inslee (D-WA, 1st district), Rep. Dave Reichert (R-WA, 8th district), and Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA). I am sure each of the SPEEA leaders who attended the conference and the meetings on the hill would be willing to share their impres-sions with you and underscore the value of these CESO conferences.

JuNE 2006SpotLite 4

nW vice president elected

The Northwest Council elected Mark Schuetz to fill the vacant Northwest region vice president seat on the

SPEEA Executive Board. Schuetz, who was the SPEEA Council secretary, now fills the un-expired term created by the election of SPEEA President Cynthia Cole, former regional vice president. Schuetz was elected on the second ballot in a runoff with Michael J. Dunn at the May 11 regional Council meeting.

SPEEA Council will elect a new secretary to replace Schuetz at the June 9 SPEEA Council meeting. Nominations will be taken from the floor. No petitions are required for this seat.

SPeeA membership pays off

I have a SPEEA member in my area that transferred from IDS to BCA in April. He had received a respectful salary increase

during the 2006 contractual adjustment at IDS that was reflected in his IDS paycheck. Upon transfer to BCA, the entire merit van-ished. With auto deposit, he did not notice the downward adjustment. His first clue came when SPEEA contacted him to inquire as to his salary decrease. He contacted manage-ment and was able to get his pay restored plus back pay. It is wonderful to know SPEEA is actively watching out for us. Please forward thanks to responsible SPEEA staff.

Rene’ Heuscher Flight Test Liaison Area Rep

[SPEEA would also like to thank Area Reps, such as Heuscher, for being the link in the workplace between members, Council Reps and their union.]

BeWeT-SPeeA rafting weekend

If you want to have a fun time rafting with fellow SPEEA members and rafting enthu-siasts, sign up for the BEWET-SPEEA raft-

ing weekend June 24 and 25. BEWET is a Boeing recreation club with access to private camping on Icicle Creek. Guides will lead raft-ing trips on the Class III rapids on both days. Cost is $40 per day, including both rafting and camping. Wet suit rentals are extra and lunch on the river is BYO. Deadline to register: June 9. For more details, go to: http://bewet.org (see 2006 rafting trip schedule link).

Portland partnership efforts grow at grass-roots level

PORTLAND, Ore. – Susi Hall’s work as a Council Rep in Portland is a case study in how to build effective partnerships at

the ground level.

She and J i l l L u d w i g , H R generalist for The Boeing Company’s Portland fabrica-tion division, are both proud of their track record – zero grievances filed in 2005.

That track record doe sn’t mean issues don’t come up – both Hall and Ludwig are in frequent com-munication about members’ or man-agement concerns. Hall and Ludwig have built a relationship over time based on mutual trust.

“I used to take meticulously detailed notes,” said Ludwig, about the bi-weekly meetings with Hall. “I never knew when I would have to go back to see what was said.”

“Now, we’re in constant communication,” said Hall. “When we need to address something, we give each other a call.”

Working together with IAMA meeting on their partnership efforts would not be complete without including Stacy Breunig, chief union shop steward for the International Association of Machinists (IAM) and Debi Sternberg, Boeing Portland HR generalist and IAM labor relations representative.

Like their SPEEA counterparts, Breunig and Sternberg’s common goal is to reduce the num-ber of grievances. In 2004, 16 grievances were filed and in 2005, three grievances were filed. Of the 1,300 who work at the plant, about 1,000 are in the IAM bargaining unit.

“That doesn’t mean there aren’t still a lot of ‘peo-ple’ issues,” said Breunig. “By working together, we find that we just don’t need to go that level.”

Working with Hall and Ludwig has also helped with jurisdictional issues. Boeing Portland is primarily fabricating, complex machined and detailed assemblies for almost all Boeing Commercial airplanes.

“Before, there was head-butting, but more and more, those issues are dealt with based on a much better relationship,” Breunig said.

Partnership conferences foster the relationship-

building process, said Hall and Ludwig, because the union reps and the HR generalists attend the same workshops and discuss the hypothetical issues. “I’d do this, but Susi would say that,” said Ludwig.

“In discussing it, I could see her point.”

“That helped,” s a i d H a l l , “because it was like standing in the other per-son’s shoes. I saw things I wouldn’t have considered before.”

That’s one reason why Hall and Ludwig encour-aged Breunig and Sternberg to join them at this year’s Federal Mediation

Conciliation Services (FMCS) conference in August.

“We consider this a three-part relationship (SPEEA, Boeing and IAM), so we all need to be there,” said Hall.

Challenges they faceIn addition to resolving individual cases, all four representatives bear in mind that what they do could have an impact on the Puget Sound or other bargaining units.

“We are a contained microcosm,” said Sternberg of working at a smaller (distant) facility. “What happens here could be precedent setting.”

Confidentiality is another issue, when someone is concerned about their salary or retention status compared to one or two others. “The challenge is to educate people,” said Hall, whose bargaining unit represents about 150.

Both Hall and Breunig appreciate that their HR counterparts will investigate concerns and requests whether work or benefits related. The union reps also recognize that it’s easier for many represented employee to go to them rather than the company.

“This can give us more latitude to help raise issues and resolve concerns before the situation gets much worse,” said Breunig.

“That’s the benefit of us working together,” said Hall. “We’re able to help people at the first line-level without raising issues to formal (and lengthy) grievances.”

[Editor’s note: See related story on page 9 regarding an Ed Wells Initiative meeting to develop relation-ships between Council Reps and their HR generalists in the Puget Sound.]

Shown here (l – r): Jill Ludwig, HR generalist for The Boeing Company’s Portland fabrication division, Susi Hall, SPEEA Council Rep, Debi Sternberg, Boeing Portland HR generalist and IAM labor relations rep-resentative and Stacy Breunig, chief union shop steward for the IAM.

SPeeA raises awareness of workers’ issues

Ten representatives from SPEEA traveled to shareholder meetings in Chicago and Toronto to make sure members’ voices

are heard.

Jobs/eIP at Boeing meetingAt the Boeing meeting May 1, SPEEA represen-tatives’ message focused on securing future work for the Wichita Boeing site (company executives announced layoffs of about 900 by the end of the year) and making the Employee Incentive Plan (EIP) apply to everyone.

Ruth Ann Mullhatten pointed out to the Boeing board that the Wichita executives and managers received an EIP payout, but the professional and shop workers did not. “I know the site wasn’t profitable, but we were following the direction of our managers,” she said. She was speaking against a proposal to give the board incentive pay-outs. “Until the people in Chicago ensure that the managers of the peo-ple in the cubicles ‘walk the talk,’ you, the elected officers do not deserve to get an incentive.”

The six Wichita representatives, who are all Council Reps, included: Steve Blackburn, Judi Hurd, Sheree Kennedy, Ruth Ann Mullhatten, Joe Newberry and John Proffitt. Stan Sorscher, SPEEA staff, also attended and called for Boeing to adopt an international framework agreement, where Boeing and its suppliers agree to comply with core labor standards of the International Labor Organization.

“It gave us a chance to speak and be heard,” said Hurd. “I think it was valuable,” said Newberry. “We were able to say something to the company’s executives that they needed to hear.”

Call for working together at OnexAt the Onex meeting May 11, the three rep-

resentatives from Wichita were the only share-holders to address the parent company of Spirit AeroSystems. Onex bought the Boeing commer-cial facility in Wichita in June 2005.

The SPEEA delegation reminded the board that the addition of Spirit AeroSystems makes Onex the largest aerospace firm in Wichita. In addi-tion, the instant success of the facility is possible because of the experience of employees.

“Spirit AeroSystems’ technical workforce brings Onex more than 26,000 years of aerospace experi-ence,” said Shane Michael, Council Rep.

Board members were also asked to encourage Wichita management to form joint, working committees with labor unions.

“Working in joint com-mittees, we worked a number of issues with Boeing,” said Deb Shepard, Wichita con-tract administrator. “We would like to continue this relationship with Spirit.”

Council Rep Donna Castaneda asked the board to keep the work

in Wichita.

“The major concern I hear from people on the floor is about outsourcing,” Castaneda said. “The engi-neering drawing work that comes from the Moscow Design Center is coming in for rework. Take that into consideration – the rework that must be done before sending any more overseas.”

Onex CEO Gerald Schwartz thanked the group for coming to the meeting. After the meeting, many of the board members took time to speak with the SPEEA representatives.

“It was very cordial,” said Shepard. “It was a good opportunity for the board to connect real people with the facility they now own in Kansas.”

5 JuNE 2006SpotLite

union members are key votes, Inslee says

Stopping deficit spending and maintain-ing family wage jobs at The Boeing Company are top issues for U.S. Rep.

Jay Inslee (D-WA, 1st District) during a recent visit with the northwest legislative and Public Affairs Committee.

The congressman spent one hour talking with about one dozen committee members and others at the SPEEA Seattle Hall on April 24. Expressing concern for federal spending, Inslee said union members will be important votes in the November elections.

“SPEEA members have a big part in the fight to push for fiscal responsibility,” Inslee said. “If our country can fight in Iraq and Afghanistan for democracy, we should have some democracy in the workplace and keep good, family wage jobs here.”

Tax cuts lavished on the upper income brackets have done little to help the average American, Inslee said.

“Sixty percent of the cuts go to people earning $250,000 or more a year,” he said. “Republicans, conservatives, democrats and independents have all had a belly full of what is happening.”

The rising deficit, which could hit $600 bil-lion for the year according to Inslee, is rip-pling through the economy. The ripples have an affect on the debate about funding other projects, including replacing its aging fleet of KC135 refueling tankers. Inslee continues to push for a replacement and for stopping the European subsidies to Airbus.

In the weeks since Inslee visited SPEEA, he helped push a bill through Congress that makes Homeland Security funds available to Washington State ferries.

“Knowing that ferries in Puget Sound could be a terrorist target, it would be irresponsible to exclude them from the program,” Inslee said.

The NW Legislative and Public Affairs Committee meets the third Thursday of each month at the SPEEA Seattle Hall. Members are welcome to attend.

Spirit open enrollment period

Spirit AeroSystems in Wichita will have an open enrollment period, May 29 to June 9. Spirit

plans to send more information to employees.

Shown here in Chicago representing SPEEA are (l –r): front row: Ruth Ann Mullhatten and Judi Hurd, and back row: John Proffitt, Joe Newberry, Sheree Kennedy, Steve Blackburn and Stan Sorscher.

Shown here (l – r) at the Onex shareholders’ meeting in Toronto: Deb Shepard, SPEEA contract administrator, Gerald Schwartz, Onex CEO, and Wichita Council Reps Shane Michael and Donna Castaneda.

JuNE 2006SpotLite 6

The Horatio Alger meme1 vs. the dataBy Dwight Rousu SPEEA Area Rep

There is an American meme1 that no matter how poor you start out, if you work hard, do good, and persevere, then you will almost assuredly become well-to-do; a belief that rags-to-riches is the

American path. This idea was prevalently put forward in writings of Horatio Alger (1832-1898). He wrote over 134 dime novels aimed at young men of his time.

It is an interesting question whether this is indeed the nature of our society and if this nature is changing over time. There is a contrary body of data and opinion which says we are becoming more of a society of classes; the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. Along with this view is the observation that people born into a privileged class have educational, social and financial starting points that are increasingly advantaged over the starting points of the underprivileged children, that the fixedness of the class structure has been made more confining.

As a way of investigating this quantitatively, Stan Sorscher, SPEEA staff, has taken some data from the book “The State of Working America 2004/2005” (Mishel, Bernstein, & Allegretto)2 that show the likelihood of a person transitioning from one economic class into one of the various classes 10 years later. This data is presented in tables for a sequence of decades, showing how rigid the class system has been at different times and how it changes over time.

Let’s explore these matrix tables a little. The first table goes from 1969 to 1979. Assume there are 500 people in 1969. These are broken into five groups, so there are 100 of the poorest in the bottom group, 100 with lower middle affluence in the second group, 100 middle affluence in the third group, 100 upper middle in the fourth group, and 100 of the wealthiest in the top group. The 1969 to 1979 table says about 49 of those who were in the bottom group comprising the poorest 20% of the population in 1969, were still in the bottom group in 1979. Of those 100 in the bottom group in 1969, only 3 made it to the top 20% of the population 10 years later. Looking at those who started in the top group in 1969, 49 were still there in 1979; while five had slid to the bottom. Examining the tables shows the trends in economic mobility in the 60s, the 70s, and the 80s. Looking at the diagonal entries from table to table, it is seen that in each later decade, it became more likely you would end up in the same economic class as the class in which you started.

The following charts show other features of the data. If a person started in the bottom group (bottom quintile), the first chart shows the likelihoods of where they would end up 10 years later, for each of the three decades. The

primary conclusion is that if you were poor to start with, as the decades went by, you were more likely to be poor 10 years later. The 90s data showed a slightly greater chance of making it all the way to the top, but that increase was less than the increased likelihood of staying in the bottom.

The second chart shows that over the three decades, a person was progressively more likely to remain in the eco-nomic class they started in. The likelihood of moving up to a higher economic class decreased over the 30 years. And in the end, a person was about equally likely to move up or move down the economic ladder.

The data itself does not relate causes to the effect, but the data indicates that our economic classes are becoming more rigid. The poor are staying poor, the economic middle class are staying middle class, and the rich are staying rich.3

If society considers it desirable that regardless of their initial poverty, able and hardworking people should be advancing economically in our country, the data suggests that we may be moving backwards as a society. If Horatio Alger’s idealized meme is to represent something more than cultural myths4 and boyhood fables from the 1800s, then there may be adjustments in education, affirmative action, inheritance taxes, and other policies that should be contemplated.

(Endnotes)

1 The term and concept of meme (pronounced in IPA; from the Greek word μνήμη for ‘memory’) is a neologism that first appeared in the 1976 book by Richard Dawkins, The Selfish Gene. Though Dawkins defined the meme as “a unit of cultural transmission, or a unit of imitation,” memeticists vary in their definitions of meme. The lack of a consistent, rigorous and precise definition of a meme remains one of the principal criticisms leveled at memetics, the study of memes. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meme

2 Lawrence Mishel, Jared Bernstein, and Sylvia Allegretto, The State of Working America: 2004-2005 (Ithaca, N.Y: Cornell University Press, 2005), 484 pages.

3 Other data supports the view that those who are very rich are getting relatively much richer than the poor, but that is another set of data.

4 http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/29266/

Transition matrices for last three decades

7 JuNE 2006SpotLite

Trade picture from Washington state: exports and foreign content going upBy Stan Sorscher SPEEA Staff

Chinese leader Hu Jintao visited Seattle recently, coinciding with welcome news of an agreement that China is buying 80 Boeing 737 airplanes, nominally worth $5 billion. SPEEA members’ jobs depend on exports, and The Boeing Company is a leading exporter in the U.S. Washington state is said to be “the most trade dependent state in the union.” So how are things going in terms of trade for the state and SPEEA-represented employees?

SPEEA members have many concerns about the growing amount of foreign content in Boeing aircraft. Figure 1 shows the steady growth of this content in commercial aircraft. The chart refers only to airplanes with General Electric or Pratt & Whitney engines, excluding any configurations with engines from Rolls-Royce of CFMI.

Each new model of airplane has increasing foreign content. Large fuselage sections for the 767 and 777 are made offshore. The 787 will have even greater foreign participation in manufacturing, design, and testing. If the 737 replacement follows the pattern, we can expect more work and jobs to be displaced overseas in the years ahead.

We are pleased that a significant fraction of Boeing airplanes are sold to Asian customers, with a large potential market in China. Commerce Department trade data show more than $3 billion dollars per year in U.S. aerospace exports to China in 2004 and 2005. Three billion dollars, annu-ally, is a large amount. However, Figure 2 places our success in aerospace in context with the United States overall trade deficit with China, which ran to about $200 billion in 2005.

While Washington state is a major exporter, the state runs significant deficits with China and with the rest of the world, as shown in Figure 3. Even with Boeing, Microsoft, agriculture, timber, fishing products, Starbucks, Amazon, and other thriving businesses in a diversified econ-omy, Washington state imports much more than it exports.

We are told that trade with other countries creates jobs and improves our standard of living. That promise comes true when U.S. workers make products that the rest of the world need and then buys from businesses in our state. However, the trend is clear. While we hear much talk about helping companies remain “competitive,” there is far less said about the need to help workers and our communities so that they are not left out of the equation and eventually left behind.

Sign up for home e-mail delivery of the SPeeA newsletter at

www.speea.org

JuNE 2006SpotLite 8

Verlene Wilder, organizer for the King County Labor Council, talked to the Northwest Council Rep about ‘labor at the crossroads.’

Labor movement needs to hit home, organizer saysSEATTLE – When Verlene Wilder talks about the future of the union movement, she knows exactly where labor leaders need to go next – to their members.

“It’s easy to decide the direction if the rank and file like you decide,” she said during a presentation called “Labor at the Crossroads” at the April Northwest Council meeting.

“To be strong, we need rank and file at the table – we have to be looking for and listening to their voices.”

With 30 years in the labor movement, Wilder walks her talk as the union cities organizer for the King County Labor Council.

She talked about the importance of reaching out to fellow members – showing the value of unions.

“The problem with labor,” she said, “is that we need to change our image in the community and raise awareness about the ‘simple’ things,” she said. “Without labor unions, there would be no vacation, no sick leave, no retirement.”

Wilder speaks loud and clear about the need for unions, but she wasn’t always such an ardent sup-porter. She shared her story of joining a union about 30 years ago when she worked at a hospi-tal. She joined because she had to, she said.

After joining, she decided to learn more about the union and discovered the value of her union contract – for wages, benefits and rights at work. She became a shop steward and became even more active.

“I learned that the union was not the office, the building or even the officers, it was with me and

with the co-workers,” she said.

As part of her efforts to educate others, she’s taught the value of labor in classrooms. She recalled the time when she was teaching the students about unions by dividing them into workers and management. The workers orga-nized a sit-down strike for better pay. Wilder asked why they did that. “My dad is a SPEEA member and they’re striking for a fair contract,” was one student’s reply.

Wilder remembers coming to the SPEEA hall to help with picket captain training. Although a strike is a struggle, it moves members to take action, she said. “SPEEA has the advantage – they’ve felt the fight,” she said.

“We’re marching toward a change (in the labor movement), but we’re leaving 80% of dues-pay-ing members behind,” she said about the need to reach out to those who don’t feel the value of a union. “Once we figure out how to educate members and change that, then we will bridge the gap in the crossroads.”

IT outsourcing affects Irving

IRVING, Texas – BAE Systems announced plans to outsource all of its computing work to Computer Sciences Corporation,

(CSC), but employees will keep similar pay and benefits. This affects five SPEEA repre-sented employees, said Bob Brewer, SPEEA Midwest director.

“The good news is that all of the employees at the Irving plant will be kept whole,” said Brewer following the announcement April 26.

CSC provided service to BAE for several years and renewed its contract to include all BAE facilities, Brewer said. BAE bought the Irving facility from The Boeing Company in 2004.

SPEEA Irving Council Reps Redge Thompson and Joyce Thomas joined Brewer in meetings with CSC manage-ment to discuss the impact this will have on SPEEA-represented and non-represented jobs at Irving.

SPEEA will continue to meet with employ-ees and managers. “We want to be there as an advocate for employees,” said Brewer, “so that their concerns are heard.”

IFPTe convention/VP election results

If you’re interested in the outcome of the recent SPEEA election of IFPTE conven-tion delegates and vice presidents, go to the

website at www.speea.org. The names will also be published in the July issue of ‘Spotlite.’

nW golf tournament Mark your calendars and grab a four-

some for golfing at Riverbend Golf Complex in Kent, Wash., Saturday,

Aug. 26. The Northwest Membership Activities Committee (MAC) is taking res-ervations now. “All levels of players are wel-come to join us,” said Alton Folks, one of the organizers. “This is just for fun.”

The cost is $55, which includes greens fees, a box lunch and prizes. Those interested in a golf cart can make reservations with the complex at (253) 854-3673.

Deadline to register: Aug 4. For more infor-mation, contact Folks at: alton.e.folks@boeing.com or Orlando De Los Santos at: Orlando.delossantos@boeing.com.

northwest Council officers electedNorthwest Council officers are shown here (l – r): Joel Funfar, chair, Judy Campbell, secretary, who were both recently elected and Paul Wojciechowski, treasurer (incumbent). Funfar was serving as NW Council secretary when he was elected chair (a vacancy created when Bob Wilkerson was elected as SPEEA treasurer). Campbell successfully ran for secretary. The Council Reps voted at their April meeting. Congratulations to the recently elected officers who will serve until the terms expire in 2007.

9 JuNE 2006SpotLite

SPeeA Council Reps and HR generalists forge connections By Ellen Whitford Ed Wells Partnership

On a brilliantly sunny day in May, nearly 50 SPEEA Council Reps and Human Resources (HR) generalists shared a friendly lunch, estab-lished bonds and exchanged ideas about ways to work as partners.

Because Council Reps and HR generalists often meet only when an employee has a complaint to lodge or is facing disciplinary action, the Tukwila event was designed to give participants an opportunity to build relationships, gain a fuller appreciation for their respective roles and explore ways that would make it easier to solve problems collaboratively.

Power in partnership“We hope this gives you an opportunity to develop a rela-tionship of trust with your counterpart, because trust is what makes these rela-tionships work,” said Dean Tudor, a program manager at the Ed Wells Partnership (EWP).

The event was sponsored by the EWP, SPEEA and the HR organizations in Engineering and Manufacturing (E&M), Commercial Aviation Services (CAS) and Integrated Defense Systems (IDS). A second forum is scheduled in Everett June 14.

When Council Reps and HR generalists work collaboratively, several people said, there are few limits on what they can accomplish.

“You’re the people on the front lines figuring out how to get things done,” Ray Bower, director of IDS Engineering, said in opening remarks. ”When you work together, you’re the people who solve problems, and solve them quickly.”

Similar roles In a joint presentation, Ron Mathes, Council Rep at the Developmental Center, and Tricia Swynenburg, IDS HR generalist, discussed their roles and how people in their position can work as partners.

“We both wear many hats,” said Swynenburg. “Many of our roles overlap.”

Mathes elaborated: “We both try to be advocates for our people, we both investigate issues, and we both try to ensure everyone is treated fairly.”

They urged Council Reps and HR generalists to get to know each other. “It will make working together so much easier,” said Swynenburg.

Making collaboration easierDuring lunch, participants were asked to con-sider how they could make it easier to solve prob-lems collaboratively and to share their ideas with everyone at the forum.

Wes Aman, Plant 2 Council Rep, said his tablemates suggested inviting

HR generalists to the lunchtime meetings that SPEEA Council

Reps hold for employees.

Council Rep Jim Pagenkopf from Kent said people at his table thought it would be beneficial to ask Council Reps to attend program-oriented new-employee orientations in their district and introduce themselves, as HR generalists do.

And Bryant Sheppard, HR generalist for E&M, said his

tablemates decided they would like to meet for lunch several times

each year to get better acquainted.

“The forum was extremely useful,” Suzi Ure, HR generalist at Plant 2, said as the event ended. “It was a slice of time dedicated to the future, rather than to firefighting.”

Across the table, Plant 2 Council Reps Joel Funfar and Richard Wichels nodded agree-ment. “This gives people a chance to get to know each other without the stress of the normal workday,” said Funfar, SPEEA NW Council chair.

“It gave us the opportunity to hear about oth-ers’ experiences,” Wichels added. “I learned how others have developed their relationships. I find that very helpful.”

[Editor’s note: See related story, page 4, regarding SPEEA/Boeing/IAM grass-roots partnership efforts in Portland, Ore.]

[SPEEA Council

Reps and HR

Generalists] both try to

be advocates for our

people… both investigate

issues and…both try to

ensure everyone is

treated fairly. Ron Mathes Council Rep

SPeeA scores deal for baseball games

W ICHITA – The Midwest Me m b e r s h i p A c t i v i t i e s Committee lined up a double

play of fun for this summer with the Wichita Wranglers baseball team.

Members can pick up discount tickets all season long as well as for a special ‘SPEEA Family Night,’ including the game, a tailgate party with dinner and dessert included.

SPeeA Family nightTickets are $5 per person for the evening game, Saturday, June 24, at the Lawrence-Dumont Stadium. Tailgate party starts at 5:15 p.m. and includes hotdogs, hamburgers, side dishes, pop and water. The game starts at 7 p.m., and dessert follows with a 360-foot ice cream sundae. Fireworks will cap off the night. For tickets, stop by the SPEEA Wichita office at 973 S. Glendale St. Make checks payable to the Wichita Wranglers Baseball. Tickets will be sold on a first-come, first served basis. Deadline for tickets: June 21.

Discount tickets all season SPEEA scored a ticket price for all games this season that is even cheaper than the group rate. Tickets range from $3 (general admis-sion) to $8 (club seats). Get tickets at the SPEEA Wichita office. Make checks payable to the Wichita Wranglers Baseball.

Questions? Call George Anthony, MW MAC chair, at 977-0202.

northwest MAC‘cruise for a cure’Classic car and motorcycle enthusi-

asts will join forces to raise money and have fun in the third annual

‘Cruise for a Cure,’ Saturday, Aug. 12. The Northwest Membership Activities Committee (MAC) hosts the event to support cystic fibrosis research.

Enjoy a well-mapped scenic ride through the highlands and lowlands of eastern Puget Sound and stay afterward for a bar-becue. Again this year, generous donors have contributed prizes to add to the fes-tivities after the ride.

Discover places you never saw before – or perhaps never had the pleasure of seeing in the companionship of fellow members and friends. Want to help? Contact Bill Barrett, chair of the NW MAC, at William.j.barrett@boeing.com, or Rich Plunkett, at richp@speea.org.

JuNE 2006SpotLite 10JuNE 2006SpotLite 10

The NW Facilities Committee is shown here against the new dividing wall in the main meeting room (l – r): Gordon Allen, Jim Singletary, Keith Neal, Sherry Grant and Tom McCarty. Not shown: Wayne Hollatz.

Meeting room renovation improves networking

The main meeting room at the SPEEA Seattle office recently underwent a makeover – with fresh paint, new carpets and new storage closets – but the best part is the technology upgrade.

“The principle reason for the Tukwila hall council space refurbishment was to allow for better member communication between SPEEA locations,” said Keith Neal, chair of the NW Facilities Committee.

The Tukwila meeting space had not changed much from when the SPEEA headquarters opened in 1981.

“To leverage the audio/visual equipment investment in Everett hall, the time was right to bring the Tukwila meeting space up to the same level,” Neal said. “With these improvements we can expect greater communication and stronger SPEEA solidarity!”

SPeeA staff reaches 20th anniversary

Maria Nelson just finished her master’s degree in industrial psychology when she went to work at SPEEA 20 years

ago in May.

Given the nature of her degree, she might have gone into management where there were more jobs available – if it hadn’t been for a successful retention appeal.

“My brother-in-law, who was in the Tech bar-gaining unit, just won his appeal with the help of a SPEEA contract administrator (CA),” Nelson said. “He suggested I call her for an information-al interview.” That’s how she found out about the opening at SPEEA.

In recent years, Nelson migrated into manage-ment, but she’s also still with SPEEA as the Ed Wells Partnership co-director.

As she looks back on the past two decades, the increasing number of women – both in the bar-gaining unit and in leadership roles at SPEEA – stands out.

When she started at SPEEA, she was the only female contract administrator. Today, about 25% of SPEEA’s exempt workforce is female.

“Initially, it was common for me to be the only woman in the room during meetings,” she said. “It was rare at the time to see another woman in labor relations, but it’s not anymore.”

Nelson first went to work at another union, Public School Employees (PSE) of Washington.

“I realized it would be a great opportunity to advocate for employees’ interests and rights,” she said about making the move.

She left PSE after three years to finish her master’s thesis on employee performance self-evaluations. After graduating, her job search led to SPEEA.

She worked as a contract administrator, as well as setting up the training programs for SPEEA leaders, and the first-ever SPEEA Leadership Conference.

When asked what she enjoyed most, she talked about the one-on-one working relationships with Council Reps – to help them build the skills they needed to represent their members.

“I always felt like I was helping people,” she said. “Although I may not have been able to do what the employee requested, I was always able to do something for them.”

Her reasons for staying with SPEEA for 20 years are similar to why she went to the Ed Wells Partnership team (formerly Ed Wells Initiative/SPEEA-Boeing Partnership) in 2002.

“I like seeing SPEEA break new ground on what’s possible – to make the economic pie larger for our members, rather than just impact how the existing pie will get sliced up,” she said. “SPEEA has been and can be a leading force in that.”

BAe in Irving raises money for cancerBAE Systems employees in Irving, Texas, who participated in the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, are shown above. In the photo at right, John Morales (left) and David Whitley, in the SPEEA bargaining unit, are ‘cooking for the cure’ to help feed the BAE teams. BAE employees and managers joined forces to make up six teams participating in the 12-hour event May 6-7. Council Reps Redge Thompson and Joyce Thomas also took part in the fun. Entertainment included Polynesian dancers, Thai Chi and karaoke. “As exhausting as it was, it was also fulfilling and fun,” Thomas said. Participants at the event raised a total of $12,000.

Midwest golf tournament winnersThe winning foursome (shown here: l – r) Tim Hamer, Gary Helmick, Scott Denker, and Brad Mullen, scored 60 (10 under par) at Braeburn Golf Course in Wichita, May 13. SPEEA’s Midwest Membership Activities (MAC) committee hosted the 6th annual tournament, which featured prizes for the winning team, the highest scoring team, longest drive, closest to the pin, raffle prizes and more. Thanks to the following sponsors for contributing prizes: Tires Plus, Old Chicago Restaurant, Golfland, Dick’s Sporting Goods, the Alley Indoor Entertainment, the Village Inn, Angelo’s Restaurant, Rock Road Quick Lube, Golf Warehouse, Golf Discount, Krispy Kreme, Davis-Moore, Lou’s Sporting Goods, Willie C’s Café’, Boeing Credit Union, Upper Crust, Serengeti’s Grill, and Abuelo’s.

11 JuNE 2006SpotLite

eugene Debs and the Pullman strikeBy Ross Rieder, President Pacific Northwest Labor History Association

Pullman, Illinois was owned by George M. Pullman, head of the famous Pullman Palace Car

Company. Five thousand Pullman employees lived in this well-kept suburb. No saloon, no brothel, no public speaking and no union activity were tolerated.

Pullman expected “his people” to depend upon his generos-ity and foresight. When Illinois Gov. John Altgeld spent a day inspecting conditions in Pullman, he found them appalling and said so in writing to Pullman. Nothing was done to remedy those conditions. So, in spring 1894, the people in Pullman went on strike.

As the walkout started, the first national conven-tion of the American Railway Union (ARU), led by Eugene Victor Debs, was meeting in Chicago. The ARU was dedicated to trying to organize all railway workers into one big indus-trial union. The new union was in no condition to wage a major struggle when Pullman workers appealed for help. Still, it voted for solidarity with the Pullman workers.

The ARU called for a nationwide sympathy strike of railroad workers, including a boycott of Pullman trains. The strike and boycott para-lyzed railroad transportation in the nation. The effectiveness of industrial unionism was evident immediately. Section hands, switchmen, brake-

men, roundhouse workers, firemen, engineers, even conductors signed ARU membership cards.

At this point, US Attorney General Richard B. Olney, a former rail-road layer, went into action. When Illinois Governor Altgeld refused to call out troops to run the trains, Olney did so.

Debs cautioned ARU unions: “Commit no violence. Have every man stand pat. Troops can-not move trains.” But the 3,600 deputy marshals dispatched to Chicago by Olney caused violence to break out.

The violence provided reason for a court injunction forbidding Debs and his asso-ciates “from in any way or manner interfering with … any business activity of 22 railroads.” It charged the ARU leaders with hindering the delivery of U.S. mail.

Debs ignored the injunction, issuing an appeal to the workers of Chicago for a “general strike.” American Federation of Labor (AFL) officials, dubious of the new form of unionism, were loath to act. The strike was broken.

Debs was jailed. During his incarceration, he thought a lot about the events that put him in a cell. He could not miss the tremendous influ-ence the railroad owners had on the life of rail-road workers. He came out of jail a convert to socialism. It was this stint in jail from which his famous statement came: “Better that the govern-ment run the railroads, than that the railroads run the government.”

Conference maps out ways for leaders to connect

While workshops at this year’s annual SPEEA conference June 10 range from union history to

future union leaders, Council Reps, elected leaders and other participants will learn to “know the way, show the way and lead the way.”

The Leadership Development and Training Committee (LDT) chose this winning theme contributed by Everett Council Rep Alan Rice.

“For a lot of our leaders, the conference is a place to sharpen their skills, for others, it’s an opportunity to learn new ones,” said Ron Mathes, chair of the committee. “But for most of us, it’s a place to realize the strength we have as a union.”

The one-day conference is geared toward Council Reps and their alternates as well as other elected SPEEA leaders. They will choose three workshops out of a total of 10 options, including union history, future of jobs/skills/6A occupation review and looking for the next generation of SPEEA leaders.

A variety of workshops also address ways to connect with members as well as their community, as the theme suggests with ‘lead the way.’

“Through this conference, our goal is for each person to get a sense of what’s possi-ble when we work together,” said Mary Jo Shannon, SPEEA director of organizational development and training.

Other members of the LDT team include: Richard Greene, Wayne Hollatz, Sharon Moats and Mark Schuetz.

Member benefit for new hiresWhen you start a new job, you may

not think you’ll need insurance for that time before you’re eligible

for the company’s plan. But for those who do need it, SPEEA has helped.

SPEEA offers temporary medical coverage for new members to bridge the time between starting at The Boeing Company and being covered by Boeing (a month or less later).

While most claims are fairly small amounts, a recent hospital bill submitted to SPEEA is a reminder of how valuable this benefit is for those who need it.

Eugene Victor Debs

Periodicals Postage Paid at Seattle, Washington

Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace, IFPTE Local 2001, AFL-CIO, CLC15205 52nd Ave S • Seattle, WA 98188Volume 48, Number 6 (ISSN 0194-8687) June 2006

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JuNE 2006SpotLite 12

Members voice concern, get action, on medical changes

SPeeA-requested actions

• Suspend implementation of the high-performance network

• Disclose the 42 standards used to rate health care quality

• Provide a get-well plan for excluded providers

• Involve all stake holders

Updates posted at: www.speea.org

By Bill Dugovich SPEEA communications director

A cting on members’ concerns about the implementation of a new medical net-work plan by The Boeing Company and

Regence BlueShield, SPEEA secured an extension to the open enrollment period for represented employees in Puget Sound bargaining units and opened talks with both parties to discuss possible adjustments. The extension allows medical plan changes through June 2.

Among the SPEEA requests at a spe-c i a l mee t ing on Wednesday, May 24, was suspending the

“high-performance network” portion of the new Select Network medical plan for one year. A response was not available from Boeing by press time. Representatives from Regence also agreed to work with Boeing to disclose the 42 standards used to rate health care providers.

Concerns appeared as Boeing and Regence started implement-ing Select Network. Quality standards used to evaluate doc-tors and health care providers eliminated some doctors. Within days, 155 represented employees outlined specific concerns about losing their doctor in emails to Boeing and SPEEA.

“We support evidence-based medicine and high health care standards,” said Cynthia Cole, SPEEA president. “Members want to know if their doctor is not providing quality care. However, members are not seeing consistency in the implementation or the gathering of quality scores for this high-performance network.”

Health care providers eliminated from the net-work can, and many are, appealing to Regence. “We’re going through this with many provid-ers,” said Joseph Gifford, Regence chief medical officer.

The concept of the high-performance network was part of the 2005 contract negotiations. Select Network, which replaces the old “Selections” medical plan, has no monthly premium, no “gatekeepers” for referrals, no deductible and $10 office co-pays. It also has no out-of-network coverage for most services. However, investiga-tion showed that more than 6,000 families of represented employees were affected by doctors eliminated from the plan.

Roughly 17,000 doctors, physician assistants and nurse practitioners practice medicine in western Washington. Of that total, 6,349 were evaluated on efficiency (cost) and quality-based measures as established by professional societies in their specialty, and nationally recognized health care organizations. Of those physicians, 597 were excluded from the Select Network.

SPEEA bargaining units are the first to move to the high-performance medical network standard.

“Regence started building a tool that can improve health care for members,” said Stan Sorscher, SPEEA researcher. “We just have to convince Boeing and Regence to use it to improve health care and not simply to eliminate people in an effort to cut costs.”

We want to hear from you!Comments and suggestions from represented employees make SPEEA a better union. Take a moment and send us your thoughts.

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