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FROM YOUR EDITOR
A reminder to all our chapter members that tickets are available for our ASEA 10th Year Anniversary Dinner Dance/Ball at the Anchorage Hilton Hotel on Saturday, Feb. 28th at 7 PM. Get with your shop steward or call the union office (# 277-5200) for tickets. Cost will be $10/person.
You editor got quite a few articles submitted this month by various members of our chapter. Keep those articles coming because that what makes for a good newsletter. The first article comes from our ASEA Statewide President Vinnie O’Conner (also one of our chapter members):
FROM VINNIE O’CONNER ASEA Statewide President
On January 13th Correctional Officers (COs) from our state correctional facilities voted to be represented by PSEA, an independent police officers union. The loss of approximately 720 members impacts our union by about 1/8th of our statewide membership.
We wish our former members all the best with their new union.
Now that the CO election is over it’s now time for ASEA to focus on the issues that are important to our union. With the Legislature now in session, it is important that we monitor the bills that impact our public employees…bills such as SB 151 (which dismantles PERA) and SB204 (on privatization). There is the matter of our state budget with understaffing and downsizing being concerns that must be addressed. There are issues on re-engineering of state government.
Our union, ASEA-AFSCME Local 52, is celebrating it’s 10th Year Anniversary at our Statewide Biennial Convention in Anchorage scheduled from Feb. 26th thru March 1st. This year’s convention theme is “Power in Stability”. I am asking all of our Anchorage Chapter members to be involved with your convention delegates.
There will be work shops on Member/Officer effectiveness, the ASEA Legal Services Trust Fund, Protecting Member Rights, ASEA Health Benefits, Civil Rights of Public Employees, establishment of an ASEA Retirement Chapter, and Public Employee Survival in the 90’s. There will be many committees needing your assistance. The committees will deal on issues concerning Budget, Communications/Public Relations, Credentials, Institutions, Legislative Issues, Resolutions, Rural Issues, Steering & Rules, Women & Minority Issues, and Worker Safety.
There will be many guest speakers including Gov. Tony Knowles, Lt. Gov. Fran Ulmer, Senator Jim Duncan, Labor Commissioner Tom Cashen, Republican candidates for Governor (John Lindauer and Sen. Robin Taylor), and Assemblywoman Pat Abney. There will many guests from AFSCME including International Vice President Chris Dukovich, AFSCME Area Director Seth Hendler, Larry Scanlon/ Director- AFSCME Political Action, Chuck Loveless/ Director- AFSCME Legislative Dept, Lorraine O’Hara/ Director-AFSCME PEOPLE, Cathy Collette/ AFSCME Director of Women’s Issues, and Steve Regenstreif/ AFSCME Director of Retiree Programs. We also have guests and friends from the AFL-CIO: Statewide President Mano Frey and Richard Seward.
I am urging our Chapter members to please come out to your convention at the Anchorage Hilton. There is something for everyone…Vinnie.
Editor: Chapter member Larry Rabideau submits the next article:
“THE INSANITY OF GOOD IDEAS” article submitted by Larry Rabideau
We’ve all heard the rhetoric. We must cut costs! We must get people off welfare! We have to cut back! Get tough on crime! Lock ‘em up and throw away the keys!
What does that all mean? It means that people are angry, scared and want to blame somebody else, anybody else…for the insecurity we all face. We are afraid we will lose our jobs, or be attacked, or just tired of feeling afraid all the time. But here is the problem…there is a cost for all the “fixes” we propose for our ills.
If we mandate people get off welfare…Where will they get jobs? Who will watch their children? You can bet that the types of jobs available do not pay enough for these people to afford daycare. So you need job training….Who pays for that? Who pays for the daycare? We can’t just leave the children unsupervised because we just passed a law making that illegal and that parents can go to jail. If parents are sent to jail, what do we do with the children?
Lock up the criminals and throw away the key! Who is going to pay for the jails? Who is going to pay for the guards? Who is going to pay to feed, clothe and provide medical care for prisoners? Who is going to pay for more judges and prosecutors? What about our right to a “Speedy Trial”? How can you get a speed trial if the courts are full because the police are arresting people for all infractions of the laws that are passed everyday? We need more police to arrest wrongdoers…Who pays for them?
You get the point. There is a cost in society. We as state workers are part of those costs. State government has legislated our jobs into existence through necessity. If you pass child welfare laws, you need child welfare workers. You want computers and communications to keep people informed…you need workers to make that happen and , of course, you need to maintain the equipment. You want game management on a local level and not turn it over to the federal government…then you need professional managers and people to patrol the field to monitor the game laws. Most of your money comes from oil…you need people to make sure your revenues are collected and you get your fair share.
There is a cost to good ideas. There is a cost to good government and qualified people. As much as we like to shout at the dark, there is s cost to having light. We must be willing to pay or we must be willing to do without. There is no way of doing both. If we pass laws, we must fund them. If we want professionals to do the work we need done, we must be willing to pay for professionals. There is a cost to good ideas and good intentions. The insanity lies in thinking that they will be free…Larry Rabideau.
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Editor: Cynthia Madrey has asked to have this announcement posted in this month’s chapter newsletter:
ANNOUNCEMENT
My name is Cynthia L. Madrey. I am a steward and also on the ASEA Statewide Executive Board. The Statewide Executive Board appointed me as the chairperson for the “Multicultural Committee” which will be addressing concerns of all minorities within State government. The function of committee will be to involve minority state employees of different cultural backgrounds in such union activities.
A response at your most earliest convenience would be appreciated if you are interested. Please send your name, address with zip-code, phone number, job title, e-mail address, and the name of the department where you work to ASEA/AFSCME Local 52, AFL-CIO, Attn: Cynthia L. Madrey, 3510 Spenard Road Suite 201, Anchorage, AK 99503. Phone number is (907)277-5200. Please send information by February 28th.
Thank you and I look forward to meeting with you….Cynthia.
Editor: The final article has been submitted by our Anchorage Chapter Chief Steward, Judy Morris:
“ON BECOMING A STEWARD” by Judy Morris/ Anch. Chapter Chief Steward
My article last month talked about the need for vounteers as shop stewards. I wanted to followup with another article this month on this matter.
The position of steward is the most important job in our union. This job is the first line of defense for everyone of our members in the ASEA. A steward is trained to know the contract and know the rights of the state employee.
With our state contract coming up for renewal later this year, we will need to fill all the steward positions. We need members willing to put in time, willing to learn, and do the job.
What does the job entail? Let me tell you….
You will be considered for a position as steward. Remember you must be a member in good standing with our union in order to qualify as a steward.
We hope to hear from you…Judy.
