regionvii posted on October 06, 2011 10:00
To: Region VII Locals and Guilds
From: Joe Marutiak and Aaron Sanders
RE: Constitutional Compliance with Article XIX, Section 10 of the OPEIU Constitution.
Brothers and Sisters.
As we all know the political arena is complicated and ever changing. In order for us to have a voice we need to support candidates who embrace the hard working middle class workers we are privileged to represent. OPEIU has a rich tradition of supporting candidates who support and protect the rights and standard of living for their members at the city, state and federal level. This is accomplished through the OPEIU J.B. Moss Voice of the Electorate (VOTE) Fund
At the June 2010 Convention the delegates voted to amend the OPEIU Constitution by adding a new Section herby referred to as Section 10 (Copy enclosed). This section reads in part that: “In all collective bargaining negotiations which begin on or after July 1, 2010, each Local Union in the United States must vigorously pursue agreement with the employer(s) to a provision permitting check-off of contributions to the J.B. Moss Voice of the Electorate Fund.”
The need to keep our voice from being extinguished from big business is apparent therefore Joe and myself would like to check with each local in Region VII to ensure that we are doing all we can to aid you in getting this language into all the contracts we have. This is the only way we will be able to keep our concerns at the forefront and our members protected from the onslaught that is surely to come in 2012 and beyond.
We would ask each local to take a few minutes to check their contracts and see if there is language in them that address the VOTE. Then contact myself at (517) 285-4514 or Joe so we can compile a complete report for President Goodwin.
Thank you in advance you your time and assistance in this matter.
Aaron E. Sanders Joe Marutiak
Region VII Vice Presidents