Local 2693 maintains diversity in union certifications in the Thunder ¢ Cement truck driver Keith Randle, now retired, waits outside the loading bay at the Lafarge concrete operation. awmills and logging operations do not a local union make. In IWA- CANADA Local 2693, as in other locals of the IWA, diversity in certifica- tions is a normal and healthy thing for the union. Although the northwestern Ontario local has built its reputation on agree- ments in the logging and sawmilling sector, and some of those are among the best in the industry, it has make a prolonged effort at bringing union wages and working conditions to workers in other sectors. In the immediate city of Thunder Bay, where Local 2693 has its headquarters, the Luwmberworker had an opportunity to visit some of the diverse operations that help make up the local union. The operations visited were Unitized Manu- facturing Ltd., Lafarge Concrete, MNT Builders, and Timberjack Ltd. All the op- erations are at least partial spin-offs of either the forest industry or the construction sector. “We've got several certifications outside of the milling and logging opera- tions,” says Local 2693 president Wilf McIntyre. “They are an important part of the local union.” “Our philosophy is that the union can do all workers good and we have proven that in our collective agreements with various employers,” says Brother McIntyre. Here are the brief stories of the four local union operations. UNITIZED MANUFACTURING LTD. One of the more senior operations in Thunder Bay is Unitized Manufac- turing Ltd. a small truss and pre-fabri- cated component builder that has been in Local 2693 since the 1950’s when the local union was part of the Lumber and Sawmill Workers’ Union (affiliated with the International Brotherhood of Carpenters and Join- ers). The local union joined IWA- CANADA in 1987. The operation is a seasonal one, with its busiest season in the warmer months when the construction indus- try is going full swing. The company employs between 4 - 15 union members and more when the action picks up. They all work on day shift, five days a week, with occasion- al overtime and/or weekend work. For many years a good part of the company’s business was tied to mak- ing prefabricated components for the construction of remote camps in the logging industry. But in the past 5-7 years that business has completely dropped off as almost all of the log- ging camps have closed down. In the mining sector activity is very limited and remote sites usually put workers up in trailer camps. ee Today the company specializes in trusses, modular building compo- nents, and pre-fabricated buildings. “Most of the production at the plant is all custom work,” says business agent and local union first vice-presi- dent John Lorenowich, who services the operation. “That requires some very skilled work to meet customer specifications.” Brother Lorenowich said the plant. is a also a relatively high-volume one for its size. Although most of the roof trusses are shipped to residential construc- tion sites, there is considerable work in commercial and industrial sectors as well. The trusses are put together in an assembly area where a four-cut insta- matic saw is used to make simultane- ous cuts in one pass. The conventional C-clamp is used to join the components, which are either 2” by 4” or 2” by 6” pieces of lumber. The company tries to buy all of its con- struction lumber locally if possible. An area for smaller custom orders is also set up in the plant. According to plant manager Bill Nikkila the company is competing on price and a long reputation of quality in an industry which is largely non-union. With the advent of free trade there is even more competition from states like Minnesota where labour rates are much lower. Wages in the Thunder Bay plant run as high as $16-17.00/hr. $/LUMBERWORKER/NOVEMBER, 1994 “We've always looked after any problems with our sales, if there ever were any,” says Mr. Nikkila. “This is not always true with some of the ‘fly- by-night’ competitors out there.” Unitized has a steady list of con- tractors that it supplies. Most of them are established builders and contrac- tors in the Thunder Bay area. LAFARGE CONCRETE For over two decades the local union has represented the interests of workers at a local concrete company, now known as Lafarge. In Thunder Bay the local also represents workers at Nor-Shore Concrete. Lafarge, previously known as Irwin Ready-Mix and various other names, has contracts to haul ready-mix con- crete to the larger commercial and in- dustrial job sites in the Thunder Bay area. z The entire IWA crew exists of only 20-25 workers in the peak construc- tion periods which are the months of Bay area late spring, summer, and fall. Year round there are about 12-13 workers employed by the company. Most of the union members are truck drivers and the other workers include batchermen and maintenance workers. The batcherman’s job is automated. Most of the day they operate controls which regulate the composition of the concrete and measure out the volume and weight of the aggregate for the loads to be sent out. The aggregate and cement are measured on a scale and then dropped into mixers before being dropped into trucks. Each truck can take up to 54,000 Ibs. of mixed concrete to the job site. Most of the batcherman’s high tech equipment has been installed since 1990. Prior to that there was some computerized equipment to assist in the job. The company gets its aggregate ma- terial by barge from a pit on Mani- toulin Island, south of Thunder Bay on Lake Superior. It gets its sand from a local pit and brings in its cement by barge from Heron Bay. Lloyd Szkaley, a local 2693 business agent and second vice-president, says that even though most of the industry in northern Ontario is unionized, (many with the International Operat- ing Engineers) the IWA is a leader in collective agreement with wage rates $4-5.00/hr. higher that its other union counterparts. The workers at Lafarge are reason- ably well-paid with a full range of ben- efits including medical, dental, sickness, and an RRSP contribution plan. Their last two-year deal, which saw a 30 cents an hour increase in the latest year, will expire in May of 1995. Wage categories are batcherman, truck driver, operator (front end loader/crane), mechanics, welders, and labourers. Top rate is $20.60/hr. TIMBERJACK EQUIPMENT The IWA has long represented the interest of mechanics and mainte- nance workers in the forest industry so it is a natural step that the union represents those who work on logging equipment, yet whose workplace is of- ten outside of the logging sites. In 1991, Local union president Wilf McIntyre organized workers at the Thunder Bay Timberjack Equipment parts and service operation. Today Lo- cal 2693 represents about ten workers at the company (7 mechanics and 3 parts clerks). Continued on page nine | j |