Long time President of Local 24 Gregg French has retired to spend more time with his children in sunny Las Vegas. In accordance with the IAM constitution Vice President Jason Gast will fill the rest of Gregg’s position as President. Former Vice President James Petty has been appointed to fill Jason’s Vice President Position.

For those keeping track here are your 2017 Local 24 Officers:

Jason Gast being sworn in as President Local 24.	James Petty Vice President Local 24
Al Nuzzo Local 24 Recording Secretary
Vince Coston Local 24 Inside Sentinel	Tim Hanson Local 24 Trustee
Eugene Jemison Local 24 Trustee	Joe gould Local 24 Trustee

Union Brothers and Sisters,

We have secured a New Union Hall to hold our monthly meetings at starting with the March 18, 2017 meeting.
The Iron Workers, Local 5, have agreed to rent us their hall for our meetings.

The address is:

Iron Workers, Local 5
9100 Old Marlboro Pike
Upper Marlboro, Md.  20772-3627
The time has not changed; exec board at 9:00 and the regular meeting at 9:30.

Hope to see you all there
Local Lodge 24 executive Board

The IAM Disaster Relief Fund provides assistance in situations where our members and their families endure hardships due to natural disasters. The IAM reacts quickly to these needs before other sources of assistance are able. This is not possible without the support of those who have committed to keep the IAM Disaster Relief Fund vibrant and healthy. Click on the banner to find out more.

The 2017 IAM Scholarship Competition is now accepting applications. The deadline for submissions is February 24, 2017.

Click here to download applications and see eligibility rules.

The IAM awards scholarships to:

• Children of IAM members (parent or guardian) applying for college
• Children of IAM members (parent or guardian) applying for vocational or technical School
• IAM members applying for college

Since its implementation in 1960, the Scholarship Competition has continued to grow. This past year, 2015-2016, the IAM received 294 applications for scholarships. The 16 scholarships awarded were valued at $72,000.

By Convention Resolution, IAM delegates determined that voluntary contributions to finance the Scholarship fund be set at 50 cents per member, per year. To date, 224 of the IAM’s approximately 960 Locals have contributed. If your lodge has not adopted this resolution or has not contributed for this year, please give it serious consideration at your next lodge meeting.

You may call the IAM Safety and Health Department, which administers the scholarship competition, at 301-967-4708 to request an application packet to be mailed. Application packets have been sent to the local and district lodges.

Click here for details on the 2017 IAM Scholarship competition.

We are Local Lodge 24 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. Local 24 represents over 400 highly skilled men and women who work at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, the home of Air Force One! We provide worldwide airlift and logistical support for the U.S. President, the Vice President, Cabinet members, and other high-ranking U.S. and foreign government officials.

 The Machinists Union with nearly 700,000 active and retired members is one of the largest and most diverse labor unions in North America. From Boeing and Lockheed Martin to United Airlines and Harley-Davidson, you will find IAM members across all walks of life. IAM members demand respect and dignity in the workplace. Together, we have been able to bargain for increased job security, higher wages and improved benefits.

Money. That’s the bottom line in the world of work! And union members make a lot more money than non-union employees, U.S. government figures show.

Union members earn 28% more than non-union workers in wages alone, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. (If you include the value of benefits, it’s 36% more!)

Consider the difference between a union aircraft mechanic and an unrepresented aircraft mechanic working the same jobs as government contractors:

U.S. EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS ADMINISTRATION DEPARTMENT OF LABOR REGISTER OF WAGE DETERMINATIONS UNDER THE SERVICE CONTRACT ACT

DynCorp ASD CBA wages as of 09/01/2016

Hey I want to file a grievance!
Shop Stewards hear this on almost a daily basis. As a union member the ability to grieve is one of our most important rights. But what is a grievance? Can I grieve this? What do I have to know before filing a grievance are questions you might be asking yourself.

The first step is to read your contract. If you can’t find your copy you can find your contract online in the AndrewsIAM Library. Remember that there are time limits to filing a grievance, if you wait to long you may lose your rights. Next talk to your Shop Steward. If you do not know who your steward is you can check the Representatives Page. Remember in accordance with our Collective Bargaining Agreements only a Shop Steward or other approved Union Officer may present grievances to the company.

How do I know if I have grounds for a grievance?

1. Does it Violate the Contract?
Look at the union contract. While the meaning of a specific piece of contract language can be debated, you’re usually in a pretty good position to argue that a certain section or clause has been violated. Grievances based on a violation of the contract are often the easiest to win.

2. Does It Violate Past Practice?
Is what’s going on a violation of past practice? Even if something isn’t spelled out in the contract, if it’s been done that way for years, a change or crackdown may as well be a violation.

Let’s say an employer has always given a little slack to workers who arrive late during bad weather. All of a sudden he starts docking people who arrive even five minutes late when a blizzard is roaring outside. In such a case, you’ve got a pretty good past practice grievance on your hands. If you’re going to cite past practice as the reason for your grievance, be sure the practice has existed for a substantial period of time.

3. Does It Violate Employer Rules?
Has there been a violation of your employer’s own rules and regulations? Uneven enforcement of the rules can provide the grounds for a grievance.
For example, a worker caught smoking in a nonsmoking area can’t be fired if other people routinely do the same thing and are not disciplined.

4. Does It Violate the Law?
Your employer can’t violate the law. Even if your contract is silent on a specific issue, you still have the right to grieve if the employer does something illegal.
Let’s say your contract doesn’t speak to health and safety issues, but your boss orders you to do something that’s clearly dangerous. You don’t have to cite contract language as the basis for your grievance, you can point instead to state or federal occupational safety and health legislation.

5. Does It Violate Basic Rights?
Finally, you can have legitimate grounds for a grievance if a worker’s basic rights are violated. If there’s been discrimination you may have something to grieve. Discrimination occurs when two people are treated differently under the same conditions, in a way in which one of them is harmed or treated unequally. While the most common types of discrimination tend to be based on race or sex, there are other ways as well, including age, physical appearance, personality and union activity, for that matter.

Be aware that discrimination charges can be hard to prove. If you can base your case on contract language you’ll find your case a lot easier to pursue.

Discipline Grievances

If you were disciplined you may have grounds for a grievance. The company is obligated to apply the standards of Just Cause when disciplining an employee. Even if you were “guilty” of the offense that the company has accused you of, you still may have grounds for a grievance. It is important that you talk to your Shop Steward.

Just Cause is part of our Collective Bargaining Agreements. It is the major difference between a union member and a non-union (at-will) employee.

Retaliation
The company cannot retaliate against a union member for filing a grievance or for supporting their union.

If you have any questions please contact your Shop Steward, they are there to help.