East Chicago, Indiana Volume 18; No. 33rd Qtr. 2007

LOCAL 1010

STEELWORKER

Long History for 25 Year PicnicStory on Page 9

Photos by: Joe Gutierrez, Jim Spasoff and Seretha Woods

3rd Qtr. 2007Page 2

UNION SAFETY COMMITTEE REPORT

Safety Committee398-3100 x120 or 121

safety@uswa1010.org

Ivan Agosto - Chairman397-6934

Cell: 712-5631

Nick Valle - Vice Chairman(708) 891-2272Cell: 808-5377

John Gelon - Secretary690-1523

Cell: 406-4190

Don Jones - Safety Coordinator838-4210

Cell: 712-5610From left: John Gelon, Nick Valle, Don Jones, Ivan Agosto

In the last addition of the Steelworker,we had an article that addressed Un-safe Condition Reports (U.C.R.).These reports represent an importantpart of improving safety in the work-place. We have the responsibility toget any unsafe conditions documentedso they can be corrected.

In that article, we stressed the impor-tance of documentation and having acompany representative (salaried) signthe U.C.R. to acknowledge they re-ceived it. Keep a copy of the signedreport for future references. We needto ensure that follows-ups need to bemade so that the unsafe condition getsfixed. However, we failed to mentionthe importance of taking immediatecorrective actions. If the unsafe con-dition is something you can immedi-ately remedy, take the time and cor-rect the situation yourself. If you see abad spot in the floor grating or handrailing missing, don’t just walk awayand write up a report. Be pro-activeand at least flag off the area. If an elec-trical switch is not working properlyand immediate repairs cannot be made,it’s the responsibility of the person thatdiscovered the situation to Red Tag theswitch and turn in an U.C.R. If the

brakes on mobile equipment are notworking, Red Tag the equipment andturn in the U.C.R. Also, remember todocument this condition on your mo-bile equipment inspection checklist.

Your actions may prevent an injury ora fatality. Simply documenting the situ-ation is not enough. Don’t leave trapsfor the next person. The next personmay not notice the condition, therebycausing an unfortunate incident.

Take immediate correctiveactions when possible. Thehealth and well being of thenext person may depend onyou actions or inaction.

Improper or lack of lockoutsand verification continue tocause accidents and seriousnear misses. Remember, youshall always lockout andverify anytime you can be in-jured by the unexpected startup or energizing of equipmentor machinery. Remember,

just slapping a safety lock on some-thing (Electrical switch, Valve,Lock box, etc.) does not mean youhave locked out properly! Lockoutverification is the OSHA standard andthat is also what you need to do toprevent yourself from being involvedin a serious accident. It is everyone’sresponsibility on each job to lockoutand verify every aspect of the lock-out. Are the switches locked out inthe off position? Did you verify thatthe switch is isolating the power? Wehave had several electrical switchesfail. Just because these switcheswere put into the off position doesnot guarantee the switch is work-ing properly and has actually de-energized the equipment! Thisneeds to be verified! Are all valvesclosed and seating properly? Haveyou verified that there is not any bleedthrough? Are all blocks and pins inplace where called for? These are justsome examples of different verificationmethods that must take place by ev-eryone that enters the point of opera-tion. Do not assume that someoneelse verified and that it was donecorrectly. You must verify to en-sure that the energy source has

Page 3Steelworker

been isolated. Your life depends onyour verification. Always lockoutand verify.

Vehicle collisions with heavy mobileequipment and trains remain a concern.These are very large pieces of equip-ment that may have several blind spotsand can cause extensive damage andsevere injuries. Traveling in the mill canbe a dangerous undertaking if every-one is not paying attention to the taskat hand (driving). Be very cautious atrail crossings; stop, look and listen. Ifyou drive over the tracks when a trainis coming, the operator may be unableto stop the train in time to avoid a col-lision. It would be a losing battle ifyou were to collide with a train or largepiece of mobile equipment.

We must continue to stress to all op-erators of heavy equipment the impor-tance of understanding the dangers theymay present to themselves and tosmaller vehicles and their drivers.

Inspect the equipment to make sureit’s safe to operate. If the mobileequipment is unsafe to operate, RedTag the equipment and park it. Thedangers of taking a chance by operat-ing defective equipment are too severe.

We again ask that all operators anddrivers of personal vehicles followposted speed limits and watch out forall other vehicles (personal and com-pany owned).

We have been very fortunate that afatality has not occurred due to a ve-hicle collision in the mill with a largepiece of mobile equipment or a train.But we do continue to have too manyof these collisions, it will just be a mat-ter of time if we don’t start taking moreprecautions.

Don’t assume anything on the job,check and verify everything. Youare the first and last line of defense

on any job to prevent an injury.

The most important part of any safetyprogram are the people that are in it.Always “MAKE THE JOB SAFEOR DON’T DO IT.”

The latest accident numbers reveal thatJune of this year we had 55 accidents,31 were OSHA recordable (neededmedical treatment) and 10 of theseaccidents were lost workday cases.Compare that to last year when we had42 accidents; 33 OSHA recordablesand 16 lost workday cases. We havehad 254 accidents so far this year com-pared to 291 last year during the sametime frame.

The following are the latest survey re-sults from the Safety Awareness train-ing have been compiled through June29th.

* How many lock out every time re-quired? 505 of 1003 or 50.3%

* When locking out, how many verify?282 of 505 or 55.8%

* That means 282 of 1003 are lock-ing out and verifying everytime. Thisrepresents only 28.1% of the time weare we doing what is necessary to en-sure a proper lockout.

* Receive proper monthly safety meet-ings? 1194 of 1411 or 84.6%

* Receive regular toolbox safety meet-ings? 669 of 1271 or 52.6%

* On a monthly basis view an MTSsafety training video? 1128 of 1413or 79.8%

* Know how to report an unsafe con-dition in writing? 1204 of 1416 or85%.

3rd Qtr. 2007Page 4

Page 5Steelworker

Financial Report

Rosa Maria RodriguezFinancial Secretary

Wow! It’s hard to believe, but it has beenover a year since I began working as theFinancial Secretary at Local 1010. In re-gards to finance, we are quite healthy. Con-gratulations to Dustin Barlow Palmer, thewinner of this year’s ACT scholarship. Heis the son of Thomas Palmer from MobileEquipment. Please be advised, we will be-gin accepting applications for 2008 begin-ning in September. The selection for thewinner is determined by ACT and they inturn contact this office, so please get thoseapplications in early. Recently we receivedyour United Steelworkers membershipcards. You can come down to the UnionHall during working hours and pick it up atthe Financial Office. Please call ahead soyour card will be ready for you (398-3100x101).

I want to share with you what I have seenhappening, not as an officer but as a mem-ber of Local 1010. I felt it important since Iwas one of the individuals who felt thatour Union wasn’t doing enough for itsmembers. I have seen for myself the in-volvement and the dedication that goes on.And it isn’t an election year!

Safety has come to the forefront. Therehave been ongoing sessions and more in-volvement and commitment from both man-agement and our members. There are stillstagnating elements that seem to keep theculture from completely being used or be-lieved. One is a management supervisor.Hopefully, with the current training man-agement is receiving, they will understandthe importance of the fact that Safety is apriority and not just lame talk. We havebeen assured by management and theUnion of the development of a differentconcept; MAKE THE JOB SAFE, ORDON’T DO IT! This philosophy has beenin existence for a long time. I believe asupervisor was fired over this issue. Theother stagnant element is us. Many of usare under the impression that the “new cul-

ture” is something like pastthings, started but will also passor do not want to accept changebecause that is how it has alwaysbeen done and the favorite of oldtimers, “I’ve been doing it for 30years this way.” Well, this safetyculture is not going away. Not if

the union has any say so, and we do. OurPresident, Tom Hargrove, along with otherofficers and members, is visiting all thedepartments, doing walk arounds and view-ing for themselves unsafe conditions. Wehave entered into a different way of doingthings, and all for the best. Think about it.How many times have you done somethingunsafe and gotten away with no one get-ting hurt? How many times have you donethe job unsafe and hurt yourself or some-one else? How many have the scars,wounds, and pain of unsafe practices?Was there something that could have beendone to prevent an accident? My interpre-tation of this whole culture awareness is toprevent causalities rather than the old phi-losophy, “Nothing gets done until some-one gets hurt or dies!” Be part of the solu-tion and get more involved in safety.

One of the most important parts of my lifeis volunteering. I have dedicated myselfto youth and community for about thirtyyears. I have seen unsung heroes andmany deeds gone unnoticed. It is not aboutjust giving money to a cause but the in-volvement and caring to make a differenceand bring about change. And that is whatmany of our brothers and sister do. Fromcollecting money for Christmas gifts andtaking up a donation for a fallen member tospending their own time off to work withthose less fortunate. There is so much thatis being done that if I begin listing them,we could fill this whole newspaper up. It isthese precious moments of being involvedthat make one proud to be a Union member.

Recently we traveled to Ohio to hear Demo-crat presidential candidates speak. Thespeeches were what I expected, each toldus what we wanted to hear. What did piquemy interest is that their platforms, thoughgeneral, spoke of issues that pertain to theworking families. They spoke of renewingAmerican manufacturing jobs and we, theUnion, are playing an integral part in it.

There is a common interest in the environ-ment and taking responsible steps to bet-ter control what is going on in our worldand creating opportunities and jobs tomake a better world. This has been some-thing that has been ignored long enough,and now it is bitting us in the ass so manyways. There is talk of universal health care.Imagine, by taking this off the bargainingtable during negotiations we can speak ofother important issues that affect us in ourworkplace. They each believed in bringingour military men and women home now.This was so important to me, as my young-est son is due to go to Iraq in mid-Augustand the daily fear of him going is hard. Myquestion is how are they going to get Cor-porate America to except doing businessin the United States and embrace theUnions’ involvement? Though they allspoke on the same issues, all-important andmindful to each of us, what was more im-portant was the conversation afterwardsamongst the members. We argued, agreed,disagreed and teased each other of our fa-vorites but we voices our opinions. Wewalked away with tools to see whom wewould support. Now the work has begunto see who is the most qualified and whowill represent us when they reach the WhiteHouse.

Yes, a lot has gone on in the last year and Iknow there is more to come. I wish morepeople would get involved to make a dif-ference and be part of the change, whetherit be safety, volunteering, or politically. Itall is part of who we are, Union brothersand sisters.

In Solidarity, your sister,

Rosa Maria Rodriguez

UNION

YES!

3rd Qtr. 2007Page 6

Happy 4th of July to all of my unionBrothers and Sisters at #2 Steel Pro-ducing Shop, I trust everyone had a safeholiday. Independence Day is a timeto celebrate and remember. Just as ourforefathers had to pay a great price forfreedom, we also as working men andwomen have had to pay a great pricefor our labor rights. During the Ameri-can Revolution, people had to chose.Stand up and fight and be recognizedas a Patriot, which took courage, orsurrender their dignity to those whowanted to oppress their rights by glad-handing and fraternizing, rolling over tobecome Bootlickers. We as Unionworkers are still in a fight for our rights.Are you a Patriot or a Bootlicker?

Many of you have complained about notreceiving your Reds (Pants&Jackets)from our present vendor. The lockersthat store our Reds are hard to identify.The lighting is bad, some lockers aretoo close to the floor, many clothes arenot returned, and you can barely walkinside the tight spaces of the room it-self. We have had discussions withmanagement to address all of these is-sues. They said they are investigatinga new vendor to remedy all of theseitems. A video camera will be installedin the hallway where we place our dirtyReds in the bins for monitoring pur-poses.

Departmental and plant wide bids arebeing posted for vacant jobs. It is im-portant to keep a copy of your bidwhen you sign up for a bid. Makesure you know your rights. If you

bid for a job and either accept the bidor turn it down, you will not be able tobid again for one year.

Art. 5, section E (10,G&H), page39 in the contract book, states:

G In the event an employee acceptstransfer under Paragraph 10 and re-mains on the new job for more thanthirty (30) days, s/he may not againapply for transfer for one (1) year af-ter such transfer.

H In the event an employee refuses atransfer under Paragraph 10 after ap-plying therefore, or voluntarily returnsto the unit from which s/he transferreds/he may not again apply for transferto such unit for one (1) year after suchevent.

We continue to see workers in our de-partment sent to the clinic for no ap-parent reason at all. In one such inci-dent when a worker was sent to theclinic, it was because they were fol-lowing instructions from their immedi-ate supervisor. The supervisor told the

State of the Departmentby Mike BouvatGriever, Area #5

employee to go up on a crane. Whenthey lifted the load it went up slightlyand bumped a door, cracking a window.The employee was sent to the clinic fora fitness to work test. These incidentsare nothing more than harassment fromthe company and send a wrong mes-sage to workers. It appears to be away to place employees in some typeof witch hunt. HEY, why not sendthe supervisor who used poor judg-ment?

I have talked with management and ifanyone is told they need to go to theclinic for a fitness to work test, man-agement has agreed that the person canspeak to a Union official before theyare sent to the clinic. It is importantthat you request a Union represen-tative. Tell the Union rep. all the cir-cumstances surrounding what hap-pened to you. Let’s continue to workSAFE.

Yours in Solidarity, Mike Bouvat

Legal Problems?Need a Lawyer?

Local 1010 members can take advantage of a free legalconsultation every Wednesday at the Union Hall from:

8:30 am - 9:30 am*and

3:00 pm - 4:30 pm*

Provided by the Law Offices of

Bosch & Banasiak7150 Indianapolis Blvd., Hammond, IN 46323

or call 219-844-3020

*Times are approximate

Page 7Steelworker

NoticeIf you are planning to retire within the next year and wouldlike to attend a Fidelity Workshop, fill in the form below anddrop it off at the Union Hall or mail it to:

Tom HargroveUSW Local 10103703 Euclid Ave.East Chicago, IN46312

Fidelity WorkshopName ...................................................................Address ..............................................................Phone ................................................................

Department ......................................................Years of Service ..............................................

The Training Committee membershave received a number of calls.Some of the most frequentlyasked questions and answers arelisted below.

Can the company make me do ajob I am not trained to do? Thecompany is required to train em-ployees on both the safe way toperform jobs and how to performthe duties of the jobs.

What training is available?What other training plans arethere? What classes are therefor MTM’s? What classes areavailable for MTE’s? Listed be-low is a brief training history aswell as short-term future plans.

More than 690 workers have com-pleted Operator Maintenance As-sist training.

More than 40 MTM’s have at-tended Hydraulics training. Hy-draulics is a forty hour class. Weplan to have two Hydraulic classesper month. Soon we will have twoHydraulic Units for hands-onTroubleshooting Analysis in theclassrooms.

Laser Alignment Classes are nowavailable.

Eighty four workers completed acourse entitled “UnderstandingElectrical Hazards”.

Over 400 workers have completedArc Flash Classes.

Brake training classes are avail-able. We have designed brake spe-cific classes for several areas inthe plant.

DC Crane class started April 9,2007. This course is a three -dayclass. The second session washeld April 30, 2007.

Equipment Training has had over100 people trained in cranes andover 176 trained on forklift.

We are currently looking forRough Terrain Crane MaintenanceInstructors.

Welding classes are runningweekly. Several workers havepassed the 6-G test and the 7-piecetests. The weldor instructors alsoprovide CO2, TIG and Tack Train-ing.

7BF is providing PLC training forMTE’s within their department.

Training Committee Reportby Luis Aguilar, Dorine Godinez & Steve Wagner

3rd Qtr. 2007Page 8

2nd Quarter RetireesABELL, JERRY - 30 - INT LOG - TRUCKDRIVER

AULT, DAVID - 36 - #4 STEEL PRODUC-ING

BAEZ, RICHARD - 31 - #2 STEEL PRO-DUCING

BALZER, CHRISTOPHE G – 31 - PLANT4 MAINTENANCE

BENETICH, GLENN W - 33 - INT LOGS/ESM-TRUCKING MECH

CAMALICK, CHRISTOPHE A - 30 - MEUUTILITIES-POWER

CARDENAS, JOSE - 40 - MEU FIELDFORCES-OPERATIONS

CAREY JR, TOM - 34 - #4 STEEL PRO-DUCING

CARTER, WILLIE M - 43 - INTERMEDI-ATE - #3 CSE

CLARK, DAVID T - 30 - 80 INCH HOTSTRIP MILL

COLON JR, ANGEL M - 31 - #2 STEELPRODUCING

COTTRELL, WILLIAM R - 30 - 80 INCHHOT STRIP MILL

DIXON, JAMES V - 38 - 80 INCH HOTSTRIP MILL

DJURICH, NIKOLA V - 37 - 80 INCH HOTSTRIP MILL

DRAYTON JR, ZEKE - 42 - COATED/CONTINUOUS - #3 CSW

DRENNER, JERROLD E - 30 - 2A/21 INCHMILL IHBP

ESPINOSA, PASCUAL A - 31 - 12 INCHBAR MILL

ESTANOVICH, FRANK A - 31 - #4 STEELPRODUCING

FLOWERS, MICHAEL O - 23 - IH7 BLASTFURNACE

GALESKI, DAVID J - 30 - MEU SHOPS-MACHINE SHOP

GALICH, JOKA - 23 - FINISHING - #3CSW

GARZA, OLGA - 27 - 80 INCH HOT STRIPMILL

GREENE, GEORGE B - 32 - MEU FIELDFORCES-OPERATIONS

HALKIAS, CONSTANTINE - 38 - FINAN-CIAL ACCTG & SVCS (PLANT)

HARNESS, JEFFERY D - 36 - FINISHING -#3 CSE

HUYNH, DUNG C - 31 - COATED/CON-TINUOUS - #3CSE

JOHNSON, ROBERT C - 32 - CLEANINGSERVICES

KOCZUR, LAWRENCE J - 43 - MEUSHOPS-MACHINE SHOP

KOHANYI, DAVID M - 39 - MEU FIELDFORCES-FIELD PIPE

KORBAR, JOHN W - 31 - GALVANIZING

LEAL, MARIA D - 27 - #4 STEEL PRO-DUCING

LEMUS, ISAEL L - 30 - INT LOG/EMM-MOBL EQUIP/TRUCK

LOPEZ, JUAN A - 37 - INT LOG - RAILCAR REPAIR

MARKANICH, JOSEPH E - 35 - 12 INCHBAR MILL

MARRS, GLENN D - 33 - MEU SHOPS-MACHINE SHOP

MARSHALL JR, WILLIAM - 38 - #2STEEL PRODUCING

MARTINEZ, IGNACIO Z - 37 - 80 INCHHOT STRIP MILL

MAYER, JIMMY A - 35 - 12 INCH BARMILL

MCCOLLUM, EDWARD R - 33 - 1 ELECFURNACE & BILLET CASTER

MEDINA, ANTONIO - 33 - MEU FIELDFORCES-FIELD SVCS

MENDEZ JR, ANTONIO - 31 - NO. 2 COLDSTRIP

MILLER, KIRK D - 30 - IH5&IH6 BLASTFCE/3 SINTER PLT

MISECKO, PHILIP J - 33 - INT LOG/EMM-MOBL EQUIP/TRUCK

NIEWINSKI, KEN W - 20 - IH5&IH6BLAST FCE/3 SINTER PLT

NOEL, JOHN R - 30 - INT LOG/EMM-MOBL EQUIP/TRUCK

OSTER, RAYMOND W - 41 - INTERME-DIATE - #3 CSE

OUTLER, MIKE R - 30 - MATERIAL OP-ERATIONS

PACKHAM, ROBERT C - 35 - MEU FIELDFORCES-FIELD SVCS

PERRYMAN, WILLIAM R - 35 - #2 STEELPRODUCING

PETTIGREW, EUNITA D - 30 - MATERIALOPERATIONS

PRZYBORSKI, IRVIN J - 30 - INT LOG -TRUCK DRIVER

RAE, ROBERT M - 35 - 80 INCH HOTSTRIP MILL

REEDER, CHARLES A - 38 - PLANT 4MAINTENANCE

RIVERA, GEORGE - 30 - MEU FIELDFORCES-FIELD SVCS

ROLDAN, JOSE A - 37 - MEU FIELDFORCES-FIELD SVCS

ROSALES, JEANNE C - 35 - 12 INCH BARMILL

ROSS, LESLEE K - 30 - INT LOGS/ESM-TRUCKING MECH

RYGIEL, RAYMOND J - 30 - INT LOG -TRUCK DRIVER

SCOTT, DEAN - 28 - INDIANA HARBORCOKE COMPANY

SHAWVER, JAMES D - 27 - IH7 BLASTFURNACE

SMITH, DENNIS A - 35 - INTERMEDIATE- #3 CSW

STEIN, HECTOR - 30 - MATERIAL OP-ERATIONS

STEPHENS, BONNIE L - 33 - IH5&IH6BLAST FCE/3 SINTER PLT

STICKLEY, ROBERT E - 33 - MEU FIELDFORCES-OPERATIONS

SUMMERS JR, DANIEL L - 31 - INT LOG- YARD

SWISSHELM JR, WILLIAM H - 26 - INTLOG/EMM-MOBL EQUIP/TRUCK

TRAVIS, DANA T - 33 - MEU FIELDFORCES-FIELD SVCS

URIBE, JOSE L - 30 - 80 INCH HOT STRIPMILL

UROSEVIC, SENKA - 30 - MEU SHOPS-MACHINE SHOP

WALTON, PATRICIA - 30 - MATERIALOPERATIONS

WINTCZAK, RONALD R - 30 - 12 INCHBAR MILL

Local 1010 would like to wish our newest, and all previous, retirees

a long, happy and healthy retirement.

Page 9Steelworker

Sixty-Nine Year Tradition Continuesby Tom Hargrove

The 25 year club picnic has a long his-tory at Inland/Ispat-Inland/Mittal Steelco. Since 1939, the company has heldthe picnic for employ-ees and retirees withat least 25 years ofservice.

It has always been avery important eventto many people. It isan opportunity for clubmembers to get to-gether and renew oldacquaintances, espe-cially with retirees,whom they may seeonly that one day eachyear. The picnic wasportrayed to new em-ployees as something to strive toward.Young employees looked forward to thetime they would become eligible to at-tend. Many retirees plan their vaca-tions around the picnic.

In the early years, it was a men-onlyevent. Women with 25 years of ser-vice were invited to a luncheon.Women were finally invited to the pic-nic in the late 80’s and the luncheonwas discontinued in the early 90’s.

In 2001 the company notified the Unionthat it would not be holding the picnicthat year, due to the economic condi-tions affecting the domestic steel indus-try. Never before had the picnic beencanceled because of economic hardtimes, which the industry had gonethrough many times previously.Local 1010 considered the picnic a lo-cal working condition and filed a griev-ance. An arbitrator agreed, and orderedthe company to reinstate the picnic.

Local 1010 had already secured a dateto hold the picnic, whether we won thearbitration or not. The company ac-

cepted the arbitrator’s finding.The practice of including Inland SteelCo. retirees in the annual 25 Year Club

Picnic will be contin-ued.

This year’s picnic isAugust 25, at LakeCounty Fairgrounds.If you don’t receivean invitation, don’tworry. There will bea book with all thenames at the entrancegate, so come ondown.I’ll be cooking on thegrill, as usual.I hope to see you allthere.

The Local 1010 ScrambleTurkey Creek Golf Course

Merrillville, IN

Sept. 22, 20078:00 am Shotgun Start

$45 per MemberFees Cover Cart, Food, Drink and Prizes

Contact: Matt Beckman 398-3100 x138or

Rick Campos 789-1318

3rd Qtr. 2007Page 10

Continued from page 11 Wagner

have for each class. Those classes areavailable to active members fromeach of the sites involved. Due toscheduling, some classes are not put inour course catalogue. Please contactJobLink or check JobLink’s websitefor more information!

Don’t forget that active 1010 membersnow can combine the Tuition Assis-tance $1800 annual limit with the Cus-tomize Class $2000 annual limit to pro-vide a more flexible total amount ofeducational assistance - $3800 per

year to Local 1010 members. Thiscombination of limits is available to in-dividuals who have clear career goalsto develop vocational expertise andmay be approved in accordance withInstitute for Career Development’sguidelines.

If you have a computer at home,check out the JobLink Website athttp://bkJobLink.org/. You will findnext semester’s course lineup withcourse descriptions and other perti-nent information.

Attention new hires…stop byJobLink and see what educational

opportunities your Union negoti-ated for you!

Any questions regarding JobLink canbe directed to the JobLink Staff (219)399-8136. Anyone else who needsadditional information can call me atthe union hall (219) 398-3100 or E-mail me at swagner@uswa1010.org.If you call when I am not available,please leave a message on my voicemail (ext. 113) and I will get back toyou as soon as possible.

Education makes a people easy to lead, but difficult to drive;easy to govern but impossible to enslave.

Henry Peter (1778–1868), Scottish Politician

Throughout themill, Mittal manage-ment is thumbing

its nose at us, the members of Local1010. Nowhere is it more evident thenin the Central Shops and Field Forces.Lead by Mike Heaney, these boys are at-tempting to dismantle the entire shops andfield force departments. I do not makethis claim lightly. In the central shopsHeaney and Jim Stahl have displaced al-most all of the non-craft workers andassigned their duties to the remainingcraftsmen. All of these instances havebeen grieved and are working theirway through the grievance procedure.

Heaney and Stahl have also assignedcraftsmen, on an ongoing and continu-ous basis, to perform non-craft work inthe Internal Logistics LOP. This by it-self is repugnant enough but while theyhave these craftsmen do this he has tolddepartments like #2 BOF to bring in

contractors to do the work these peopleused to do. As an example, there havebeen contractors at #2 BOF working ona steel ladle since April. It’s the end ofJuly, and they are still working onthe same damned ladle! Now Heaneyhas covered his ass with his boss bysaying that BOF management screwedthis up. But nothing could be furtherfrom the truth. The craftsmen whocould have, and should have, donethis work are cutting slabs and scrap-ping old bolts at Rail Car! The snake-oil salesman Heaney has convinced hisbosses that even though he has misusedqualified people, it is someone else’sfault. Even though the company doeshave the right to assign, this is a com-plete misuse of the craftsmen in theplant. This new contract was supposedto be designed so that the company andUnion sit down and discussed thesetypes of situations. In Heaney’s world,

it is the grievance procedure that resolvesissues. Since that is his stance we aremore than willing to walk that road.

In Field Forces, management is mixingthe Electrical and Mechanical crafts eventhough they claimed in negotiationsthey were, and always will be, sepa-rate. This is also working its waythrough he grievance procedure. Man-agement has also stated that FieldForces is going to be out of the out-age business! What the hell that meanshas not been clarified. But I can almostguarantee it means more contractors.

Based on this short history of dealingwith Heaney, his intentions are obvious.He is going to do what he wants, damnthe Union.

Bring it on Mike! It’s time to pick afight.

Enough Is Enough! It’s Time To Pick A Fightby Matt Beckman, Grievance Committee Secretary

Page 11Steelworker

Executive Board

Tom Hargrove, President

Steve Wagner, Vice President

Fidel Azcona, Recording Secretary

Rosa Maria Rodriguez, Financial Secretary

Joe Piller, Treasurer

Jesse Cannon, Guide

Jim Gogolak, Inner Guard

Luis Aguilar, Outer Guard

Ivan Agosto, Trustee

Dorine Godinez, Trustee

Jerry Strauch, Trustee

Grievance Committee

Dennis Shattuck, Chairman

Darrell Reed, Vice Chairman

Matt Beckman, Secretary

The Local 1010 Steelworker is the officialpublication of the United Steelworkers - Local 1010,

AFL-CIO. It is published to circulate informationof use and interest to its members. Submissions

from members are welcomed and encouraged.This publication is free of charge to all active and

retired Local 1010 members.

Grievers

Kermit DeelJoe Piller

Mike BouvatOtis CochranDon Seifert

Jesse RamosDavid HunterDan Mosley

Ernie BarrientezFrancisco GodinezSteve Vuckovich

Wil RiveraTim Trtan

Joe Woessner, Editor

Mail to: USW Local 1010Attention: Editor

3703 Euclid AvenueEast Chicago, IN 46312

Phone: 219-398-3100 ext.140

email: editor@uswa1010.org

LOCAL 1010

STEELWORKER

Change of AddressIf you have moved please mail this form, with the mailing label on the back page to Editor,

Local 1010 Steelworker, 3703 Euclid Ave., East Chicago, In. 46312

Name_________________________________ Check No._________

New address ____________________________________________________

City/State/Zip___________________________________________________

www.uswa1010.org

The Bernard KleimanJobLink Learning Center

by Steve Wagner, Vice President

Continued on page 10

Are you using your negotiated Ca-reer Development Program benefits?Many of us are preparing for the newchallenges that await us on the job.Yet others are preparing for life af-ter we retire from our mill careers.It really doesn’t matter what yourreason for learning is! If you have aneed or desire to improve your skillsor learn a new skill, JobLink is therefor YOU!

While some JobLink participants arepursuing college degrees, many oth-ers are taking classes to satisfy per-sonal development to improve theirability to perform their current jobsor prepare for new careers and re-tirement. All of these initiatives en-hance a variety of skills includingmath, reading, and communicationskills. Our Career DevelopmentProgram helps prepare us for thefuture challenges of our jobs, ourpersonal & family lives, and ulti-mately in retirement.

Anyone interested in a specific classmay contact JobLink with the typeof class desired to begin an interestedlist. Don’t take classes for granted.Classes may not be repeated, soenroll in a desired class when yousee it offered as soon as possible.

All JobLink classes must be in accor-dance with the Career DevelopmentProgram Guidelines.

Local 1010 members can use theirTuition Assistance Program (T.A.P.)monies to access any accredited learn-ing institution. T.A.P. benefits are avery flexible part of our contractuallyfunded educational benefit. T.A.P.funds are subject to funding limits andare available annually on a first comefirst serve basis. Participants$1,800.00 maximum annual benefitcan be used to cover tuition, book, andcourse - related fees at nearly 100approved learning institutions. Classeswith the primary purpose of recreationor personnel enjoyment are not eligiblefor tuition assistance funding. Stop byJobLink to apply for tuition programfunding or pick–up a list of T.A.P. ven-dors. A list of these educational insti-tutions is also available on JobLink’swebsite.

We have developed reciprocal partici-pant arrangements with the other Ca-reer Development Cites here in North-west Indiana. The availability of cus-tomized classes at other sites is sub-ject to specific agreements that we

3rd Qtr. 2007Page 12

PRESIDENT’S REPORT

November 2

3703 Euclid Av.East Chicago In. 46312

NONPROFIT ORG.U.S. POSTAGE PAIDEAST CHICAGO, IN.

PERMIT NO. 228Safety First!

Make the Job Safe,or DON’T DO IT!!!

In Solidarity,

Sure, Safety Gets Old,But So Do Safe Workers!

June marked the first anniversary of thestart of our efforts to change the safetyculture at the Indiana Harbor Works.Much has happened over the last year.We have a new plant manager, and acouple of the key players have left thecompany, but progress is being made.I see it each week when I address thesafety awareness classes and the su-pervisor training classes.

People are starting to believe thatwe really mean it when we say"Make the job safe or don't do it!"Years, and sometimes decades, ofdoing a job a certain way and accept-ing the risk is a hard mindset to changeand convincing people to shut downequipment that is not operating cor-rectly and red tag it is one of my big-gest struggles. Our people at the Indi-ana Harbor Works have a strong workethic and a desire to get the job done,sometimes at the risk of their ownsafety.

My best example of this happened lastsummer. A very good mechanic at 5and 6 Blast Furnace was working in

the Sintering Plant on a conveyor beltwith a frozen roller. The way he wastaught and the way he has done it forover 30 years was to be beat on theroller with a hammer while the con-veyor is running. This time his luckran out. The frozen roller broke looseand sucked up his hammer and hishand. Fortunately, he was able to hitthe emergency stop before he lost hishand, even though his hand was seri-ously injured. I went to the hospital tosee him. He was in much pain andworried about regaining the use ofhis hand. We talked about doing thejob that way. He said he had lost afew hammers over the years doing thejob that way but never got his handcaught. After he recovered and wentback to work, I asked him how hedoes the job now. He said he shutsthe conveyor down, locks it out andverifies that it is actually locked. Thenhe frees up the roll and then starts theconveyor.

Recently I've been spending a lot oftime in the Electric Furnace. Thereseems to be an attitude there that “Thisis a pigpen and that's all it will ever be

and this is my lot in life and things willnever change and hazards and risks arejust part of making steel.” This is avery dangerous mindset. In 1997we had a double fatality in the ElectricFurnace. This is something wenever want to happen again. Any-time you are working with liquid steelthere is a great danger. We cannotbecome complacent. We must stayon guard and make sure the pro-cess is done safely and all jobs aredone safely and wear our PPE. Notone ounce of steel is worth an in-jury. We can and we will make theElectric Furnace a department we cansay we are proud to work in and safetyis a core value of that department.

As president of Local 1010 I have nogreater responsibility or obligation thanto the safety of everyone in the plant.Together we can make this not onlythe safest plant in the company but alsoin the world.