I pretty much have the same issues that everybody else has about the Hienzman/Hunt ticket.
But I do have to defend the both of them on one respect, THEY HAVE GOTTEN US A PRETTY DECENT CONTRACT up to now.
And if they win the arbitration, then they have proven to have outfoxed the Trimet management.
That is not something to be ashamed of, that is a big deal.
If you're like me, you were surprised to learn that Ron Heitzman is running for President of ATU 757 in the upcoming election. Current President Jon Hunt is stepping down to run for Vice President. I'm going to leave Jon Hunt out of this discussion and I have not decided who will earn my vote for that position.
ReplyDeleteThe reason Ron is getting my vote is simple. He is the best qualified for the job. I have spoken to one of the members of the election committee and I am convinced that Ron is able to run for the position. So lets put that discussion to rest. No Birth Certificate is required either.
Quite frankly, I could care less that he has never operated a bus, changed a tire, etc. What I care about is that we as a Union and as members of the working class need someone like Ron fighting for us. I know he carries some baggage and certainly would never win the Miss Congeniality award. Right now we need a bulldog who can effectively negotiate for us. Our Union has never been a social club, fraternity, or sewing circle but I keep hearing how important it is from other members that we need to be one big happy family. Give me a break!
Others will say that we need to go into a different direction and electing Heitzman will be more of the same. More of the same has brought us some pretty decent contracts with good wages and benefits. Has everything been perfect? Of course not, but it's important for us to take stock in what we have and try to hang onto it.
McFarland and Company would love for us to go "into a new direction". Have you noticed that these guys are merciless? Now is not the time to get all warm and fuzzy. This is War! And again, Heitzman is by far the best to fight these bastards.
On a slightly different note, I had a nice chat with Ben Fein today at Merlo. Ben retired 10 years ago and is active in the peace movement and many other causes. We talked about the problems with the Post Office, Social Security, etc. And Ben supports Ron Heitzman too.
Thank you for giving Ron the credit he deserves.
ReplyDeleteH,H & L have no competition, talk about kick ass and ask questions later.
ReplyDeleteJust where do you think the compromise came from, this ticket....I bet no one knows that the compromise passed with only 4% out of 2500 members,real organizing there. This ticket did not tell you that they have to go back to the table in Nov. and start over...wait for it...with a weaker position. with no "us" in the picture, just them.
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