Vice President Update

8/16/10

It’s DejaVue all over again! Work-Blame. Work-Blame! It always comes back to the basics. If a manager doesn’t have a clue how the business works, why not go back to Management 101 like…take away chairs, Stand over you working, make sure you are at your work area exactly on time, make sure you don’t leave your work area a minute before you are supposed to, make sure you don’t leave for break to early, make sure you come back from break on time. It only makes sense doesn’t it? I mean if the schedule in the lineup isn’t correct, it’s the hourly employee’s fault. If metal isn’t delivered on time to cut, it’s the hourly employee’s fault. If a customer cancels order/orders, it’s the hourly employee’s fault. If parts aren’t in stock to fix machinery, it’s the hourly employee’s fault. Do I really need to continue with these examples of how it works?

As I’ve stated in an earlier update, when business is slow…lay the smack down on the hourly employee. It’s amazing when you see new managers in new roles act like bullies to the hourly folks to deflect any type of money making responsibilities on themselves.

For every action, there’s a reaction. Alright, we all know by now that this business is slower than steam off of dog crap in the middle of January. We also know that most of these managers won’t be here for the economy upswing. We will have new Rocket Scientists that will accept the good times as “Great Business Decisions.” Hey, I’m just a high School educated guy with minimal college experience but can any of you explain how any of these latest changes helped create revenue: How about changes of start and stop times? Bag Checks? Vacation Day denials? Bathrooms locked? Elimination of Travel Time? Supervisors working in CVW? Suggest it? ABS?

How about a “suggest it” for the new managers that will undoubtedly try and re-invent the wheel?

Buy some ingot aluminum from ourselves at another Alcoa facility, send it to Cleveland works, cut it to size, make sure the correct die is set up and put on heat, forge it on a press, etch it, repair the defects, forge it again, heat treat it, inspect it and touch up any obvious last minute defect, machine it then send it to the customer. What do you think? Not a bad idea coming from a High School educated guy. Oh, and don’t forget this very important piece, use your Skilled Trades employee to fix any of the breakdowns of machinery that may impeded the above listed process. THERE!

Do you think I may win a coffee mug or tee-shirt for my suggestion? If I only had that sheep skin of education then maybe I might qualify for a 6 figure bonus for my suggestion. I hope nobody steals my idea of how to make a part.

I have been accused of being “The king of sarcasm”, that being the case, this facility is the emperor of redundancy. As a friend of mine used to say…”If you act like a Wanker, you’ll get treated like a Wanker!”

On Friday 8/13/10, I had a conversation with a Plant Superintendent about the “cluster F-Word” that will occur on Monday 8/16/10 with the changes to the start and stop times. The response I got was that all areas will not be able to leave their work areas until it’s time to clock-out. I responded with our 15 minute cleanup time that not only is in writing from a grievance answer (FP-05-94) but a court ruling of clean-up time for PPE requirements as well as safety concerns with wearing our PCB, Refractory, asbestos covered uniforms home to our families. As of this writing, the company maintains their right to unilaterally implement this change without ever bringing this up to the union. Again, another Brainiac decision when you get a bunch of panicked new managers in a room to cut costs. The union contends that this is a long standing past practice and do have an agreement in writing about this time.

What’s up with this “Presenteesim” article about eating our lunch? Hell, the way they’re going, Alcoa will probably not allow us to eat our lunch even though they are half eaten before we inhale our food because of “Presenteeism.” I believe the wheels have fallen off! Large Aero has fallen off the “Mapism”, Small Aero is in a short “Fallism”, CVW is starting to climb the “Chartism” and FSW is really- really going to start making “Moneyism!”

Your union will continue to fight these unilateral changes as well as protect our rights and contractual language. Contracting out is once again sky-rocketing while members are laid off. We obviously have the grievance procedure, the National Labor Relations Board as well as our International Union resources. We refuse to sit back and do nothing and are asking all to support all of your Union’s efforts to hopefully someday once again make this somewhat a pleasant place to work. Please be safe and encourage all to attend our September Union Meeting.

In Solidarity,

Don Mohn

Vice President-UAW Local 1050

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