Hammond, Indiana Volume 27; No.13rd Qtr. 2016

LOCAL 1010STEELWORKER

Solidarity Works!

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 2

Don Jones John Gelon Gail Richardson Nick Valle Daniel Walters

Safety Committee Report

Continued on page 3

We have seen a slight increase in oursafety performance this year comparedto last year. With the ratification of ournew contract, some of the distractionsshould be past us. It appears the Company is more con-cerned about the OSHA rates than theworking conditions on the shop floor thatwe face each and every day. We havevarious safety systems and activities inplace like OHSAS 18001, Fatality Pre-vention Standards, Department & AreaSafety Focus Plans, Area Hazard Spot-ting, and Winter/Summer Safety Activi-ties just to name a few proactive safetyinitiatives. What we should be seeing in the plant

a place that is free from recognizedhazards, housekeeping standards sec-ond to none, up to date training pro-grams for all labor grades. We have been working with ourDepartment Union Representativesto have them file grievances if theCompany is not providing a safe workplace or just dragging their feet onshop floor hazards. The Company will always be theCompany because it is easier to blamethe worker than find the failures inthe safety system. We all need to en-sure that we do our part by informingthe Company of any safety issues orconcerns.

Energy Control / Lockout incidentsor issues remain in several depart-ments. We must learn from our pastfailures caused by improper EnergyControl and remember the horrible trag-edies of our past to ensure these typesof incidents cease. In the last two rounds of HazardRecognition training and in severalrounds of Compliance training over theyears, we have stressed the importanceof ensuring proper energy control /Lockout and verification. We have alsoreviewed the requirements and havetrained people concerning require-ments.

WE MAKE THE JOB SAFE OR WE DON’T DO IT!!

Page 3Steelworker

Continued from page 2

It all starts with proper proceduresfor isolating the equipment, labeling andtraining. The company is required tohave updated annual inspected EnergyControl / Lockout procedures. Theseprocedures must be available at alltimes. Our Hazardous Energy programstates that these procedures should bedocumented on the Lock Placementand Verification permit and be inspectedannually. The person performing the in-spection must be knowledgeable of theequipment, processes, hazards, and thejob task associated with the work tobe performed. The date of the inspec-tion is the day of the visual observa-tion and evaluation of the lockoutprocedure being performed. Thismeans that a properly inspected pro-cedure requires that the knowledgeableinspector is present to observe the en-tire process being performed. These procedures must be readilyavailable at all times upon employeerequest. If the procedures are not avail-able, the Energy Control Procedure orLockout procedure must be inspectedprior to use.

It is very important that we startrequesting these procedures and usingthem. If they are not available, workshould not proceed until the processmentioned previously is performed. Having an ECP or lockout proce-dure in place is just the first step in en-suring that we are following the pro-cess. Ensuring that your ECP or Lock-out procedure is being used is the nextlogical and more difficult step to achieveto make sure that Fatalities as well asinjuries are avoided. All procedures should be imple-mented by employers, and employeesshould be thoroughly trained prior tostarting work. A new round of Compliance Re-fresher training started on March 3,2016. Training is composed of the fol-lowing subjects:

• Confined Space entrant, attendant, and person in charge of entry

• Lock Out / Tag Out

• Fall Protection User Training

Health, Safety &Environment Committee

Contact Information(219) 937-7784

Don Jones ext. 120djones@uswa1010.org

Home: 838-4210Cell: 712-5610

Nick Valle ext. 122nvalle@uswa1010.org

Cell: 808-5377

John Gelon ext.121jgelon@uswa1010.org

Home: 690-1523Cell: 406-4190

Dan Walters ext.140dwalters@uswa1010.org

Home: 924-9931Cell: 313-7913

Gail Richardson ext. 124grichardson@uswa1010.org

Cell: 313-6949

• Plant Rail / Vehicles and Driving This eight hour training is manda-tory for everyone (Union and manage-ment) that is or may be a:

• Confined space entrant, attendant or a person in charge of entry

• Creating or inspecting an Energy Control / Lockout Procedures or is

• Authorized to perform Energy Control / Lockouts

• Working at heights of 4’ or more In closing, we all must be diligentin our efforts to ensure we recognizeany “Change in Conditions” to elimi-nate or control the hazards they maycreate. Our Health & Safety and pos-sibly our lives may depend on it.

Remember: We Make the Job Safe,or We Don’t Do It!!!

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 4

Mike BouvatGriever Area 5

As most of you know and haveheard by now 2 Steel Producing hasbeen identified to be taken out and shutdown. We have been CULLED out ofthe herd. Why would 2 Steel Produc-ing be shut down? Poor quality, NO,poor yield, NO, poor reliability, NO.Actually our shop is running at a highlyefficient rate.

The reason we are shuttingdown is because of the implementationof the FOOT PRINT!! Reading theFOOT PRINT, it says by shutting down2 Steel Producing it is an effort toSTREAMLINE, Arcelor Mittal USAfacilities. The dictionary says:STREAMLINE, to make an organiza-tion or system more efficient and ef-fective by employing faster or simplerworking methods. Get ready this is it,Profits are going to explode, because 2SP is going to shut down. I don’t knowhow many years and how many man-agement people (the really Smart ones)it took to figure that out, WOW. HopeWall Street doesn’t steal too many ofthose guys. I know we are really luckyto have them. Lots of brain stormingthere.

I could be wrong here justsayin, but we eliminate 300 jobs fromthe equation, make no mistake there willbe 300 less jobs in Steel Producing. Wearen’t actually growing the business.We will be reducing our capacity toproduce STEEL. But reading the Foot

Print here, this move is designed to im-prove efficiency, sustainability (forwho), and hold on, Yep profitability. Thismanagement is really clever. The com-pany is leading workers of 2SP straightto an abattoir.

What is a Foot Print? The dic-tionary says: The amount of land, en-ergy, water, that a person or organiza-tion uses in order to exist or operate.So our Foot Print is becoming smaller.Outstanding. Okay, let’s look at theoverall Foot Print, 5 and 6 Blast Fur-nace shut down, plant 4 shut down, the84 inch on the west side shut down. Notto mention the other plant closingthrough the years. We are reducing;dwindling, declining, pretty soon it isgoing to be a STUB print. Have theseactions made us more competitive, moreefficient, more profitable? No I don’tthink so.

Remember when running abusiness and your stumped! Can’t runefficiently, can’t be reliable, slim prof-its, what can we do? Call in your man-agement (the really smart ones) Guru’s.So the leader of the (really smart ones),tells the group, people were strugglinghere. Come on if we can’t figure outhow to operate these facilities what canwe do? You in the back, YES, YES, thereyou go we shut down a facility. Howdid they really choose to shut down2SP? I think they had 3 bosses, onefrom 4SP, one from 3SP and one from

2SP. They put two chairs in the middleof the room, started some music (don’tknow what song it was but I am opento suggestions) and said when the mu-sic stops get a chair. Guess who didn’tget a chair, that’s right 2SP. Next, howwill they sell it, I don’t know what ifwe call it a FOOT PRINT. Leader of(the really smart ones) I think I have aphone call coming in. It might be WallStreet; No it’s the pizza guy. We asworkers feel like we have been pillo-ried by the company! They say shut-ting down 2SP is a business decision,is it right is it wrong. I think along withmy Brothers and Sisters that they aredead wrong. Big mistake.

Union working men andwomen of every generation have hadto fight. Our Union has fought, con-fronted, withstood and won many con-flicts with the company. We will con-tinue to fight for workers’ rights. ThisUnion will do everything possible tomake sure we have a viable job. Whatmanagement is doing is nothing new,they have made bad decisions beforeand they will probably make themagain. Hopefully the damage from badmanagement decisions won’t be toogreat.

They can call it a FOOTPRINT, downsizing, streamlining, in the80’s they called it ATQ.We will alwaysbe challenged and we will always finda way to overcome. Yes, thank God

Continued on page 5

Reading a Foot Print

Page 5Steelworker

We have a problem occurring. Manyof our retirees are having to pay backthousands of dollars, because StateStreet Bank is not taking health insur-ance premiums for you and your spouseor just one of you out of your pensioncheck. Look at every pension check.Your premiums should show if both ofyou are on Medicare $100.00. If bothof you are not on Medicare $200.00. Ifone of you are on Medicare and theother isn’t on Medicare $150.00. If yourpension check shows an increase, thereis a good chance they are not takingpremiums out of your check.Surviving spouses whose spouse retiredbefore January 1, 2000 and passedaway and you are on Medicare. This ishow VEBA works:7-1-2015 to 6-30-20167-1-2016 to 6-30-20177-1-2017 to 6-30-2018An $1,000.00 check in December ofeach year.If surviving spouse goes on Medicarebetween these dates, you’ll receivesome money for that December. I willbe able to tell you how much. A blueenvelope will be sent to your knownaddress in June of each year of con-tract. You must fill out top half of a blueform from ARCELOR-MITTAL USAVEBA. The first time only you mustsend a ZEROX copy of your MedicareCard with the blue sheet in the enve-lope you received with your package.If you change your address call 1-877-474-8322, press 1 and wait until youcan talk to someone. Tell them you arean Inland Steel surviving spouse andthey will speak with you.If you read this article and didn’t get aform, call Ernie at 937-7784 extension117 or Otis at extension 112 or myself.

Surviving spouses if you remarry youlose your Health Care. If you meetsomeone and fall in love, live with thembut do not marry them. I have a lot ofsurviving spouses calling me and askwhat happened to their Health Insur-ance. I tell all surviving spouses thiswhen I help them with death benefitpapers on their spouse.Here are a few tips for future retirees:1. Do not retire on February 1st justto pick up the $1,000.00 vacation bo-nus, because you are backing-up a goodpension check retire on January 1st.2. If you are going to be 65 years old,you can retire first of that month andkeep the $400.00 kicker for 12 monthsunless your birthday is the 1st of themonth.3. Your negotiating team got you a10 year certain clause in the contractwhich is a big thing. It was a five yearcertain clause. If the retiree passes, thespouse gets the full pension check ex-cept no $400.00 kicker the remainderof the 10 years left.Anyone who thinks they might have aproblem with alcohol or drugs call me.May 8th was my 42nd anniversarywithout alcohol I couldn’t go 42 min-utes without a drink. The Lord, Alco-holics Anonymous and the Union havekept me dry. I know what living in hellis like. The call might save your life,your job, or your marriage. You can call me about anything that Ihave written about in this article. I re-turn all calls.Home: 219-924-2294 Cell: 219-742-3269Don LutesRetiree

POINTS TO PONDERRETIREES AND SURVIVING SPOUSES

we have a UNION. Our UNION wasable to insure that no worker will belaid off. All workers at 2 SP are goingto remain employed. All will have a rightto transfer to bids that will be madeavailable. We have had one meeting atthe Union Hall to explain the process.As we move closer to when the de-partment is going to shut down we willbe meeting again.

We have agreed to a newcontract! Needless to say not every-one was satisfied with the outcome. Itwas one of the toughest negotiationswe have faced. I hope everyone real-izes what lies ahead. Make no mistake;going into our next negotiations, we aregoing to be stronger, louder, and moreunited. The table has been set, for Sep-tember 2018, we don’t know what sac-rifices we may be called upon to make.I have no doubt if we do it together,we will overcome. We are UNION.United we Stand Divided we Fall.

Yours in Solidarity Mike Bouvat

Continued from page 4

Attend YourTwenty-FiveYear PicnicLake CountyFair GroundsAugust 27, 201610:00 am - 4:00 pm

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 6

Alcohol or Drugs a Problem?A Members Assistance Committee member is at the Hall every Thursdayand is available to help with Substance Abuse or Behavioral Problems. Oryou can call them at the numbers listed below. Nationwide consultation isavailable 24/7 from Value Options at 800-332-2214.Value Options is the Care Administrator for all Substance Abuse and Behav-ioral issues. Referral and certification by Value Options can substantially re-duce your out-of-pocket cost.

Local 1010 Members Assistance CommitteeFrank Gonzalez Jr. (219) 688-5722

Lawrence Lowe (219) 793-4709

The members’ assistance commit-tee (M.A.C.) was established severaldecades ago for the sole purpose ofproviding the avenues of help for anymember of our union who may be go-ing through a pre-crisis or crisis situa-tion. This committee can provide thedirection needed to help address thesedifficult situations. Some examples ofthese kind of situations may be prob-lems arising from drug or alcohol abuse,family or work issues, behavioral con-cerns and other effects that are harm-ing an employee or their employment. So, therefore if a situation appearsdo not hesitate to call the union hall totalk with a committee person. We arehere to help and are available every

MEMBERS ASSISTANCE COMMITTEE(M.A.C.)

Thursday during union business hours,which are 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.Should anyone need assistance imme-diately they should call the phone num-bers below.

In solidarity,Frank Gonzalez Jr. (219) 766-2748Larry Lowe (219) 793-4709

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 - 4:00 pm*Provided by the Law Offices of

Joe Banasiak2546 45th Highland, IN 46322 or Call 219-924-3020

Michael Bosch3235 45th Street Highland, IN 46322 or Call 219 972-2000

Alexis Dedelow3235 45th Street Highland, IN 46322 or Call 219-972-3030

*Times are approximate

Page 7Steelworker

Darrell E.Reed Vice – Chairman Grievance

Procedure

“If you can’t be a highway, be a Trail,If you can’t be the sun, be a star.It isn’t by size that you win or you fail.Be the Best at whatever you are” “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.”

AT Press time we have a new con-tract the Ratification Total Tally votewas 5059 Yes to 1878 No.Count at 1010 it was 953 Yes 429 No.

Subsequent to this process there hasbeen an influx of retirements. Havingsaid that, I recently had a conversationwith one of those soon to be goneFishing type people, this is what he hadto say; AND THEN IT ISWINTER……………….. You know …..Time has a way ofmoving quickly and catching you un-aware of the passing years. It seems just yesterday that I wasyoung, just married and embarking onmy new life with my new bride. Andyet in a way, it seems like eons ago,and I wonder where all the years went?I know I lived them all … And I have glimpses of how it wasback then and of all my hopes andDreams…But, here it is the winter ofmy life and it catches me by surprise.Where did the years go and where didmy youth go? I remember well, seeing older peoplethrough the years and thinking thatthose older people were years awayfrom me and that winter was so far offthat I could not fathom it or imagine

fully what it would be like… But, hereit is my friends are retired and gettinggrey or bald they move slower and Isee an older person now. Some are inbetter and some worse shape than me… but I see the great change.. Not like the ones that I rememberwho were young and vibrant … but,like, me their age is beginning to showand we are now those older folks thatwe used to see and never thoughtwe’d be. Each day now I find that justgetting a shower is a real target forthe day! And taking a nap is not a treatany more …It’s mandatory! Becauseif I don’t on my own free will, I fallasleep where I sit! Sound Familiar? And so, now all the aches and painsand loss of strength and ability to goand do things that I wish I had butnever did! But, at least I know thatthough the winter has come, and I’mnot sure how long it will last … thatwhen it’s over …Its over! Yes I have regrets there are thingsI wish I hadn’t done... Things I shouldhave done, but indeed, there are many

things I’m happy to have done. It’s all ina life time … So, if you’re not in yourwinter yet …let me remind you, that itwill be here faster than you think. What-ever you would like to accomplish in thislifetime do it now! Expedite that bucketlist! You have no promise that you will seeall the seasons of your Life …Live fortoday and say all the things that you wantto your loved ones …and hope that theyappreciate and love you for all the thingsthat you have done for them over theyears past!! ‘’Life is a Gift” The way you live your life is a gift tothose who come after, the contents ofthat Gift constitute your lifetime, HowWill You Be Remembered? The 25 years picnic is August 27th atthe same Crown Point Fair Grounds seeyou there! 2018 negotiation is only one and halfyears away! “All lives Matter” New Contract Escalates Retirements

Contract Escalates Retirements

ATTEND YOURUNION MEETINGS!

FIRST THURSDAY OFEACH MONTH @ 4:00 P.M.

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 8

ESSAY COMPETITIVE SCHOLARSHIP AWARD United Steelworkers Local 1010 awarded four $1000.00 scholarships for use at any

college, university or technical school in the United States of America onthe basis of a 500 word written essay competition on:

Eileen Anguiano

Page 9Steelworker

“Unions and Socialism“The Local 1010 Scholarship Committee was honored

to present this years winners at the July 7th, 2016 Union Meeting.

Paul Centanni

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 10

ESSAY COMPETITIVE SCHOLARSHIP AWARD United Steelworkers Local 1010 awarded four $1000.00 scholarships for use at any

college, university or technical school in the United States of America onthe basis of a 500 word written essay competition on:

Bryce Freels

Page 11Steelworker

“Unions and Socialism“The Local 1010 Scholarship Committee was honored

to present this years winners at the July 7th, 2016 Union Meeting.

Michael Wagner

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 12

TRIBUTE TO PAUL LITTONAND ALL STEELWORKERS WHO’VE PASSED AWAY

Dying, indeed, is a part of living. Wescan the obituaries for known namesand when one appears, our thoughtsdelve into the past and memories,good and bad, take hold. Many soulshave passed through Inland Steel’sgates. Strangers became friends.Alliances formed. Sides taken. Hairturned gray with time; old age creptin slowly yet deliberately. And then,one surprising day, younger, gentlepeople offered a helping hand toopen a door, to tie a shoe, to show akindness, and realization set in thatwe’re no longer young. This articleis for all of us who walked throughInland’s gates and worked our en-tire lives making steel, friends andrelationships until that day ournames, inevitably, are documented onthat page of obituaries. Everyonehas a story and this is Paul’s.

Paul Litton was from Kentucky and hewas a God fearin’ union man.Paul’s father was a coal miner and hedied from Black Lung. His badge ofhonor rested in being yellow cardedfrom Kentucky coalmines for union or-ganizing. That badge forced him toleave home and family and work thecoalmines in West Virginia. And hefought for the union there, too. Paulwas born with union in his blood. Andhe was my friend and brother. And heloved my kids, and my kids loved him.

Paul worked in a number of depart-ments at Inland before settling in atPlant #1 Galvanizing Department – theBest department with the Best peoplein Inland Steel.

Noteworthy to mention that all work-ers say the very same thing about thedepartment they work in and thepeople they work with - and theymean it.Paul worked most every job on the Fin-ishing End until bidding on the galva-nize lines where he worked until he re-tired. Back in the 60’s, you show up towork as a line applicant and stand in agroup by the foreman’s office. Theforeman arrived and picked and chosewho worked where. The companydidn’t cater to seniority, and didn’t abideuntil forced. That’s the way it was backthen. And that’s when Paul got involved.He ran for Assistant Griever and gotelected and reelected for four moreterms, and then he ran for Griever andwon that position, too. Paul was myassistant for four of those terms and

Galvanize Personnel present at Funeral of Arthur ‘Killer Joe’ LardydellBack Row :Left to Right Robert Simmons (deceased), Bill Coes, Paul Litton (deceased), Jeff Smith, Carter Comer, Al PurhamFront Row: Left to Right Glenn Smith, Robert Marshal, Lil Joe Gutierrez, Kathy Stone, Gilbert McDaniel, Willie Lot, WIllis Fort

Photo McKinley Nutall

Page 13Steelworker

we worked as a team. And back then;we had to fight for everything we got.And we were good. And that’s the wayit was.

Paul loved our union, and didn’t toler-ate those who didn’t. He often talkedabout how his father couldn’t get a jobas a coalminer in Kentucky and thestruggles his mother endured raising himand his brother, Neil. And he talkedabout how proud he was of his brothergetting elected and reelected Mayor ofDrakesboro, Kentucky. He talkedabout how the Peabody Coal Companywith their strip mines destroyed andcontinue to destroy the environment inKentucky. Those rivers, streams andfishing holes they swan and fished ingrowing up in and around Drakesboroare gone, forever gone. They’re somearound, he said, but they’re fenced offand few and far between. When I vis-ited Paul, I saw those barbed wirefences and no trespassing signs thatlocked out people and drove off deer. Isaw and heard those Peabody coal-filled semi’s scream down Drakesborostreets leaving coal dust in their wake.Dynamite explosions scheduledthroughout the day became as common

and insignificant for those living thereas it is for those living next to railroadtracks or expressways where loudnessreigns supreme.

Paul retired in 1993 and moved back toDrakesboro in 2007. He lived with hisbrother, Neil. When Paul landed in thehospital this last time, Neil called. Italked to Paul that Monday morning.Told him I was coming down. That wasthe last time I heard his voice. My son,Carl and I took off for DrakesboroTuesday morning. When we got therethat evening, Paul was in a coma. We

Paul Litton & Lil Joe Gutierrez

returned the next day. Paul was still ina coma. We left Drakesboro Wednes-day afternoon. He died Friday morn-ing.

Paul was my friend. And he’ll bemissed. My grandpa used to say thatdyin’ is just part of livin’ and we’re allgonna be there someday; so live eachday the best you can and be good toeverybody and treat everyone the same,and no matter what color they are orwhere they came from ‘cuz we’re allchildren of God. I believe that. And sodid Paul. And he’ll be missed.Joe E. ‘Lil’ Joe’ Gutierrez

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 14

Terry SteagallUSW Local 1010The solution for healthcare is Medicarefor All, if you want to solve the prob-lem.Medicare for All covers the elderly, pre-Medicare retirees in the gap withoutcoverage, Veterans not receiving theirbenefits, the homeless, the unemployed,the working poor, children, students incollege, small employers and large em-ployers with a cost-effective, fair feeschedule for doctors and hospitals.It’s time we wake up, America, onMedicare for All. It benefits everyone,and corporate America needs to get on

board. We need to be willing to fightthe lobbyists working for the InsuranceIndustry that are using their unfair in-fluence to control Congress and keepa dysfunctional healthcare system todeny people healthcare to boost theprofits for the insurance industry. Wehave Americans ordering prescriptionson the internet from Canada for greatlyreduced prices for the same prescrip-tion medicine. Congress we have aproblem!We need a broad-based coalition tosupport Medicare for All and bring thefacts to the public of the cost benefit ofMedicare for All in a realistic factualpresentation. Our healthcare costs are

Medicare for Allas much as three times those of otherindustrial nations and we need to lookat the total cost of healthcare inAmerica. And we should factor in thecost of healthcare for millions of Ameri-cans without healthcare. The bottomline is when someone ends up in thehospital emergency room without healthinsurance, someone is going to pay. Theunfair burden of medical care shouldnot be added to the bills of consumerswith health insurance and it should notforce people into medical bankruptcies.It’s time we had a healthcare systemfor all Americans. Solve the problemwith Medicare for All.

***

Terry SteagallUSW Local 1010The Fear Mongers of the RepublicanCongressional delegation are continu-ously making claims that we need tomake cuts to Social Security and Medi-care to keep them solvent. The FearMongers are constantly putting unduestress on Social Security recipients whopaid into the system for years and arenow living on a fixed income, with somesolely dependent on Social Security in-come to live. Some older workers are putting off re-tirement because of the Fear Mongerrhetoric about cutting Social Securityand Medicare. We cannot allow the FearMonger Republicans to bully the oldergeneration of America or to force them

to live in fear. It’s time for the Ameri-can people to stand up and fight backfor a Social Security and Medicare sys-tem that is fair to its recipients.The solution to Social Security fundingis simple: scrap the cap on Social Se-curity income tax limits. The currentSocial Security income tax limit is$118,500, which means most Americanspay the tax on every dollar they earnbecause they earn less than $118,500.By contrast, CEOs stop paying SocialSecurity taxes within the month of Janu-ary each year because they pay SocialSecurity taxes on only the first $118,500they earn and don’t hand over one centof Social Security tax on anything theyget after that, no matter how many mil-lions it is. We need to scrap the $118,500 cap. If

* Published: April 15, 2016 at http://www.usw.org/blog/2016/medicare-for-all

* Published: April 12, 2016 at http://www.usw.org/blog/2016/scrap-the-cap-on-social-security

Scrap the Cap on Social Security

we did, the extra income from taxingrich people at the same rate that work-ing people are taxed would provide suf-ficient funding for the Social Securitysystem. It’s time to stop the bullyingFear Monger Republicans. Let yourCongressional representatives knowthat we demand legislation that providesfair and equitable Social Security ben-efits to older Americans.It’s time for the American people tofight for social and economic justice andfor an equitable Social Security systemthat meets the moral values of America!Call or write your U.S. Representativeand U.S Senators to give them the so-lution to funding Social Security: “Scrapthe Cap” and levy the Social Securitytax on all income.

***

Page 15Steelworker

Insurance & BenefitsErnie Barrientez (219) 937-7784 ext.117

Otis Cochran (219) 937-7784 ext. 112

Insurance Update by Ernie Barrientezand Otis CochranJuly 2016By now, all of us were made aware ofthe many changes in our active andretiree health care plans.The most important time sensitive ben-efit that we would like to remind ev-eryone about is the Annual RoutinePhysical:

• The $200 Single and $400 Familydeductibles will be waived for mem-bers who choose to participate in anannual routine physical from a certifiedphysician or an urgent care center (youwill pay a copay at an urgent care cen-ter). This Annual Routine Physicalmust be completed each year prior toSeptember 30 for the following In-surance Plan Year!

• When your physical is completed bya physician, there is no cost to you andremember that no individual informa-tion will be shared with the company.

• If your spouse is covered under theArcelorMittal Insurance plan, he/sheMUST also get the physical in orderfor the member to have the deductibleswaived for in-network and reduced forout-of-network.

• When you participate in the annualroutine physical, a new ArcelorMittalcontribution will be made into your401(K). So not only is your in-networkdeductible completely eliminated, butyou will also receive $200 into youraccount if you are enrolled in singlecoverage and $400 if you spouse par-ticipates as well. If you choose to havethe payment in cash, it will be subject

to appropriate withholding taxes.

• Non- Medicare eligible retireesare also eligible for The AnnualRoutine Physical benefit.Please be aware that active membersand Non- Medicare eligible retireeswill be receiving new Blue Cross andBlue Shield Insurance cards and re-lated benefit information in the mail onor before this October.We also would like to extend ourbest wishes to our 2016 retirees fora long, healthy and happy retire-ment!As always if you have any questionsor concerns, either stop by the hall orcall us.

In Solidarity,Ernie Barrientez / Otis Cochran

UNITED STEELWORKERS LOCAL 1010 PICNICAugust 13, 2016 (11a-5p)

Hammond Moose Lodge #570Service Rd 7500 Cline Ave.

Hammond, IN 46323All Local 1010 members and their families are

welcome and encouraged to come out.- President Tom Hargrove

Fun for theWhole family!

Food & Drinks

Games

Pony Rides

Car and Bike ShowBring your hot rods, classic

cars, or custom bikes!

Visit Local 1010Memorial Hall

for Tickets

See: Rosa Maria Rodriguez,Max Carrasquillo, Luis Aguilar

Or Call:Andres Maldonado

(219) 742-3350Anita Freels

(219) 898-0691Vincent Witherspoon

(219) 576-3407

Donation - $3.00 Per Person

Hosted by

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 16

With this footprint initiative happening,there are decisions to be made anduncertainty amongst our union broth-ers and sisters. But thankfully our bar-gaining committee has secured ourmembers rights to jobs and there willbe no layoffs which is a huge victory.Those that have bid into a labor gradeone job, need to know that the memo-randum of understanding is in effect.Which means that they can in turn bidon another job without the one year

HELLO… 4 Steel Producing!

penalty as outlined in the Contract. 4SP has already had 60 furnace hoodchanged and about to go through 50furnace hood change. Green guardiansand safety advocates played a huge rollin keeping everyone safe and having asuccessful outage. Production for next year will be a pri-ority but as always we will need to con-stantly remind the company that safetyand the environment come first.

Contract negotiations were tough andstrenuous but thankfully our bargainingcommittee and devout dedication of ourmembership, we were able to get a fairand equitable contract that passed rati-fication by almost 73%. So make sureif you see someone for the committeeto thank them. In solidarity,Jake Cole4SP Griever Cell: 219-614-0206

4 Steel Producing Update

Nick YoungSafety Advocate

Jake ColeArea 4Griever

Brothers and Sisters of 4SP, My name is Nick Young and I havethe honor to be a new safety advocatein our department. I took the place ofJohn Walker who I would like to wisha long healthy retirement! I was anoriginal hire at the Burns Harbor 160”Plate Mill in 2006. After its shutdown,many of us were given the opportunityto transfer to Indiana Harbor East. Itransferred to the 4SP department inApril of 2010 and I have been workingin the Steel Mills approximately 10years. Since my transfer to the 4SP de-partment, I have been active with ourASC (area safety committee) and DSC(departmental steering committee).Recently, I became a “Worker Trainer”for our USW International Union. Asa Worker Trainer, I facilitated “A Unionapproach to Health and Safety Class”throughout USW District 7 (Indiana &Illinois).

I’m really looking forward to what’shappening with our department. We areprojected to make a lot of steel, whichis a great thing for everyone! Eventhough production will increase, wemust not take any short cuts on safetyto make steel! We can always makemore steel, but we cannot make anotheryou! If a job assignment just doesn’tseem right, ask questions as it is ourright to do so! We all come to work to make moneyfor one reason or another. However,we cannot let our desire to make moneydrive us to accept safety hazards. Iunderstand that the problems we facein our shop didn’t happen yesterday orthe day before. We know that theseproblems will not all get fixed tomor-row, but together we can make our de-partment a safer place to work. Ourlatest hood project is a huge step tomake this place safer, it was a long pro-

cess but it’s now behind us. We alsoneed to look at the way we currentlyperform our jobs. We must realize someof the way things used to be done intoday’s world is considered “Unsafe”and should not be continued or acceptedby anyone. Working safely isn’t alwaysthe most convenient thing or the easi-est to embrace. Just by saying “That’show it’s always been done” doesn’tmean it’s the safest way to get it done.Again, I look forward to working witheveryone to make our department asafer work place for all of us. If any-one has a safety issue, give me a call(1-574-933-1222) together we canmake a difference!

In Solidarity,Nick Young4SP Safety Advocate

Page 17Steelworker

IT’S TIME

Brothers and sis-ters,

The dis-tractions of bar-gaining are be-hind us now; it’stime to get readyfor the upcomingNovember elec-tions. IT’S TIMEanti-worker Poli-ticians give uptheir seats to Rep-resentatives thatsupport the work-ing class people ofIndiana. Indiana’s4,634,149 regis-tered voters wererepresented bythe 28% thatvoted in our lastelection. Low par-ticipation of regis-tered voters isdevastating to or-ganized labor andworking families. It gave us what wecurrently have at our state house, a su-per majority of a party and governor thatpromotes numerous efforts to weakenour union and put more strain on ourfamilies as their platform. This is noth-ing but toxic! We can and must changethis!

We now have a candidate forgovernor that has demonstrated he willstand with organized labor when we areunder attack. That candidate is JohnGregg! When the “Right to work” battlewas taking place in 2012 at our state-

house, John Gregg was in the packedhalls of the statehouse standing in soli-darity with us to fight the proposed anti-union legislation! During our contract negations weheld numerous high turnout solidarityrallies; John Gregg came to our rallyand spoke on stage in support of us,and all working families of Indiana.From the beginning of our bargaininghe countless times publicly spoke of thestruggles that our industry faced andstood on our side every time! He is a

proven true friendof labor and work-ing families. Getout and vote No-vember 8th, 2016John Gregg forGovernor!!!

H o w e v e rhaving a friend oflabor as governoris not the cure all!We must all showup to the polls onNovember 8th tovote and changethe make up of ourentire state houselegislature! Sup-port Candidatesthat support us!Support Candi-dates that supportOUR UNION,and OUR FAMI-LIES! We cannotafford as unionmembers to con-

tinue down the path that we have beengoing down in our state. I urge you allto take part in someway in the upcom-ing election. We will be doing numer-ous things to support those candidatesthat side with our issues in the comingmonths. If you want to get involved inanyway please call me! 1-574-933-1222. Let’s take Indiana back IT’STIME! In Solidarity, Nick YoungChair - Luis Aguilar (219) 313-8678 Nick Young (574) 933-1222

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 18

Jose CortezAssistant Griever

Area 1

What I’m Taking Away from My FirstWeek at Summer School Recently I had the chance to at-tend the 69th annual USW summerschool at University of Illinois. To saythat I enjoyed my time there would bean understatement. I literally can’t waitto go back next year. Each day I leftmy classes inspired and better equippedto deal with issues back in my homedepartment. All throughout the classesthat I had, one common theme stoodout to me; Activism. Our Union, and on a much largerscale, the labor movement in Americaitself, has been built on activism. As farback as 1786 when the first successfulstrike ever was carried out by printersin Philadelphia. It is easy to forget thatmany of the benefits and advances thatwe have made were paid for in thecostliest way; with human lives as cur-rency. Many people may not know thatthe United States has had the bloodiestand most violent labor history of anyindustrialized nation in the world. Many of us have heard of the

Memorial Day Massacre of 1937 butour history is littered with these kindsof events. From The Haymarket Riotof 1886 which started as a rally for an8-hour day. To the Ludlow Massacreof 1914 which was called, “the culmi-nating act of perhaps the most violentstruggle between corporate power andlaboring men in American history”. Inthe Everett Massacre of 1916 unionmembers on a boat were shot at andnearly capsized after not being allowedto dock in the town of Everett, Wash-ington. Events like these are woventhroughout our history. As recently as the 1990’s has la-bor in America had to deal with vio-lence as a part of fighting for what’sright. The fact that people are no longerbeing shot in the streets doesn’t changeour fight. As our union has evolved, sohas the attack on our solidarity. Divi-sion from within has always been theestablishments best weapon againstorganized labor. This method has, how-ever, become subtler as time has goneon. There are still blatant attacks like

“right to work”, but we are now, morethan ever, divided by political issues aswell. I am by no means telling anyonehow to vote, Lord knows I struggle withthat decision on a daily basis. What Ido know is we are purposely being dis-tracted. Division, distraction and thenatural attrition that is occurring aroundus every day has to be seen for what itis: A red flag. Gone are the days of the thoughtthat “Someone else will fight for me soI don’t have to”. These flags shouldhave everyone asking themselves“What can I do to become more in-volved?” We have to get back to ourroots. Activism has always fueled thefire that is the American labor move-ment. We can’t let the fire that burnedso brightly in the last century becomeextinguished, because if we havelearned anything from the past it’s thatwe will repeat it if we don’t learn fromit.

In Solidarity,Jose Cortez

Do The Right Thing:Buy AMERICAN

Labor History

Page 19Steelworker

Whether you voted yea or nay, our con-tract has been ratified. It is a done deal,so now is the time to start preparingfor the next contract. We need to pre-pare by getting our affairs in order inthe case that a labor dispute arises weare able to sustain it. With our next con-tract, we can all hope that the economypicks up, steel tariffs are enforced andsteel prices pick up, but we have to pre-pare for the worst.The 80” HSM has been meeting forsecond step grievances monthly withlabor relations and the union to resolveissues that have arisen. However, latelytraffic violations are on the rise. Whilesome may be valid, others seem to beplant protection trying to meet quotas.Example 1: Entrapment- An employeeenters the gate showing their badge,drops it on the passenger side of thevehicle. The employee removes theirseatbelt to retrieve the badge, reappliesseatbelt and shows their badge then pro-ceeds to clock house. Employee sawgate guard speaking on radio in his rear-view mirror, employee is then pulledover by plant protection and cited fornot wearing his seatbelt. Obviously thegate guard radioed ahead to plant pro-tection who was hiding north of the gatehouse and informed him that employeehad no seatbelt on. Plant protectioncited him but there was no way he couldhave seen what had transpired becausehis seatbelt was put back on at the gate.The employee explained the situationand was told it was not going to makea difference and the ticket was goingto be issued. This has also happened toothers who removed their seatbelts to

retrieve their wallets. This is entrap-ment!Example 2: Plant protection vehiclesearches- An employee on his wayhome was held at the gate for twentyminutes after being surrounded by fourplant protection vehicles and thoroughlysearched. Why? A yellow ice scraperthat the gate guard thought was aweapon. That was an extremely exces-sive search and with some effort em-ployee was compensated for his time.While they have a right to do randomvehicle searches, it is unreasonable tohold an employee for extended periodsof time after they have already clockedout, to search their vehicles based on aclaim that an ice scraper could be aweapon.Example 3: An employee was detainedbecause of their child’s “HOT PINK”toy nerf gun. The guard took picturesof the toy and called his captain to ad-vise and for direction. Luckily, he in-structed the over-zealous gate guard tolet him proceed to work. Who is train-ing these guards? We need to keepgrieving these ridiculous cases so wecan show them what is acceptable andwhat is not! PLEASE, report these is-sues so that we can deal with themaccordingly.We have had LG1 and displaced em-ployees entering our departments andL.O.P.’s as of late. This is going to becommon place as ArcelorMittal movesforward with their “footprint”. It is im-portant for us all to remember that ifthese LG1 and displaced employees arein your L.O.P. they are entitled to the

same overtime agreement and vaca-tion guidelines/rules as their incum-bents.Lastly, with summer temperatures onthe rise, I would like to speak aboutheat stress, its symptoms and how theyaffect us as we are working in the el-ements. It is important to be aware ofhow heat affects us and our co-worker’s behavior. Heat can causeheadache, agitation and irritability, theseare symptoms of heat related illness.To prevent this, remember to takebreaks, cool down, drink plenty of wa-ter acclimate to heavy work-loads(gradually increase the work load) andget help when you need it. When weare hot and exhausted we need to tryto remember to be patient with eachother. I know that is sometimes easiersaid than done but keep an eye out forsymptoms of heat related illness foryourself and for you co-workers. Worksafe and keep each other safe.

In Solidarity,JT

Area 25 Griever

James Thomas (219) 588-5467

Area 25 Assistant Griever

Art Diaz (219) 384-5879

Area 25 Steward’s

Jake Fraker (219) 713-3429Tim Kruchowski (219) 608 9232Brian Hernandez (480) 215-6069

80” Hot Strip / #5 Roll Shop James ThomasGriever Area 25

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 20

As this November comes closer,more Americans will be talking aboutthe presidential candidates. WithDonald Trump and Hillary Clinton asthe republican and democratic nomineesit is within our best interest that ourunion brothers and sisters from UnitedSteelworkers vote for the best decision;Hillary. As time progresses it seemsnow is the time to elect our first womanpresident. Now is the time to stand to-gether to keep Trump out of the WhiteHouse. Hillary Clinton is a woman whounderstands women’s rights. Roughly43 percent of women hold a full timejob in the United States and will onlycontinue to grow. Because of this it iscrucial to gain equal pay for women,help protect women’s health and repro-ductive rights, and allow for women and

men to have more paid time for familyleave. These are all points that Hillaryintends to see better established. Having qualifications for being thenext president of the United States isno challenge for Hillary. She has beena former secretary of state, U.S. sena-tor, and first lady for two terms and hasalways been a voice for women andfamilies across the country. During a1995 U.N. conference in Beijing,Hillary chose to speak about women’srights. Many believed she should havespoken about a less controversial topicbut that never stopped her from explain-ing that “women’s rights are humanrights.” Women are still suffering in

many aspects of their life and she in-tends to make it possible for young girlsto grow up to be anything they wantto be including president of the United

States of America. All in all, being blue collar demo-cratic citizens it is important for ourunions to keep democrats in all electedoffices. Having less republicans withpower gives the working class a fight-ing chance. This gives ordinary fami-lies the opportunity to live comfortablywith a union wage. In order to for us toprosper we need Hillary Clinton in of-fice.In Solidarity, Women of SteelChair - Gail Richardson (219) 805-3923 Ella Knox (219) 484-6221

Jessica Ritter (219) 448-2658

Now that the long ordeal of anotherContract negotiation has passed I wouldlike to extend THANKS to all the broth-ers and sisters of our Local for againshowing the Solidarity and persever-ance to accept the Locals challengesand maintain through the best of ourability, our current standard of living.Once again we have prevailed with afair and equitable contract under thecurrent climate. This Union will returnto bargaining in just a couple years andas always expectations will be high in2018. Remember, the foundation of theUnion is only as good as our member-

ship. I foresee a bright future for allwho remain strong and 1010 is thestrongest. I would like to thank all who helpedfor keeping the membership aware ofthe updates through leaflets and Gatehandouts, rallies and marches, despiteall weather conditions in the almostyearlong endeavor. Now that the ne-gotiations is over I have had the oppor-tunity to sit back, review and reflectover all the photos taken during theactivities of our campaign and amstunned at the sheer volume of Union

brothers and sisters in “Solidarity inSteel” 2015 t-shirts and sweatshirts andother Union attire. In pictures of everymajor rally in Northwest Indiana andChicago during negotiations the num-ber of 1010 members is prominent andvisible. On a personal note I wanted to ex-tend thanks to the members of the CATTeam for staying in constant contactregarding the issues and activities pre-sented to us by the negotiating teamand carrying out their direction.-Don Seifert-

Don SeifertTraining Coordinator

Collective Thanks

Page 21Steelworker

Max CarrasquilloContracting Out

Union Brothers and Union Sisters asyou are reading this article we are en-tering into the early stages of the re-cently agreed to contract and I wantedto take this time to address each andevery one of you. The just completednegotiations were long and arduousfrom the stand point of the negotiationteam as well as you, the membership.The market condition was the main driv-ing force in the longevity of the nego-tiations, and clearly the end results ofwhat was the final outcome. I com-mend every union member for stand-ing strong and united in this battleagainst the Company’s attempt to to-tally destroying and taking back all ofthe benefits fought for and achieved bythose who came before us.

I am proud to tell each and every oneof you that we have been able to saveand protect our work and our opportu-nities to do our work for another con-tract. I am proud of the work that allyour elected representatives are doingin keeping me informed with the helpof you the membership in reportingwhen an outside contractor is in thePlant performing work that can clearlybe done with internal forces. I wanteveryone to not take this victory lightly,because not all of the Arcelor Mittal

Plants and US Steel Plants can stakethis same claim. Time and time again,you the membership has stepped up andhave gotten the job done.

It is important that we hold the Com-pany accountable for properly planningwork in a timely fashion, so that thesolicitation process continues to be ef-fective. I want to remind everyone thatthe work belongs to us the member-ship, and that the contractor should bebought in when we are not capable ofgetting it done during the window ofopportunity of a down turn. The Unionrecognizes that there will be breakdowns that may lead to exceptions, butthose still have a process that must befollowed. The foot print puts morepressure to get a quality product deliv-ered on a timely basis, and that is onlygoing to happen by the loyalty of theemployee and not some contractorpassing through.

The shutdown of the 84” Hot Strip Millon the west side puts more importanceon the 80” Hot Strip Mill and #5 RollShop, and we the Bargaining Unit needto make sure that all the new manage-ment bought over from the West Sideto the East Side, recognize how work

BARGAINING UNIT WORK

is contracted out at Indiana HarborEast. This is only going to happen withyou the members keeping the localUnion Representatives informed ofeverything going on around the depart-ment.

I want to challenge everyone through-out the Plant that today is as good aday as any to put more pressure on theCompany into allowing us to performour jobs and to have more input in thedecisions on how the Plant is going torun. The recently passed Tariffs shouldhelp significantly with Steel Pricing, andthat along with more input from you themembership, can only lead to a moreprofitable Company. Remember by thetime you read this, we are only 2 yearsaway from expiration of this contract.Let us make our future brighter, todayis as good a day as any to start.

Solidarity to all UnionBrothers and Sisters.

Max Carrasquillo

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 22

Diagnostic & Emissions Repair HammondDonna’s Barber Shop HammondFamily Eyecare HighlandFaustino’s Pizzaria LowellFlat Rock Tap HammondFlip’s Auto Service HammondGoLo Gas HammondGoodyear Tire HammondGrand Foods HammondGrand Foods HammondHammond Muffler HammondJohn’s Auto Service HammondKennedy Cafe & Pancake House HammondKenwwod Tap HammondKey Pizza Hammond

ABC Choice HammondAmerican Legion Post 485 ScherervilleAnthony’s HammondApex Muffler and Brake HammondArnellBerey Bros. HammondBig Franks Sausage East ChicagoBridges Scoreboard Lounge GriffithBroad Street Barber Shop HammondBugaboo Tattoo HammondCasa Blanca East ChicagoCellular City HammondChuck & Irene’s HammondClear Ear Hearing Aid Center GriffithCutting Café Hammond

Page 23Steelworker

Lake Tire HammondLincoln Carry Outs Crown PointLindy’s Ace Hardware HammondLions Den HebronMain Barber Shop East ChicagoMario’s Athletic Zone HammondMirror Finish HammondMr. Bargains HammondNick’s Liquors HammondPetro Mart Cedar LakePortage Pancake House PortagePrestige Auto Center HammondSophia’s House of Pancakes HighlandStar Room LoungeSteve’s Grill DeMotteSubmarine Sandwich HammondThe Donut Shop HammondTreasure Hunt Resale Shop Crown PointVenice Pizzaria HammondWoodmar Food Mart Hammond

United Steelworkers Local 1010extends a great big Thank You, andSalutes all the Places of Businessthat exhibited unrelenting supportfor all our members during thecurrent long and sometimes diffi-cult Contract Negations we justendured. If we inadvertentlymissed anyone on this list pleasecontact the editor(editor@uswa1010.org) so thosebusinesses can be added to ournext edition of the Steelworker andacknowledged as one of our manyoutstanding supporters. When youPatronize these Businesses givethem a copy of this recognition! Aprintable copy is available on the1010 website at usw1010.org

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 24

Rosamaria RodriguezFinancial Secretary

WOW! How time flies! Our Unionelections are over, negotiations havebeen settled. I know many are not sat-isfied with the contract, many of usweren’t happy. As a daughter of a re-tired Steelworker I see first-hand thefrustrations of my parents trying to un-derstand the system and having to paymore. As a recipient of the program Isee the higher cost too and we didn’tget more money.

I also saw what many of you don’tsee. I saw head of households whohad to leave their families and respon-sibilities to their significate other andthe staff to hold down the home frontfor a year, as they went to fight for oursafety, benefits, and wages! We, whowere left behind, were delegated re-sponsibilities to keep providing servicesto our members. There were many sac-rifices that had to be made by all to getwhat I considered under all that isagainst us, the best contract we couldget. While they were daily fighting forand protecting our contract we got togo home to our love ones and continueour lives, never losing a day of pay. Ifeel that our representatives that werein Pittsburgh for a year should be com-mended for their commitment to serveits’ members. Yes, we didn’t get whatwe wanted, but, we didn’t get screwedlike the company would have liked. Forthat I thank the Negotiation Commit-tee.

I wanted to share a small part ofmy journey as a Steelworker for thelast 38 years. As a Steelworkers, I amproud to be part of an organization thathas been in the forefront in leading manyissues that affect working families areacross this nation and world! As anactive union member, I am proud to sayI have done my part and I recognize itgoes beyond the negotiation table andbeyond just a few. Each of us has aresponsibility to support and contributemore than dues to make our unionstrong and successful. Sometimes wemust be reminded, YOU ARE THEUNION! As union members we havethe continuing battle to defend the rightsof the workers. Each of us must do ourjob to make sure those that threatenour rights are dealt with and stopped.Our battles are, our war is in the Glo-bal Market, Wall Street, in the walls ofWashington D.C., our Capitol India-napolis, and our voting polls. Many donot know the struggle, the fight, thelosses, and the conspiracy to destroythe steel industry and more importantour union. Worse many do not knowthe benefits we received are from thesesacrifice and battles. We must recog-nize the company has given an em-ployee nothing without a fight. It hasbeen a long fight for steel makers asunionist. I am a youngster compared toour history but I do have 38 years. Iwanted to share some of my history ofour fight.

* August 1978 hired due to AffirmativeAction. The Pregnancy DiscriminationAct of 1978 amended Title VII of theCivil Rights Act of 1964 to prohit sexdiscrimination on the basis of preg-nancy. Sexual Harassment was beingdiscussed in the early 1970’s but notquite enforced and on the rise in themills. Many of us were victims andafraid to speak up and sometimes hadto defend ourselves feeling helpless.Sexual harassment still is prevalentin the workplace, in my 38 yearsworking, I would be a victim twomore times. You must speak up, manystill are silent!

* Between 1979 and 1986, about 16,000of us Chicago-area steelworkers lostour jobs or were laid off due to China.Inland Steel cut thousands of workers.I was one of them, working on and off,mostly off. Never knowing when youwould be laid off, there was always afinancial uncertainty. Mini mills wasthe new fad.

* In 1987- Even though workers safetyand health was negotiated in the 1950’scontract, the company still had the phi-losophy it was your fault! The unionfought to get better conditions and pro-tection. On March I fell 30’ and brokemy back, the grating I was standing onwasn’t welded and I fell through. I wasgiven a 50/50 chance to walk again.

Lifetime Steelworker

Page 25Steelworker

* 1987-1992 I was laid off like manySteelworkers, it was hard to find em-ployment many companies wouldn’thire you because they knew you wouldgo back if called back from the com-pany. Working a few months, laid off.Unemployment began to dwindle. I likethe thousands of workers who unem-ployed meant with many disappoint-ments. For me, I went through a di-vorce, couldn’t find work, and on wel-fare. I made some bad choices thatwould spiral me to rock bottom. Mean-while in 1987, The American industrywas caught off guard by Japan andSouth Koreas’ new mills and often withnewer technologies. USW Local 1010and Inland Steel anticipated a 25% workforce reduction over the next threeyears. They began developing, with theassistance of Lakeshore Employmentand Training Partnership Inc. and cre-ated the Inland Career Resource Cen-ter to assist dislocated workers with jobtraining and job placement services.

* 1993, Inland Steel Company beginsplans to close the Coke Plant and 11battery displacing about 500 more em-ployees. I became part of this processand was hired to work on the projectof Inland Career Resource Center.There were times it was hard to facethe men and women who were losingtheir jobs. I witnessed so many feelinglost, hurt, and overwhelmed as theytried to handle what was to happennext. It was also a very proud time aswe were able to assist over 500 of myfellow union brothers and sisters’ moveon to new employment, education, andopportunities.

* 1994 Inland Steel begins going global

* 1995, the project Inland Career Re-source Center was completed and onceagain found myself unemployed. I tookadvantage of the education program, Iwent to school and got my degree inAccounting and Computers graduatingwith a 3.96 GPA.

* 1998-2001 Ispat International boughtInland Steel. I like many others wascalled back to work. I would becomethe first woman to work the Band Sawsequence at the 12”Bar Mill and thefirst and only women to work on themill floor as a guide setter.

* 2002 In a short three weeks, 30,000+Steelworkers descended on Washing-ton D.C. and other organized laborUnions from across the country as werallied in solidarity for STAND UPFOR STEEL” I would also be the onlywoman in the world to be a VacuumDegasser at our 4BOF.

* 2003 Steel Companies reachedagreement with PBGC regarding thefunding of our pension obligations. Bythe end of 2003 twenty seven steelmanufacturers would declare bank-ruptcy.

* 2004 Corporate social responsibilityis all the rage. Corporate greed, Cor-porate Welfare, Steel dumping,Outsourcing jobs manufacturing jobsare being lost within a stunning 43 con-

secutive months- the longest stenchsince the Depression.

* 2006 USW Local 1010 and other sup-ports held a demonstration at the Mexi-can Conulate in support, leader of theNational Union of Mine and MetalWorkers of Mexico who was illegallyremoved as leader of the union by theMexican government following thetragic mine disaster in which Gomezdemanded an investigation into thedeaths of 65 miners in an accident onFeb. 19, 2006.

* 2006-present Ispat Inland becomesArcelor Mittal 2007. I was elected anExecutive Financial Officer for Local1010.

* 2008 We support Barack Obama andcreate a political satellite at our unionhall.

* 2012 We fought against the Right toWork bill. The state Senate voted 28-22 to pass the labor union bill

I share a small peep in my journey as aunionist to say that, it is because of myunion, I am who I am. I will paraphraseJohn F. Kennedy. Ask not what yourunion can do for you, but ask what youcan do for your Union! You can do yourpart and vote in November!

In Solidarity,Rosamaria Rodriguez

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 26

The Bernard KleimanJOBLINK Learning Center

By Steve Wagner, Vice PresidentJuly 2016

You should have received the fall cata-log in the mail by the end July. Also,you can visit JobLink’s improvedwebsite where you can literally pagethrough the catalog and also registerright online.

It’s more convenient than ever to reg-ister for Joblink classes. Go online tobkjoblink.org, or call 399-8135 or 8136,or stop in and register for a class inperson.

We have reciprocal participant arrange-ments with the other Career Develop-ment sites here in Northwest Indiana.The availability of customized classesat other sites is subject to specificagreements that we have for eachclass. Those classes are available toactive members from each of thesites involved. To see the class offer-ings at other sites, drop by JobLink tolook through the catalogs or check thelearning center’s websites: US Steel’sat usscareer.com or Burns Harbor’s atmittalcareer.org.

Don’t forget that active 1010 membersnow can combine the Tuition Assistance$1800 annual limit with the CustomizedClass $2000 annual limit to provide amore flexible total amount of educa-tional assistance — $3800 per year toLocal 1010 Members. This combina-tion of limits is available to individualswho have clear career goals to developvocational expertise and may be ap-

four classes needed for the certificatehere at JobLink, he or she can take theremaining classes online. It doesn’tmatter – online or live, a person canstill earn the certificate.

This summer for the first time, JobLinkis offering the classroom portion ofCDL training. A Driveco instructor willbe teaching this portion at JobLink.Active steelworkers can use their cus-tomized funds to pay for this portion ofthe training and then go to Driveco totake the driving portion of the training.Participants can then use tuition assis-tance funds to pay for that portion. Thismakes it so much more convenient.Look for the CDL training in the up-coming fall catalog, too.

The mosaic class at JobLink this springmade a beautiful mosaic bench whichwill be raffled off at a get together weare planning for September 13th. Youcan buy tickets for the bench (and amatching stepping stone) at Local 1010Union Hall or at JobLink.

Look for JobLink staff at yourdepartment’s Summer Safety Event.They’ll be participating at many ofthose events this season, so stop by andsay hello. You can even register forclasses at those events and buy raffletickets. All the raffle proceeds will goto the Tino Fulimeni Scholarship Fundfor the children and grandchildren ofSteelworkers.

It is important that we know our ben-efits and how to use them! 1010 Mem-bers can use their Tuition AssistanceProgram (T.A.P.) monies to access anyaccredited learning institution. T.A.P.benefits are a very flexible part of ourcontractually funded educational ben-efit. T.A.P. funds are subject to fund-ing limits and are available annually ona first-come, first-serve basis. Partici-pants $1,800.00 maximum annual ben-efit can be used to cover tuition, book,and course-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 institu-tions is also available on Joblink’swebsite.

JobLink has been offering more andmore opportunities to help Steelwork-ers get certified in a variety of areas:HVAC, CDL and Labor Studies.

We have brought back HVAC classesand by taking all three that will be of-fered, participants can test and becomecertified in air conditioning service.Also, this year JobLink has brought inlabor studies classes that lead to a La-bor Leadership Skills Certificate fromCornell University. Those classes aretaught live at JobLink by Art Wheaton,but can also be taken online. Thatmeans if a participant can’t take all the

Page 27Steelworker

usw1010.org

Photographs: Tom Hargrove, Daniel Walters,Tasos Kapatodis,

Editor’s Note: Editor’s Note: Editor’s Note: Editor’s Note: Editor’s Note: The opinions of the authors ex-pressed herein do not necessarily state orreflect the opinions of the Local 1010Executive Board or the Editor.

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. Submissionsfrom members are welcomed and encouraged.This publication is free of charge to all active andretired Local 1010 members.

Mail to: USW Local 1010Attention: Editor7047 Grand AvenueHammond, IN 46323-2552

Phone: 219-937-7784 ext.140

email: editor@uswa1010.org

Danie l Wal ters , Edi torDanie l Wal ters , Edi torDanie l Wal ters , Edi torDanie l Wal ters , Edi torDanie l Wal ters , Edi tor

GrieversGrieversGrieversGrieversGrieversJacob Cole

Michael BouvatOtis Cochran

Charles SwitzerJames ThomasDave NelsonMike AlverezAdam GovertKevin BrackettWilliam Rivera

Tim TrtanGary Bender

Executive BoardTom Hargrove, PresidentTom Hargrove, PresidentTom Hargrove, PresidentTom Hargrove, PresidentTom Hargrove, President

Steve Wagner, Vice PresidentDon Jones, Recording Secretary

Rosa Maria Rodriguez, Financial SecretaryMax Carrasquillo, Treasurer

Don Seifert, GuideJim Gogolak, Inner GuardEddie Harvey, Outer Guard

Luis Aguilar, TrusteeErnie Barrientez, TrusteeOtis Cochran, Trustee

Grievance CommitteeGrievance CommitteeGrievance CommitteeGrievance CommitteeGrievance CommitteeDennis Shattuck, Chairman

Darrell Reed, Vice ChairmanMatt Beckman, Secretary

LOCAL 1010STEELWORKER

proved in accordance with Institute forCareer Development’s guidelines.

Anyone interested in a specific classmay contact Joblink with the type ofclass desired to begin an interested list.Don’t take classes for granted. Thesame classes are not always offereddue to participant interest, so en-roll in a desired class when you seeit offered as soon as possible. AllJoblink classes must be in accordancewith the Career Development ProgramGuidelines.

Some in-house classes are available toretirees on a first-come, first-serve ba-sis. (Look for the diamond symbol nextto a course in our catalog). In general,it does not cover tuition – unless youhave been approved for Issuance 14 andare still working on your educationalgoal. In that case, if there are fundsavailable, you may be able to receivesome tuition assistance only during thefirst year of your retirement. In addi-tion,retirees and spouses of active 1010members can purchase courses that are

on a per person pay arrangement.This applies to classes that are notfilled by active members. Retirees andspouses of active 1010 membersmust pay for the class at least twoweeks prior to the class start. Classcost can be obtained by calling Joblinkat 399-8136.

We’re always trying to find the rightbalance of classes as well as a widevariety of classes. We hope youagree that there’s something for ev-eryone. And if you don’t agree, giveme a call. Tell me what you’d like tosee us offer. It’s your benefit!

Any questions regarding Joblink canbe directed to the Joblink staff (219)399-8134, 8135or 8136. Anyoneelse who needs additional informationcan call me at the union hall (219) 937-7784 (x-113) or E-mail me atswagner@uswa1010.org. If youcall when I am not available, pleaseleave a detailed message on my voicemail. If you need a more immediateresponse you may call me on my cellat (219) 718-3199. Either way, I willget back to you as soon as possible.

Change of AddressIf you have moved please mail this form, with the mailing label on the back page to Editor,Local 1010 Steelworker, 7047 Grand Ave., Hammond, In. 46323-2552

Name___________________________________________________

New address ____________________________________________________

City/State/Zip___________________________________________________

Active Retired

3rd Qtr. 2016Page 28

In Solidarity,

PPPPPRESIDENTRESIDENTRESIDENTRESIDENTRESIDENT’’’’’SSSSS R R R R REPORTEPORTEPORTEPORTEPORT

USW Local 1010 Memorial Hall7047 Grand Avenue

Hammond, Indiana 46323-2552(219) 937-7784 937-7684 Fax

As always I start with safety which isour most important job each and everyday. Convincing people to focus onleading indicators and not lagging isvery difficult due to the fact that lead-ing indicators require forward thinkingand is progressive, whereas, laggingindicators is like looking in the rearviewmirror and requires no effort.

As a Union, we will stay focused onremoving hazards, reporting nearmisses, correcting them and refusingunsafe work.

The year has been very trying with con-tract negotiations going on for almost ayear. Our Union had many rallies anddemonstrations. Solidarity and partici-pation from our CAT volunteers, activesand retirees was outstanding, “Thanksto all.”

Finally, after ten months of nearly con-tinuous bargaining and sustained loud,visible support from the membership,we reached a tentative agreement ona fair contract that our negotiating com-mittee unanimously recommended forratification and was ratified by a largemargin.

I think we got the best deal we couldget under the circumstances without astrike or lockout. Each negotiation is asnapshot in time, sometimes you haveleverage and sometimes you don‘t, soyou get the best deal you can and liveto fight another day. The next fight willbegin in less than two years so startgetting ready. Canada has NationalHealth so they fight over wages. Sadly,in the USA, the Union’s biggest fight isover healthcare. Our nation needsMedicare for all in a worst way.

Your Safety and theSafety of your Co-workeris your most important

Job each and every Day!

WE MAKE THE JOB SAFE OR WE DON’T DO IT!!