September 2023
September Issue
When Wakenniosta Cooper graduated from her apprenticeship in August, she wasn't just part of the Electrical Joint Training Committee's first Indigenous-specific cohort. She was already a decorated tradeswoman, having won Apprentice of the Year in 2021.
Kianni Vigeant had never considered a job in manufacturing before serendipitously landing in one. Dianna O'Brien only knew about the possibilities because of her mother. Yet both women have found successful careers in this growing segment of the American economy, reinvigorated thanks to new investment and an emphasis on "Buy American" by the Biden administration.
The Biden administration has come out with new data supporting a long-held view: that unions are good for the middle class, and what’s good for the middle class is good for the American economy. And, according to new polling, most Americans agree.
The wildfires that devastated Maui in early August were among the worst natural disasters in Hawaii’s history and were the deadliest fires in the U.S. in over a century. As always, IBEW members were there to help pick up the pieces, many of them on the job when they didn’t even know the fate of their own homes.
August 2023
August Issue
The most sweeping updates to federal prevailing wage law in 40 years are now on the books, meaning more money in the pockets of IBEW members and other construction workers on federal projects.
Membership in the IBEW’s Telecommunications Branch has significant growth potential during the coming years via the Biden administration’s $42 billion broadband expansion plan.
Ottawa, Local 586 Business Manager John Bourke had a message for the coach of his local's hockey team when it finished in second at the IBEW's highest-level hockey tournament: Pretty good — but you can do better.
Kansas City, Mo., Local 124 construction members already were busy with a number of major projects.
Jonathan Sherwin has spent much of his Pittsburgh Local 5 apprenticeship performing heavy industrial work, often in steel mills that frame western Pennsylvania history.
Memo to IBEW members: Be on the lookout for the Brotherhood's logo on a pair of bicyclists when out traveling this summer. The Scheids are back on the road, looking to raise money in the fight against childhood cancer.
July 2023
July Issue
A minority of Ohio voters could wield majority power under an anti-democratic ballot measure that would make it nearly impossible to pass pro-worker referendums and other initiatives protecting Ohioans’ liberties and livelihoods.
Leadership at the specialized manufacturer Lighting Quotient recently — and enthusiastically — agreed to take their decades-long relationship with the IBEW and New Haven, Conn., Local 1040 to the next level by implementing the union’s Code of Excellence.
Among the many challenging tasks that IBEW members perform every day, one of the most dangerous is the work that line clearance tree trimmers do to keep power lines obstruction-free.
For years, Local 2330 was in a slump. Membership was declining at the local in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, and there was little active organizing. But with a few changes, it's on a new path — and already adding signatory contractors and members.
Despite recent victories in Congress, such as legislation that protects multi-employer pensions, American retirees’ hard-won benefits remain politically precarious. That’s why the AFL-CIO’s Alliance for Retired Americans is on the watch.
When Mike Finn, a retired journeyman from Portsmouth, N.H., Local 575, first found out about the Building Trades National Medical Screening Program, it didn't seem urgent. But eventually he signed up, and it may have saved his life.
Anti-union politicians have been targeting prevailing wage laws, one of the most effective tools for ensuring fair wages for public construction projects, for years, with six states repealing theirs in the past decade.
Oklahoma City Local 1141 members stepped up to volunteer at the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma in February, continuing a tradition of solidarity and goodwill in the community.
June 2023
June Issue
IBEW local unions know they need to grow quickly with the massive surge in infrastructure projects across North America. Part of that means extending their reach to historically underrepresented groups in the electrical trade.
It’s no longer a question: Summer temperatures in the U.S. are rising, and the heat is clearly taking its toll.
After months of negotiations, the IBEW’s Railroad members at four of the largest U.S. freight carriers finally have what they’ve long sought but that many working people take for granted: paid sick days.
Young workers are entering a workforce that is still recovering from the pandemic while also dealing with high inflation and rampant income inequality. There is no shortage of economic anxiety.
Every year, the IBEW awards scholarships worth up to $24,000 to help cultivate a new generation of leadership in the union and the electrical industry.
The law in Canada couldn't be any clearer: Workers have the right to form unions, and companies must negotiate with them when they do.
May 2023
May Issue
There's more construction work than construction workers, and that means the race is on to recruit more people to the trades. Local unions across the IBEW are casting a wider net by welcoming historically underrepresented groups like women and people of color.
Organizing is often described as a marathon. It takes time to build relationships and establish trust. For Phoenix Local 640, that long effort has come to fruition, and the local's rolls are swelling.
When Michigan repealed its so-called right-to-work law in March, it wasn't just a huge victory for working families in that state. It was a shot across the bow.
Justin Trudeau used a fitting backdrop to pledge support for one of Canadian labor's highest priorities.
For a quarter-century, The Electrical Worker has asked you to send in pictures that showing how we are all bound together, and then vote on your favorites.
Fred Ross Jr. from Vacaville, Calif., Local 1245 was one of the most celebrated organizers of his generation.
IBEW membership is a powerful tool for improving one's life. Claudia Achury's story is proof.
IBEW utility lineworkers in Alabama will soon be running fiber-optic cabling for broadband internet, thanks to a recent agreement with Alabama Power. The pact stands to have far-reaching job-growth and training implications for IBEW utility workers across the U.S.
More than 2,400 Raytheon Technologies missile and defense workers are getting on-the-clock training on the IBEW’s Code of Excellence program, thanks to a years-long effort by the leaders of Waltham, Mass., Local 1505 and representatives from the Second District office.
April 2023
April Issue
Every year in late November or early December, media outlets in and around Buffalo, N.Y., report on the installation of a huge ice boom at the head of the Niagara River. For good reason, too. Without the arch and the IBEW members who install it, the entire region could be in harm's way.
Years ago, New York Local 3 member Lowely Cheung had a problem. She had to do some wiring and was under a strict deadline. She needed a 10-foot ladder and was told they didn't have any that day, so she should just use the shorter ladder, which she would have to stand on top of, risking her safety.
When fourth-year apprentice B. Travis Brown got the call from Washington, D.C., Local 26 to introduce the president of the United States for a major speech at the hall, he almost didn't pick up. He's glad he did.
March 2023
March Issue
The law in Canada couldn't be any clearer: Workers have the right to form unions, and companies must negotiate with them when they do.
Michigan became the first state to repeal a right-to-work law in nearly 60 years when Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a bill on March 24 that was passed by the state’s House and Senate earlier in the month.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court election is one of the most important political races in the United States this year, promising to have a big impact on union members and working families.
The IBEW has joined a coalition of labor unions to sign an agreement to build and run what is billed as the first truly high-speed passenger rail line in the U.S.
A budding electrician had the hottest ticket in D.C. as President Joe Biden delivered a sweeping State of the Union speech that reported on record-breaking job growth and other unparalleled progress for American workers.
The IBEW’s benefit funds had a change in leadership March 1, but members can be forgiven if they missed it.
Workers at Boston's convention centers have been dealing with subpar pay and poor working conditions for years. So when they got the chance recently to join Local 103, a group long known for its experience and for going to the mat for its members, they were all in.
The conversion of an airport ferry from biodiesel to electric power could help carry more marine-based work to the members of St. Catharines, Ontario, Local 303 and beyond.
Former International President Lonnie R. Stephenson's career received a fitting epilogue when the Edison Electric Institute awarded him its rarely issued Thomas A. Edison Legacy Award.
The Michigan Senate took a big step toward restoring workers’ rights in the state on March 14, when it voted to repeal the state’s right-to-work law and restore project labor agreements on public projects.
The job of a foreman may come with a bigger paycheck, but a key downside to the job has been that it hasn’t historically come with an instruction manual.
In September, the IBEW welcomed Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Local 1974 as one of the union’s newest chartered locals, representing hundreds of workers making mission-critical military and GPS products equipment.
IBEW members who work for Alabama Power joined a team of more than 100 volunteers to build a Habitat for Humanity home, a project that was completed in just 10 days.
It's been decades since the Seabrook Nuclear Generating Station went online, providing clean baseload energy to customers in New England. And thanks to the work of IBEW members who navigated a long, complex project, the plant now has decades more to go.
February 2023
February Issue
Kenneth W. Cooper grew up in a house with no indoor plumbing in one of the poorest neighborhoods of a dying Rust Belt town and then joined one of the smallest construction locals in Ohio.
The IBEW has had a strong relationship with its national broadcasting partners for decades. So, when PGA Tour Entertainment employees went looking for a union, they had a good idea where to turn.
It’s that time of year. The nine finalists have been selected for the IBEW’s annual photo contest and, as usual, members have provided us with stunning images.
If it is Super Bowl Sunday, there’s a good chance IBEW members are playing a large role in the day. That will be the case again this year’s game, when the Philadelphia Eagles play the Kansas City Chiefs at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., on Feb. 12.
January 2023
January Issue
Detroit Local 17’s tree trimming program is one of only two Labor Department-certified apprenticeships in the country, and what makes it even more special is the relationship the local has with the Parnall Correctional Facility in Jackson, Mich.
San Diego voters on Nov. 8 approved Measure D, which overturned a ban on project labor agreements in the city.
The political adage "Elections have consequences" is going to be put on display in Michigan in ways that could benefit IBEW members and all working families, including a potential repeal of the state's so-called right-to-work law.
The twinkle in President Joe Biden's eye and delight on his face said it all: Once again, an IBEW member had knocked his socks off.
When Boston Local 103 Business Manager Lou Antonellis swore in this year’s class of apprentices, he welcomed the most diverse class in the union’s history. And it wasn’t by accident.
Lincoln, Neb., Local 2366 members have been working at Schneider Electric for the past 50 years, but the coronavirus pandemic created an opportunity for the manufacturing plant’s workers to show just how essential they really are. And it helped spur a $70 million investment by the company.
Two IBEW locals in Pennsylvania were awarded state funding exceeding $1 million for their apprenticeship programs.
IBEW members worked around the clock to restore power to Atlantic Canada after Hurricane Fiona battered the region in late September.
IBEW apprentice and journeyman wiremen once again took several top honors at the annual Ideal National Championship, held Nov. 4-5 in Tampa, Fla.
The U.S. Senate on Dec. 21 confirmed retired Tenth District International Vice President Robert Klein as one of six new directors on the governing board of the Tennessee Valley Authority, bringing a labor voice to the electrical utility serving nearly 10 million customers across a wide swath of the South.
For two years, Syracuse, N.Y., Local 43 Business Manager Alan Marzullo was part of a small group working with state and civic leaders to convince Micron Technology to build a new semiconductor facility in their community..