“I started the electrical trade at Lockheed Shipbuilding and Construction Co. on Harbor Island in Seattle, working in the evenings and attending the University of Washington during the day. Initially, I was working as a ship scaler, but I had an interest in the marine electricians’ trade. I enjoyed working near them, asking lots of questions on the job, participating in evening classes for blueprint reading and learning as much as possible. The foreman was curious about me, this 22-year-old kid asking all these questions.
After about six months, the IBEW marine unit at Lockheed formed a committee to test me. I passed with flying colors because I enjoy working, read a lot, and I’m quite a handyman. I became a journeyman electrician and have continued with this work since the mid-1970s.
Over the years, I have worked intermittently at the shipyards and as an economic development professional, for which I received graduate degrees from the University of Washington. My employment at Pacific coast shipyards has always been as an IBEW member, as I continued my membership for Local 46 job opportunities when I returned home from international consulting work.
The shipbuilding industry has been great to me. Lockheed Shipbuilding is gone, but Todd/Vigor and other smaller shipyards in the area remain. Every time I visit the IBEW, there are always people I know, some I’ve known for 50 years or so. It’s always nice to be able to just sit down and have a coffee and discuss how things are going.
Harry Thompson, an IBEW representative and journeyman, is a super guy, and we have both worked at a smaller shipyard, Lake Union Drydock. I see him quite often — he comes to the shipyards about once a month, which is great because there’s always issues and things to discuss. It’s been a very interesting exchange of knowledge, experience, issues and politics over the years. I’ve learned quite a bit, and I hope I’ve been useful to all the shipyards I’ve worked for in the last 50 years or so.
The electrical trade has shown me throughout my life and professional career that labor contributes positively to society. When it’s organized, it contributes even more, and the electrical trade is one of the more organized trades in North America. Having worked in a lot of countries, there is nothing equivalent to it.
I have always used it as an example, making a more productive, wage-equitable trade that is supported educationally and financially. It contributes to any society where there is electrical work needed, which is everywhere.
IBEW membership provided me the opportunity to work as a marine electrician while attending school after my swing shifts. The pay scale was great, covering necessary expenses for me and my wife. And being almost 75 years old, still working at the local shipyards is a reward itself.”
