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March 2003 IBEW Journal

The five-man Ohio IBEW delegation exited the subway and rode up the escalator into the shadow of the U.S. Capitol dome. Suited up in red union-made IBEW sweatshirts, all had been prepped for this afternoon by two days of thoughtful workshops, illustrative presentations and speeches of fiery rhetoric.

But politicians, policy wonks and economists could not tell them what they already knew: America’s industrial base was disintegrating. The collective effects of years of trade agreements, corporate downsizing and damaging legislation had brought Ohio’s once-proud industrial base to its knees. Their life’s work, their lifeblood and their way of life were crumbling before their eyes.

"Our motivations are plain and simple," said IBEW Fourth District International Representative Tom Curley to an aide to Rep. Paul Gillmor (R-Ohio), one of five congressional offices the delegation visited. "We represent working Americans. We’re not here to be adversaries. We’re here to open up a dialogue with your office. There will be times we will disagree but we owe it to both of our constituencies to work together on those issues that benefit working Americans."

At best, that approach worked, as it did with Gillmor’s staffer, who appeared to be genuinely concerned about the loss of manufacturing employment and the unfair hurdles workers have to jump through just to gain a voice on the job during organizing campaigns. At worst, they were confronted with a disappointing mix of ignorance and indifference, as they found with an aide to Rep. Michael Oxley (R-Ohio).

The five didn’t have to convince Rep. Marcy Kaptur’s aide, Steve Fought, of the severe problems that include the loss of 1,800 jobs at a Philips television picture tube plant and the closure of a Huffy bicycle plant, whose operations moved to Mexico and China, respectively. Not too long ago, Ohio had a diversity of industrial facilities, including defense, auto, electronics and glass manufacturing and steel fabrication. In Toledo, Teledyne Brown Engineering has laid off thousands who once produced aircraft parts.

"Now that’s pretty much history," Curley said. "There used to by thousands of people there. Now they have 60 people. They moved them out to nonunion areas or other countries around the world."

Other IBEW members in the Ohio delegation were Bob McCreery, Local 998, Vermilion, Robert Herman and Business Manager Dave Austin, of Local 1076 in Toledo.

"Somebody has to beat these drums," Curley said. "The bulk of the American public is in tune with these things. We’re going to go home and keep up the momentum."

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