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to Retiree Health Care Sparks December 30, 2004 FirstEnergy Corporation, the profitable parent of Jersey Central Power and Light came to contract negotiations with the IBEW in September demanding major increases in retiree health care costs and language that, according to a leading negotiator, could "void all retiree health care" in the future. "The big issue is retiree health care," says Willis Wardell, Jr., president of System Council U-3. He contends that the company made "tremendous" profits, aided by force reductions that were accomplished by convincing workers to take early retirements. Many of the "same workers would be directly affected by health care cuts." IBEW System Council U-3, bargaining with JCP&L, comprises local unions 327, 1289, 1298, 1303 and 1309. The locals represent linemen, customer service employees, technicians, clerks and meter readers. The New Jersey Board of Mediation has contacted the council and the utility, proposing a meeting with one of the departments mediators. The parties have agreed to meet weekly. Ed Modzelewski, spokesman for System Council U-3, told the Asbury Park Press: "We have always said that we are ready to negotiate, and hopefully the company will come in with the same attitude." In a December 10 press release, Modzelewski said: "We were hopeful that we would not be striking during the holidays. However, as we attempted to find a sensible and mature resolution to the issue FirstEnergys response was to send Scrooge to the bargaining table with his total disconnect from reality." On December 18 about 1,000 unionists and community members rallied in Morristown to show their support for the JCP&L strikers. An invitation to the rally stated, "A current IBEW pensioner, retired after decades of service to JCP&L, would have to collect his or her pension for 162-1/2 years to reach the level of compensation enjoyed by FirstEnergys CEO in just last year alone. And they want to raise their health care costs by 800 percent before they take it away altogether." Third District International Representative Wyatt Earp reports that IBEW members from Long Island, upstate New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware traveled long distances to rally with other AFL-CIO affiliates. "This kind of turnout on a Saturday before Christmas is really exceptional," he says. The supporters included Gregory Kavanagh and James Manning, IBEW members who hold elected councilman positions in two areas. They will introduce municipal resolutions in support of the strikers. JCP&L told the news media that the parties are in dispute over "work rules," specifically company requests to cover operations during off-hours. Third District International Representative Rich Redmond, who is assisting the system council in negotiations, says that on the night that JCP&L forced the members to strike, the company insisted that the union accept the 800 percent increase in retiree health care costs and the language providing for future revocation of the benefits, claiming that they didnt even "want to hear" the unions response on work rules changes. FirstEnergy has holdings from Ohio to New Jersey, many staffed by IBEW members. The company brags about its political influence that extends all the way to the White House, but, while the utility has friends in high places, it hasnt helped energy consumers to get better service. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities has cited JCP&L for lack of reliability and inadequate staffing levels. The company promised to make improvements, but hasnt followed through. System council members say that for two years, FirstEnergy "almost single-handedly destroyed two consecutive years of tourism on the New Jersey shore" because of an inability to get a handle on transmission issues and service requirements. To address rolling blackouts and continuous brownouts, the utility placed huge generators on residential streets of communities like Lavallette which they then utilized to generate electricity for their lines. "This company, very simply, lacks all compassion for workers and consumers," says Willis Wardell, Jr. The IBEW has filed unfair labor practice charges against JCP&L at the National Labor Relations Board. A Web site covering the negotiations with JCP&L can be visited at www.ibew1298.org.
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www.ibew1298.orgAPP.COM - Strike begins at JCP&L; utility says it can cope New
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