‰ÛÏBuilding Unity Through Fighting Racism‰Û�

On Saturday, January 28, 2017 Local 3, IBEW and the Electrical Industry held a conference addressing racism and diversity. The conference highlighted the history of racism in America and the electrical industry through a workshop entitled “Building Unity through Fighting Racism.” The discussion was curated by acclaimed author and activist Bill Fletcher Jr. The program began with opening remarks by Dr. Gerald Finkel, Chairman of the Joint Industry Board and Michael Yee, Director of the Educational and Cultural Trust Fund. Local 3 Business Manager Christopher Erikson addressed the crowd of Local 3 stewards, superintendents, shop supervision, the Wage and Policy committee and rank and file members followed by a morning and afternoon session of the program led by Mr. Fletcher that included lecture, discussion and workshops. Conference attendees learned from the experiences of their peers and shared lessons of their own, all while highlighting the diversity of Local 3, IBEW brothers and sisters.
Business Manager Erikson outlined the objective of the workshop to be for the participants to learn the manner in which race and racism have been constructed, the reasons for racism and who was behind this. The workshop helped to develop tools for identifying manifestations of racism in the industry and identify methods to build unity across racial boundaries that can strengthen the industry and advance equality in and out of the workplace. Business Manager Erikson said, “This is not empowering any one group over another but about protecting the collective interests of all Local 3 members and keeping our union strong.”
In the latest “A”contract ratified by the membership a stipulation was made that the industry require all supervisors to take a diversity training course ensuring that every member of Local 3 is treated with respect and that the opportunity to run work is afforded to all members regardless of their race, the color of their skin or their gender or sexual orientation. Our diversity is our strength and embracing it will only make our union stronger. This conference extended this idea further by studying race and racism throughout the course of history across all cultures, nationalities and religions and ending with the importance of diversity in all workplaces today.
Bill Fletcher Jr. has been an activist since his young adult life when he graduated from college and went to work as a welder in a shipyard, thereby entering the labor movement. Over the years he has been active in workplace and community struggles as well as electoral campaigns. He has worked for several labor unions in addition to serving as a senior staff person in the national AFL-CIO. Fletcher is the former president of TransAfrica Forum, a Senior Scholar with the Institute for Policy Studies, an editorial board member of BlackCommentator.com and in the leadership of several other projects. Fletcher has authored and co-authored many books and is a syndicated columnist and a regular media commentator on television and radio.
The work of the diversity conference echoed the remarks of International President Lonnie Stephenson at the IBEW convention in September. Stephenson thanked the delegates in St. Louis for doing their part to make the IBEW a more inclusive union and providing the kind of leadership that it takes to grow the next generation of leaders who will continue the effort to make the IBEW an even more inclusive place, more reflective of the great diversity of the U.S. and Canada, the kind of leadership that will keep the Brotherhood strong for generations to come. A follow up conference addressing racism will be scheduled soon.