Last Thursday at the General Membership meeting your officers were proudly sworn in by our International President Lonnie Stephenson via Zoom video conference. The restrictions regarding the size of public gatherings remain in place, limiting the number of members we can accommodate at the meeting. We eagerly await when we can get back to full participation.
As I stated in my remarks at the meeting, instilled in me by Harry Van Arsdale Jr. is the belief that the only purpose of the Union is to serve the membership, and as we as officers of Local Union No. 3 start our new term we remain steadfast and committed to that understanding. Thank you for your confidence.
It is my hope that our members remain as committed to our union just the same. Local 3 IBEW is a trade union. We have high standards and lifelong benefits that cover us nearly cradle to grave. In order to protect all that we have we must have an active membership. Some shortsighted members believe that by just paying union dues it entitles them to make a good living and I’m telling you it doesn’t - it’s not enough. We learn valuable lessons by looking back and studying history, by applying what has worked and moving on from what hasn’t. Our future is ahead of us with new challenges. The world changes and we must be prepared to change to meet those new challenges if we intend to continue our progress.
One of the things that our past has taught us is that education and productivity on the job are keys to our success. Another is that having an active membership directly led to most of our past successes. Instilling in our newer members the need to be active is every member's responsibility. Our future is dependent on that. Do your part, lead by example, volunteer, show up, be registered to vote and vote for Labor's candidates.
Being an active member of our union will keep it strong. We will protect our economic interests and the benefits that we and our families depend on. You should be proud to be a member of Local 3. We have much to be proud of and thankful for, more than most. So let’s make sure our younger members get the message about what’s really important and we will continue to be the best local union out there.
