Team effort produces organizing win for Machinists

Team effort produces organizing win for Machinists

Thursday February 1, 2018

For Immediate Release

 

Vancouver, BC – “This was a tremendous team effort drawing upon the resources and the expertise of IAM District Lodges 140, 250 and Local Lodge 764,” said IAM Transportation District Lodge 140 President and General Chairperson Fred Hospes. Workers at Sage Parts at Vancouver International airport are the newest members of the IAM.

“I couldn’t be more delighted,” said IAM Local Lodge 764 President Chris Hiscocks. “We operate under federal jurisdiction and have never been involved in a provincial certification before. But IAM District Lodge 250 Directing Business Representative Walter Gerlach made sure we had the proper cards and IAM District Lodge 250 Business Representative Al Cyr mentored our new organizer Tim Murphy on how to apply for a provincial certification and attended the Labour Board hearings with him and assisted with the vote.”

For Murphy, fresh from the IAM Organizing 1 course last August, this was his first organizing drive. “I thought we might as well take advantage of what Tim learned in that course and put him to work,” explained Hiscocks. “He’s shown he has what it takes to be a good organizer.”

“You might say I got thrown in the deep end on this one, it was a learning experience,” said Murphy. “The resources and the experience I could draw upon for this was remarkable. I was mentored by IAM Transportation District Lodge 140 Organizer Sam Jabbar. He organized the Montréal and Toronto Sage Parts locations and his knowledge and way of dealing with people was invaluable. Al Cyr showed me the ropes on certification application and the labour board. The expertise made available to me was outstanding.”

“When we work together like this, we can organize any target,” explained Jabbar.

Sage Parts is the aviation industry’s largest on-hand inventory of replacement parts for ground support equipment, including every part for every brand of Ground Support Equipment. The IAM now represents SAGE Parts employees in three (3) locations in Canada – Montreal, Toronto and now Vancouver.”

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For further information:
Fred Hospes – IAM Transportation District Lodge 140 President & Directing General Chairperson
604-448-0721/778-829-8140
Chris Hiscocks – IAM Local Lodge 764 President
604-273-9668
Bill Trbovich – IAM Director of Communications for Canada
416-386-1789 Ext #31/416-735-9765