Our Local 712 is a 26-strong group of electricians, plumbers, carpenters, painters, utility workers and helpers. Although a small group in comparison to others, our passion, skills and sense of pride in our work is huge. This band of maintenance workers here at Kenyon College in little Gambier, Ohio ensures safety, comfort and overall quality of life for the students, staff and faculty here. No small undertaking while trying to maintain mostly historical buildings, some over 150 years old. In an ever-changing culture and economy, we found ourselves at the bargaining table again. Not only were we seeking another contract to secure our employment, we were hoping to achieve higher wages to alleviate some of the blow of these high inflation rates.
Myself being the “greenhorn” at the table, I felt at ease knowing that the rest of my bargaining committee had some 80-plus years of cumulative experience in contract negotiations. I have been the secretary of our local for just about a year, and up until this point my tasks were merely keeping documents for the record and writing up the monthly notes at our meetings. In the position of secretary, it became a bit intense at times trying to jot down key terms, phrases, numbers, facts and figures all whilst trying not to get too caught up in my notes and actually have a voice in the room from time to time. While the job seems pretty straightforward, sometimes the smallest detail included in your notes can be very impactful. Maybe noting a snide remark or a “velvet dagger” could be something important to reference later. Luckily our negotiations were quite civil and settled “in a very timely manner,” according to Ryan Rager, our chief steward.
Our team was able to lock in a ten percent wage increase over three years, with the first year being front-loaded at 5.5 percent. “That’s the biggest raise I’ve seen in the first year,” said Terry Lahmon, a fellow UE member with 42 years at Kenyon. Along with that we were able to win more money for our yearly uniform allowance, the ability for newer employees to earn vacation days sooner, higher caps on health care costs, and some various strategic language changes to the contract to benefit our members for the future. All in all, I would consider this a solid win for the local. President Bob Smith agrees, stating “These negotiations were some of the least stressful I’ve been involved in over the past 39 years. I feel the negotiating committee did a good job and we got good guidance on some language related to discipline and work rules. We came away with a pretty good contract, and I’m particularly happy we were able to keep management rights out of the contract.”
The bargaining committee consisted of President Robert Smith, Vice President Rodney Ewers, Chief Steward Ryan Rager, Treasurer Rich Cannon, and Secretary Daniel West. We were assisted by our Rep. and Field Organizer Heather Hillenbrand.