Read the Summer 2021 Edition of the Local 17 Newsletter

SUMMER 2021

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SMW17 UPDATE

DELIVERING RESULTS IS WHAT WE DO

FIGHTING FOR WORKING FAMILIES PG 4 PROTECTING OUR WORK AND OUR COMMUNITY PG 6 HOLYOKE SOLDIERS AND PLA WIN PG 7

TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 PRESIDENT’S REPORT 4 FIGHTING FOR WORKING FAMILIES 5 PROJECT SPOTLIGHT 6 PROTECTING OUR WORK AND OUR COMMUNITY 7 HOLYOKE SOLDIERS HOME AND PLA WIN

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ABOUT

SHEET METAL WORKERS LOCAL 17 Sheet Metal Workers Local 17 is a building trade union representing more than 2,700 skilled and licensed workers throughout Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. We stand together as the most highly trained professionals in the industry, bringing the top safety standards and quality to every project.

Local 17 was formed in 1896 so that men and women working in the sheet metal industry could bargain collectively for better work standards.

Today, our members enjoy dignified contracts, industry-leading wages and healthcare, and a sound pension plan they can count on after retirement.

1157 Adams Street, Dorchester, MA 02124 (617) 296-1680

PRESIDENT'S REPORT BROTHERS AND SISTERS, I would like to formally welcome you all to the Northeast Regional Council.

The new leadership structure, including the new Executive Committee members, took effect on May 1, and your patience and hard work in these times of transition have not gone unnoticed.

We are confident that these coming months will further unite Local 17 with Local 40 and Local 63, expanding the market share in our region and making us stronger in the fight ahead. Once again, I’d like to emphasize that your wages, benefits, and level of representation have and will remain the same.

Recently, our strength in numbers has already paid off. Together, we beat back “Right to Work” in New Hampshire, ensuring quality safety standards and fair wages for all Granite State workers. I can’t overstate the importance of victories like these — if passed, “Right to Work” laws would have gutted our right to organize and put our livelihoods at risk.

The fight for fair labor laws doesn’t stop in New Hampshire. President Biden has already set his sights on “Right to Work” laws across the country, aiming to empower workers with long-overdue workplace protections. The PRO Act, which is currently lagging in Congress, would ban intimidation and stall tactics used by employers to prevent their workers from unionizing.

In our own Commonwealth, we also continue the fight to close the prevailing wage loophole that allows contractors to cheat our off-site pre-fabrication workers out of a living wage. Two bills, H.2046 and S.1189, stand to close this loophole, and will likely come to a vote this fall. We are hard at work building relationships at Beacon Hill to make sure these bills pass, and we need your support in ensuring that all Massachusetts workers are protected fairly under the law.

Construction is in full force as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic, but we must continue to observe the proper safety regulations in light of new, more contagious variants. We’re proud to share that we have won even more jobs for members and expect even more work to come. Please review this partial list on Page 6.

It’s thanks to your hard work and expertise that we continue to win such significant projects. Thank you again for all of your contributions, and keep an eye out for ways to participate in the fights ahead.

In Solidarity,

Robert Butler SMART Northeast Regional Council

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FIGHTING FOR WORKING FAMILIES

FIGHTING FOR WORKING FAMILIES Thanks to our united efforts, we ran "Right to Work" out of New Hampshire. With the defeat of this anti-worker legislation, we can continue to enjoy the industry-leading benefits that make our jobs great.

Your phone banking, rallies, hard work, and commitment to Granite State workers have helped make this victory possible. Together, we proved that "Right to Work" is wrong for New Hampshire.

“Right to Work" threatened our wages, our benefits, and our livelihoods in the Granite State. If passed, New Hampshire workers would have lost up to $10,000 in wages as well as training and safety standards that keep us safe on the job site.

I'd like to thank each and every one of you for doing your part to stand up for working families.

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Above: Building Trades members stand out in support of New Hampshire workers.

PROJECT SPOTLIGHT

PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: BETH ISRAEL As we emerge from the pandemic, it's more essential than ever to construct health care and medical facilities with the highest quality airflow and building standards. The past two years have retaught the public the importance of state-of-the-art HVAC systems, and these renovations will play a key role in preventing disease for years to come.

Most of all, to keep the public as safe and healthy as possible, these facilities need the quality and expertise of union labor. Beth Israel's newest expansion, an 11-story inpatient building, was proudly outfitted by Local 17. The new building boasts six operating rooms, five air handlers, exhaust fans to clear the second-floor loading dock, and

a brand new expanded ambulance bay. In constructing this addition, we're proud to be using off-site prefabrication to make our own ductwork and other material before installing on-site. We look forward to the new building's opening in Spring 2023.

As these kinds of medical expansions fuel Boston's growth and building boom, it's imperative that we don't leave workers behind in this era of opportunity. Local 17 will continue to fight for jobs that place us on the cutting edge of sheet metal technology and allow us to give back to our community.

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PROTECTING OUR WORK AND OUR COMMUNITIES

PROTECTING OUR WORK AND OUR COMMUNITIES WORK WON Check out some of the latest work we have coming down the pike: Sharon High School, 24,480 hours Driscoll School, 20,000 hours Dennis Yarmouth Middle School, 18,931 hours LCS - The Delaney, 18,416 hours 66 Galen Street LAB, 12,200 hours Rockland Elementary School, 11,000 hours Easton Early Elementary School, 10,704 hours Amesbury Elementary School, 10,000 hours Fall River Waster Water Facility, 4,377 hours Tufts Medical Center, ICU, 3,800 hours ...and more!

DAVIS REAL ESTATE At Local 17, we're committed to holding bad actors accountable, whether they threaten our careers or our communities. Davis Real Estate happens to do both, relying on predatory business practices that drive up prices in our neighborhoods and cheat workers out of fair workplace standards. Not to mention, Davis Real Estate is a frequent collaborator with both Erland Construction and Amazon, companies with a proven anti-union track record.

Greater Boston doesn't need a real estate company that runs on greed. Together, we can build Boston with union labor, partnering with contractors that have Massachusetts' working families' best interests in mind. Stay alert for more opportunities to take action against Davis Real Estate and create a Boston that works for all.

ERLAND CONSTRUCTION Earlier this year, Local 17 also launched a campaign against chronic bad actor Erland Construction, who was recently hired to help build Arsenal Yards in Watertown.

Erland prides itself as Massachusetts’ leading "open shop," but its subcontractors have been repeatedly written up for instances of wage theft and worker violations, from refusing to pay overtime and exploiting undocumented labor.

Together, we called out Erland Construction and the company that hired them, Boylston Properties, with a series of coordinated ads in the Watertown area. We urged developers to put working families first—because Watertown deserves better.

We need our members to continue the fight and ensure that only responsible builders take part in Watertown's economic boom.

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Visit EyesonErland.org to learn more about how to stand up for Watertown's working families.

HOLYOKE SOLDIERS HOME AND PLA WIN

HOLYOKE SOLDIERS

AND PLA WIN On July 1, a tremendous win was won for union workers throughout Massachusetts, when state legislatures overrode a dangerous veto by Governor Charlie Baker.

Baker had previously vetoed language requiring a project labor agreement (PLA) for the construction of the new Holyoke Soldiers’ Home facility, and it was essential that this act be overturned.

Project labor agreements have long been the industry standard. They ensure fair wages and benefits, worker protections on job sites, diversity and equity provisions in hiring, and equal pay for equal work. Overriding Baker's veto and restoring the PLA requirement is a major win for union workers.

Building trades workers are the root of Massachusetts' innovative advancements in infrastructure, and it is critical that union members are properly compensated—and rewarded—for their labor.

Local 17 is committed to honoring veterans, who after years of courageously serving our country, deserve a well-built facility for years to come. After a year of loss and tragedy, the commencement of this construction project will ensure that Massachusetts veterans receive the proper amenities in addition to creating a multitude of job opportunities for local, diverse, and skilled workers.

Thanks to the conscientious state legislatures, and dedicated union members, this PLA marks significant strides in the labor movement, and we are hopeful that more progress is on the horizon. This win once again proves that we are stronger together.

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Sheet Metal Workers Local 17 1157 Adams Street, Dorchester, MA 02124

EXPANDING THE RANKS ® DO YOU KNOW AN EXPERIENCED SHEET METAL WORKER WHO SHOULD JOIN THE TEAM? Let Local 17 turn their job into a career with family-sustaining wages, industry-leading benefits, and guaranteed retirement. Tell them to visit SMW17Boston.org to learn more.

@SheetMetalWorkersLocal17

@SMWLU17

@SMWLU17

SMW17Boston.org

SUMMER 2021

®

SMW17 UPDATE

DELIVERING RESULTS IS WHAT WE DO

FIGHTING FOR WORKING FAMILIES PG 4 PROTECTING OUR WORK AND OUR COMMUNITY PG 6 HOLYOKE SOLDIERS AND PLA WIN PG 7

SUMMER 2021

®

SMW17 UPDATE

DELIVERING RESULTS IS WHAT WE DO

FIGHTING FOR WORKING FAMILIES PG 4 PROTECTING OUR WORK AND OUR COMMUNITY PG 6 HOLYOKE SOLDIERS AND PLA WIN PG 7