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Mt. Union, PA police officers, from left, Mark Ewald, Adam
Miller and Rob Lippman are part of recent wave of IAM
organizing victories that provide bargaining rights to employee
groups of all sizes.
 

Organizing: Impressive 90 Percent Success Rate in the Eastern Territory

With one win after another, Eastern Territory organizers bring IAM representation to workers in 14 states from New York to Michigan. In 2001, the territory win ratio hit an impressive 90.4 percent.

“We don’t limit our efforts to large organizing drives,” said Warren Mart, Eastern Territory general vice president, who credits hard work by IAM staff and volunteers. 

“Our record includes dozens of smaller units with less than 20 employees. These men and women become some of the strongest and most enthusiastic IAM members anywhere.”

Those numbers add up. Last year, the Eastern Territory grew by nearly 1,900 new members from 94 election wins. An affiliation with the Professional Industrial Trade Workers Union (PITWU) added another 1,698 new members into the IAM.

District 98 recently brought six new members into the IAM when it organized the Mt. Union Police Dept. in Mt. Union, Pennsylvania. Joining fellow IAM members and officers from nearby Tyrone, Pennsylvania, the law enforcement professionals of Local Lodge 2779 are collectively a force to be reckoned with, on the street and at the bargaining table.

“The small units get the same respect and the same access to IAM resources as large bargaining units with thousands of members,” said Mart. “We bring in whatever is needed to get a first-rate first contract.”

“The District representatives throughout the Territory follow one another’s organizing drives closely,” explained Steve Miller, lead organizer for the Eastern Territory. “It’s a healthy competition. Our organizers and volunteers share strategies and don’t recognize turf lines. Everyone celebrates the victories.”

Part of the territory’s success rate comes from organizer’s ability to convince companies to recognize the employee’s desire for a union based on a majority of signed authorization cards. “There’s a talent to getting those recognition wins,” said Miller. “We’re getting better at it all the time.”