Business Manager Tony Sapienza
They don’t climb for crowds or spotlight. There are no grandstands or a roaring stadium. Just a field lined with rows of utility poles. Fellow lineworkers and families stand behind a rope as the sound of gaffs cut into wood. At the International Lineman’s Rodeo in Bonner Springs, Kansas, lineworkers climb for pride, for the trade, and for each other.
It’s where skill, training, and years of mentorship are tested in a matter of seconds.
October 2025 marked the end of an era at WGME-TV (CBS 13) in Portland as the station’s long-time Operating Technicians saw their master control operations transferred from local control to a regional Media Operations Center (MOC).
For decades, these skilled technicians have been the heartbeat of the station, ensuring that every broadcast ran smoothly and every signal made it to air without interruption.
The campaign staff of U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner officially unionized with IBEW Local 1837 in mid-February by signing a collective bargaining agreement at the Local 1837 union hall in Manchester.
The IBEW Founders’ Scholarship honors the dedicated wiremen and linemen who founded the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. Each year, the officers of the IBEW offer scholarships to working members on a competitive basis.
The scholarship is intended to support members’ personal development while helping to steward the electrical industry envisioned by our founders.
The IBEW is calling on all members to urge Congress to support H.R. 5475, the No Tax on Overtime for All Workers Act — legislation that would make tax relief on overtime fair for every working person, including IBEW 1837 members.
The Maine AFL-CIO has published its 2025 Working Families Legislative Scorecard, which is an essential resource that shows how Maine’s state legislators voted on key labor issues.
Unit meetings for IBEW Local 1837 have returned after they were suspended for the summer months. You can find a printable flier here.
Nine members of IBEW Local 1837, representing Central Maine Power (CMP), Versant, Unitil, New Hampshire Electric Co-op, and Eversource, spent two days sharpening their skills and building solidarity at the Maine AFL-CIO Labor Summer Institute in Orono on August 13–14, 2025. They were joined by longtime IBEW 1837 members, State Representative Matt Beck of South Portland, and Maine AFL-CIO President Cynthia Phinney.
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1837 held an informational picket outside Eversource headquarters on Wednesday, August 13. The demonstration drew attention to stalled negotiations for a first contract covering System Operators in the Electrical System Control Center and the System Operations Center.
The IBEW is sounding the alarm on President Trump’s recently signed “One Big Beautiful Bill,” warning that it poses a serious threat to working families across the country. In a letter to local unions, International President Kenneth W. Cooper called the legislation “irresponsible,” citing tax cuts for the wealthy, health care rollbacks, and the elimination of clean energy job incentives that have fueled significant IBEW job growth in recent years. Despite the bill’s name, Cooper made clear: “This new law will directly impact IBEW members and their families.”
