Tentative agreement has been reached at Granite Ridge Energy in Londonderry, NH, for a first contract between IBEW 1837 and NAES (North American Energy Services). Following a union election and months of negotiation, the parties today (March 18, 2008) reached tentative agreement on a three-year contract package. The package will be voted on by eligible employees at Granite Ridge on Monday, March 24 between 4:00 and 9:00pm at the Plumbers and Pipefitters union hall in Hooksett.

What can seven members at a unit meeting do? (Besides come up with good ideas about things to put on a union t-shirt). They can VOTE. Unit members may want to make a motion to recommend something to the executive board. Unit members get to nominate people for elected union positions. Most actions of the Executive Board aren’t final unless the members vote to approve them. BUT……..The IBEW Constitution defines a quorum for union meetings as seven members. So if there aren’t seven members present there isn’t a quorum and we can discuss anything we want to but we won’t get to vote.

IBEW Local 1837 members are teaming up with our brothers and sisters from other AFL-CIO unions to fight for a brighter future for workers across the United States. Now is a great time to make your union voice heard loud and clear as we prepare to elect a new President as well as other representatives at the federal, state and local level. In fact, Maine and New Hampshire have been identified as two of the six “battleground states” with competitive races that could impact the balance of power in the U.S. Senate.

Nashua City Hall, site of the first day of hearings. Public Service Company of New Hampshire has challenged the right of Working Foremen in the Line Department to be represented by IBEW before the National Labor Relations Board. In six days of hearings beginning in Nashua on January 7th and ending in Boston on the 17th, the Company sought to portray the Working Foremen as an integral part of their management team while the Union strongly defended the right of these workers to join IBEW.

Waiting for the Last Ballot Team to Come In



IBEW 1837 members at FPL Energy Maine today ratified a new contract by a comfortable margin.

With wages structured to create incentives for training, the new contract restructures the way employees move through their career paths by allowing advancement to higher classifications immediately when employees obtain the required skills, without having to wait for openings.