71st UE National Convention
CONVENTION CALL
As required by the National union's constitution, the Convention Call has been mailed to all UE Locals and District Councils. If you have not received yours, please contact the UE National Office. Here is the cover letter which accompanied the call from General Secretary-Treasurer Bruce Klipple:
May 11, 2009
To: UE Locals and Regions
From: Bruce J. Klipple, General Secretary-Treasurer
Subject: Call to the 71st UE Convention
September 13-17, 2009Dear Sisters and Brothers:
Please be advised that the 71st National Convention of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) will take place Sunday, September 13 through Thursday, September 17 in New Haven, Connecticut.
The UE Northeast Region hosts this year’s convention. That Region is the successor to UE District 2, whose many contributions to UE date back to our founding convention in 1936, which included locals from New England and Eastern New York. New Haven itself is home of one of UE's oldest and strongest locals, Local 243, whose members work at Sargent Manufacturing. One of our newest locals, Local 222, represents city workers in New Haven and public employees in communities across Connecticut.
The theme for this year’s convention is “America’s Most Valuable Union.” The Nation magazine bestowed that title on UE a few months ago, citing the plant occupation by members of Local 1110:
When Republic Windows and Doors announced it was shuttering its factory in Chicago, members of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America union who worked at the plant borrowed a page from the radical labor activists of the 1930s and refused to leave… The Rev. Jesse Jackson compared the UE members to Rosa Parks and described their bold response to the shutdown as ‘the beginning of a larger movement for mass action to resist economic violence.
Other recent UE activities confirmed our union’s unique value. In our rank-and-file lobbying events in Washington and state capitols, and our issue-centered mobilization for the 2008 election, our members again showed what independent political action by labor looks like. Facing the worst economic crisis since the 1930s, our tradition of member mobilization enabled our locals to win better contracts than might be expected, and helped us to triumph in tough organizing campaigns and first contract fights.
Convention delegates will confront many difficult challenges. They’ll need to set a course for UE that enables us to defend and improve our members’ conditions, build our union, and to help win big goals such as economic recovery for working people, healthcare for all, and the rights of all workers to organize and bargain.
Please note that on the afternoon and evening of Saturday, September 12, each of the three UE regions have scheduled Regional Meetings at the Convention hotel in New Haven. Your Region President will be in touch with your local with details, including the exact time and place of your meeting.
We will have a lot of important and exciting work to do at this convention, and we look forward to your local’s active participation. Please note that proposed resolutions and constitutional amendments should be received at the National Office no later than August 14.