Is Union Busting to Blame for Power Outages in DC?  
     
    
   The 15,091 D.C.-area residents without power for sixth day in a  
   row may have under-staffing to blame.  
    
   Saturday, 07 July 2012 13:12 By Mike Elk  
    
   On Thursday, 15,091 Washington, D.C.-area residents were  
   without power for the sixth day in a row, according to utility  
   company Pepco spokesman Marcus Beal. As D.C. residents face  
   record heat waves, many are upset and attribute the lack of  
   power to incompetence on Pepco's end. However, International  
   Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1900 members  
   claim the failure to restore power outages is due to chronic  
   understaffing and Pepco's shift from hiring union utility  
   workers to non-union temporary contractors.  
    
   "We have half the linemen we had 15 years ago," says IBEW Local  
   1900 Business Agent Jim Griffin, whose union represents 1,150  
   Pepco workers. "We have been complaining for a very long time.  
   They have relied for a long time on contractors. They are  
   transients, they don't know our system, and we typically have to  
   go behind them to fix their mistakes. It's very frustrating. We  
   take ownership in our work, we make careers out of this."  
    
   Griffin says that starting 15 years ago, Pepco stopped hiring  
   workers to replace retiring electrical workers and offered  
   incentive-laden buyout deals to get electricians to retire. In  
   order to address understaffing problems, Pepco has at times  
   hired non-union temporary contractors, instead of hiring new  
   workers. Griffin estimates that Pepco currently employs 1,150  
   union workers and approximately 400 non-union contractors. The  
   understaffing has led to problems that the IBEW warned  
     
   about years ago.  
    
   "Everything is keyed on dollars and cents profit," warned IBEW  
   Utility Director Jim Hunter back in 2005. "Storm outages are  
   longer, and utilities are asking for more and more help from  
   other utilities. The problem is that other companies are in the  
   same boat. And they are still not hiring."  
    
   Despite havinga negative -57% tax rate from 2008 to 2010 and  
   making nearly $822 million in profits during that period, Pepco  
   has not hired a sufficient number of electricians to properly  
   maintain the system. Griffin claims the insufficient number of  
   linemen causes Pepco's system to go out more often not just  
   during storms, but on hot summer days when electrical grids are  
   maxed out from air conditioners and fans. When big storms do hit  
   and knock down the system, PEPCO hires outside contractors from  
   far-away states to help in repairs.  
    
   "When we have a major storm like this we rely heavily on  
   assistance from other utilities. We have crews coming from  
   Quebec and Oklahoma," says Griffin. "If we had more linemen we  
   wouldn't have to wait three days for some of these crews to  
   arrive. These extended power outages have to do with number of  
   workers Pepco has on their payroll."  
    
   Griffin says the understaffing is a "philosophical move" by the  
   company. "It was easier to deal with the contractors than the  
   employees. They can fire them at a moment's notice. Contractors  
   don't get paid very well and they come and they go," says  
   Griffin. "The problem becomes the quality of work. We have story  
   after story of us coming out after contractors and fixing their  
   work."  
    
   Pepco's profit-maximizing behavior has led not only to  
   diminishing quality of service for its customers, but also a  
   diminishing quality of life for its employees. Unionized Pepco  
   workers had their contract expire on May 31 and are currently  
   working on their second contract extension as the union refuses  
   to agree to concessions. In ongoing negotiations with the union,  
   Pepco has demanded the unilateral power to make changes to the  
   health and benefit packages of union workers mid-contract. (The  
   union suspended its contract negotiations so that members of the  
   bargaining committee could go into the field to help restore  
   power to D.C. residents).  
    
   When asked if its labor relations contributed to the extended  
   power outages, Pepco spokesman Beal said, "We are in  
   negotiations for a new labor agreement with Local 1900 IBEW. We  
   expect to ultimately reach an agreement with the union, but we  
   won't negotiate this in public."  
    
   For his part, Griffin hopes the outages might help get the  
   public on the union's side.  
    
   "This storm could change the whole dynamics of these  
   negotiations and I think there is a potential to change staffing  
   issues," says Griffin. "This has been such a major, major  
   disaster for our electric system. It's been a traumatic week for  
   our customers."  
    
   Originally published at InTheseTimes.com  
    
      Mike Elk  
    
   Mike Elk is a labor journalist and third-generation union  
   organizer based in Washington, D.C. He writes frequently for In  
   These Times, AlterNet, and the American Prospect. You can follow  
   him on Twitter at @MikeElk.   
    
    
    
  BOB KLAHN bob.klahn@sev.org   http://home.toltbbs.com/bobklahn  
    
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