"Out of the Navy - Into the Mines"

“Out of the Navy - Into the Mines”

After graduating from high school in 1961, I joined the Navy and became a “Seabee” (Construction Battalion). I was sent to Alaska and later to Okinawa with Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 9 (MCB-9) and was there when President Kennedy was assassinated; discharged in 1966.

In 1967, I hired in at Butler Taconite as a truck driver, where I worked for 36 years. Retiring in 2003 from Keewatin Taconite, I find that I am an active and proud USW retiree.  For nearly a year now I have been the President of the West Range SOAR Retirees Chapter 33-5, having chapter meetings in Marble, Minnesota.

SOAR has made a positive difference in my life; allowing me to keep in touch with some of my Brothers and Sisters from the mines and to help our retirees and our union whenever and however I can.

We try to have interesting, informative speakers at our chapter meetings and we stand ready to help our union, when needed, on the picket line. However, we all agreed that picketing, when it is 65 degrees below zero, is where we draw the line!

Like any group of retirees, the number of members attending the monthly meetings has decreased. Many have passed away, dwindling our meeting participation from about twenty to eight members. I have set as one of my goals to increase meeting attendance and will be looking for ways to do just that.

Roger Holmstrom, President SOAR Chapter 33-5, Grand Rapids, Minnesota

Make That Phone Call

Make That Phone Call!

By Jeff Bonior

Just when we thought an agreement between Congress and the White House to finally address America’s neglected infrastructure was about to happen, President Trump once again quashed the first steps of a deal.

On April 30, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer met with the President and had a productive conversation about a $2 trillion bipartisan plan. The sticking point, as usual, was how to fund such an ambitious project.

They agreed to meet three weeks later, on May 22, to discuss ways to fund the repair and rebuild of America’s crumbling infrastructure.

That meeting lasted less than four minutes as the President walked into the room and berated the Democratic leaders saying he would not negotiate with them until all the investigations into his personal dealings ended.

He is clearly playing politics, hitting back at Democrats for their ongoing investigations of him and his administration. 

Repairing and rebuilding our infrastructure is the one issue that an overwhelming majority of Americans agree upon. If our leaders cannot agree on this bipartisan issue, it is likely a divided Congress will not agree on passing any other meaningful, major legislation.

Meanwhile, Americans will continue to endure the burdens of inadequate roads, bridges, water systems, transportation systems, the electric grid and many more conveniences they rely upon daily.

An aggressive agreement on infrastructure would be a boon to the steel industry and create many thousands of well-paying jobs. A larger and stronger USW membership would be welcomed by SOAR members to help preserve pensions and healthcare.

It is now doubtful that a sincere infrastructure plan will materialize before the 2020 presidential election although the President promised to tackle this problem during his first year in office.

This is an issue that isn’t going away. Our failing infrastructure is making America less competitive and it is also becoming a public safety risk.

We urge you to reach out to your members of Congress and the White House to demand that plans for our infrastructure resume immediately. You can contact your members of Congress at their district offices or by calling the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 where you will be connected to their Washington, D.C. office. To reach the White House and leave your comments call (202) 456-1111.

Jeff Bonior is a staff writer for the Alliance for American Manufacturing

House Legislation on the Right Track

House Legislation Would Help Lower Prescription Drug Prices, Protect the Affordable Care Act

by Robert Roach, Jr.

House Democrats recently passed legislation to lower prescription drug costs and reverse the Administration’s attempts to undermine the Affordable Care Act (ACA). H.R. 987, the “Strengthening Health Care and Lowering Prescription Drug Costs Act,” passed 234-183.

The prescription drug provisions have significant bipartisan support, reflecting the fact that Americans pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs. Yet only four GOP House members voted for it.

The bill would make it easier for generic drugs to enter the market. Currently, some pharmaceutical corporations purposely delay the introduction of affordable generic alternatives. For example, they make brand-name samples of their drug unavailable to generic manufacturers for testing. By removing these and other barriers, H.R. 987 can reduce drug costs for millions of Americans.

The bill also blocks some of the most harmful elements of the Administration’s ACA sabotage by making it more difficult to sell inadequate short-term insurance plans that destabilize health care exchanges. 

The legislation improves outreach to help more Americans obtain health insurance, provides funds to create more state health exchanges and reduces health care costs for people with pre-existing conditions. Twenty-five million Americans aged 50 to 64 years old have one or more pre-existing conditions.

The House leadership passed this important legislation despite resistance from powerful drug corporations. Now we must dig in and urge Senators to follow suit. We have our work cut out for us.

Robert Roach, Jr. is president of the Alliance for Retired Americans.  He was previously General Secretary‐Treasurer of the IAMAW.  For more information, visit www.retiredamericans.org.

Just do the Right Thing, already!!!

Just do the Right Thing, Already!!!

In this Connection newsletter, I wanted to share my thoughts about the Alliance for Retired Americans’ (ARA) annual congressional voting record that was released in May, which is recognized as Older Americans Month.  

The ARA has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the labor movement to assure all Americans the right to a secure and dignified retirement.   

Their report assesses votes taken between January 2018 and December 2018 that could impact the well-being of current and future retirees. (Any actions that have been taken by the newly-elected Congress in November 2018 will appear on the report that will be released by the ARA next year.)   

The ARA report shows what many Americans knew already:  that a vast majority of Congress was not looking out for the best interests of retirees. This explains why Americans voted to oust the largest number of incumbents since the Watergate scandal in 1974.  In fact:  

• Only 42% of Senators voted right on 100% of ARA-scored bills, compared to just 28% of U.S. House members; and, 
• Only 49% of Senators and 41% of U.S. House members voted right on 2/3 of the ARA-scored bills in 2018. 

All 41 of the U.S. House seats that flipped from Republican to Democratic control in the 2017 election were represented by a legislator who voted wrong on at least 50% of the bills scored by the ARA.  In fact, 12 of the 17 members who voted wrong 100% of the time were either defeated or retired in 2018.  Meanwhile, 99% of the members who voted right on all of the ARA-scored bills won reelection.      

So, if there are any members of Congress reading this who are concerned about reelection in 2020, I have one bit of advice that could go a long way...Doing right by retirees will help your chances more than you can imagine!

To see the full report, click here

Or, go to: https://retiredamericans.org/voting-record/

Julie Stein, SOAR Director

Harry Hynd, SOAR Vice President Emeritus

Harry Hynd, SOAR Vice President Emeritus

During WWII, Harry Hynd was among other British children preparing to emigrate to Australia, but their plans soon changed when one of the ships going to Canada was torpedoed by a German U-Boat. 

In 1951, Harry began his union career in Scotland, where he worked as an Engineer in a coal mine and became a steward in the National Union of Mineworkers. The extreme danger and dust was too much for his liking, so in 1957, Harry emigrated to Canada and went to work for STELCO in Hamilton, Ontario. He joined USWA Local 1005 and soon became a Union Steward. In 1971, he joined the Steelworkers Staff.

Harry served as the Assistant to the District 6 Director, Leo Gerard, and became the District 6 Director in 1991, when Leo became Canadian National Director. Harry held that position until he retired in 2002.

Harry has been a Vice President of the Ontario Federation of Labour, a member of the Federation’s Education Committee, and Chair of its Safety and Health Committee.

In 2005, USW International President Leo W. Gerard appointed him SOAR Vice President, to fill the vacancy created when Ken O’Neal stepped down due to health concerns. Harry was then elected SOAR Vice President at the following International SOAR Conference.

Harry and his wife, Margaret, are both active in the New Democratic Party. They have two children (both girls) and three grandchildren (all girls). 

Harry likes hard work and he loves to fix things. A real do-it-yourselfer. Margaret claims that “driving her crazy” is another of Harry’s hobbies. They both have many friends in Cuba and frequently vacation there as well as in Scotland, where they visit about every other year.

In April, 2019, Int’l President Leo W. Gerard honoured SOAR Vice President Harry Hynd for his considerable contribution to the growth of the Steelworkers Organization of Active Retirees, and to the many years of service to our union, by appointing him to the position of Vice President, Emeritus.

From Our SOAR President

SOARing Reports

This year, during the Rapid Response Conference, SOAR will hold their annual Executive Board meeting. This meeting will extend over 2 to 2-1/2 days, covering many topics of interest. At this meeting, we will plan our activities for the upcoming year and give reports on the activities and involvement of SOAR Chapters in each District. While we continue to talk about the “good-ole-days,” SOAR has long since transformed into an organization tackling many crucial issues concerning the need to maintain a well-earned, comfortable standard of living in retirement today and into the future.

SOAR Chapters also work hand-in-hand with their district or local offices, to aide in the fights that many of our locals face with greedy employers and branches of government that try to weaken Unions and/or suppress workers’ rights and benefits.  In our Districts, SOAR is working with other organizations that share our concerns and values, which makes SOAR an even more dynamic and respected organization within our community.

At the upcoming SOAR Executive Board meeting, when it is time for reports, what will your Executive Board member have to report regarding your SOAR Chapter? If your SOAR Chapter has not been as active as you would like, please raise the issue at your next meeting, in an attempt to stimulate discussion of ideas about how your Chapter can become more involved.

Please provide pictures and a short write-up of any activities that your group participated in to assist your EBoard member in their report.

On Memorial Day, please take the time to remember those that have made great sacrifices so we can continue to be who we are and do what we do.

Bill Pienta, SOAR President

Steel From Start To Finish

Stevie Wonder-Yesterme, Yersteryou, Yesterday