Members in the advanced class work through an exercise in communication skills.
Courses cover wide range of union-related topics
FIFTY-ONE LOCAL lodge leaders attended classes at the 52nd annual Summer Training Institute at the University of Wisconsin’s School for Workers held July 26 through August 7, in Madison, Wis. Over a two-week period, the institute offered basic and advanced courses.
The Boilermakers have been holding these summer seminars at the School for Workers since 1958. They are an integral part of the Brotherhood’s training and leadership development program. This year, the courses were held at the Pyle Center on the UW-Madison campus.
The basic course addressed contract administration, labor and IBB history, collective bargaining, membership mobilization, workers and the global economy, political action, safety and health, FMLA, communication skills, and the Boilermaker organization.
Coursework for the advanced class is designed for those who have completed the basic training. Advanced participants study elections, common sense economics, communication skills, problem solving and grievance handling, grievance arbitration, workers and the global economy, health care bargaining, labor and IBB history, building the union, and membership mobilization. The advanced class also heard from David Newby, president of the Wisconsin AFL-CIO.
As with previous institutes, members took advantage of their time together to share experiences from across the spectrum of Boilermaker industries and occupations: from building naval ships to coal mining, from forging aerospace products to building cranes, from field construction to dismantling nuclear submarines, and from fabricating piping and industrial tanks to maintaining military aircraft.
In addition to participating in a focused learning environment, members enjoyed opportunities to socialize after hours, build friendships, and explore the state capital city of Madison and the University of Wisconsin.
Institute instructors included professors from UW-Madison’s School for Workers. Boilermaker staff providing instruction included Donald Caswell, Director of the Communication and Education Department; Bridget Martin, Director of Political Affairs; Cecile Conroy, Assistant Director of the Department of Government Affairs; Mark Garrett, Safety and Health Specialist; and Mike Linderer, writer and editor in the Communication and Education Department.
Members attending the 2009 Basic course included Daniel DeCarlo, Local 7 (Buffalo, N.Y.); Cynthia Escobar, Local D46 (Santa Cruz, Calif.); Kevin Wilson, Local 57 (Portsmouth, Va.); Clayton Knepp III, Local 83 (Kansas City, Mo.); Joshua Gettino and Jay Long, Local 84 (Paola, Kan.); Steve Maupin, Local 105 (Chillicothe, Ohio); Robert Mika, Local 290 (Bremerton, Wash.); Susan Dunn, Justin Kohut, Rebecca Smith, and Christopher Stockwell, Local 344 (Ridgecrest, Calif.); Jason McKinley and Mike McMillin, Local 363 (East St. Louis, Ill.); Gregory Hay, Jeremy Mahrenholz, and Joey Pennington, Local 374 (Hammond, Ind.); Kurt Alef and Dave Kaczrowski, Local 443 (Manitowoc, Wis.); Mark Heimbecher and Jeremy Walls, Local 449 (Sturgeon Bay, Wis.); Terry Bailey, Local 656 (Chattanooga, Tenn.); Tom Grun, Mark Nason, Reynold Nelson, John Semrau, and Cindy Swette, Local 696 (Marinette, Wis.); John Jackson, Sean Momberg, David Roberts, and Jerod Romanowski, Local 1509 (Cudahy, Wis.); Jim Grosse, Local 1600 (St. Charles, Ill.); and Terry McFall and Norman Underwood, Local 1626 (Champaign, Ill.).
Members attending the 2009 Advanced course included Daniel Bradley, Keith Clayton, and Ronnie Pinkston, Local S8 (Equality, Ill.); John Kosinski, Local 290; Sean Burgess, Joshua Conrad, and Robert Lampkin Jr., Local 344; Earl Babb, Local 656; Ed Doyen, Wayne Johnson, William Lockhart, and Cindy Swette, Local 696; Duane Larson, Charles Sandor, and Daniel Seng, Local 1509; and Scott Deaville, Local 1626.
