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OPEIU LOCAL 459
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“To improve living standards for working people, their families, and communities while fighting for fairness and financial stability and building unity through social justice.”
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Resources, training, and your rights as a Shop Steward
Due to the tireless effort of dedicated nurses at Bronson Behavioral Health Hospital in Battle Creek, they have won recognition of their Union and representation by Local 459! The team of workers leading the movement stayed in close and consistent contact with their organizer to decidedly overcome the confusion and fear circulating in the days leading up to their vote, culminating to an impressive and overwhelming margin of victory! The table is now set and workers have a seat at it to improve conditions for themselves, their patients, their families, and their communities. Congratulations and welcome to OPEIU Local 459!!!
Ecology Center staff have elected to join OPEIU Local 459! This group consists of leaders in the fight for environmental sustainability. We are proud to welcome them as members and partner with them in the important work they do. You can learn more about how to get involved by signing up to receive email updates from the Center https://www.ecocenter.org/sign-email
Also, Air Quality Awareness Week 2026 is just around the corner, and we encourage you to be a part of it. Follow the link for a list of events: https://cleartheairmi.org/events/
Congratulations to the Financial Plus Credit Union for a 3-year contract. A special thank you to the team: Vicky Lawson, Doretta Alexander, Lauren Mills, Jacob Sohn, and Service Representative Paul Brooks (not pictured Christina Espinoza). This team fought hard for the members of OPEIU/ Financial Plus Credit Union.
Local 459 is proud to announce that a child of Lesley Jarecki-Krause, RN at McLaren Greater Lansing since 2004, is a recipient of the Howard Coughlin scholarship. Watch your mailboxes for the fall edition of OPEIU Connect for further details.
Latest News
Regular meetings of the Union shall be held three (3) times a year on the second Tuesday of the month in March, July, and November after the Executive Board meeting. In the election year of the Executive Board, additional meetings will be held, in person, the second Tuesday of August for nominations for Executive Board and the second Tuesday of October for the election.
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How to Beat Tiers & Rebuild Unity in our Unions
Across the labor movement, employers have forced tiers into union contracts. By denying newer hires equal pay, job security and access to the benefits other workers enjoy, bosses not only save money but also create a divided workforce.
But recent heroic struggles by IBEW and UAW members have disproved the conventional wisdom about the supposed intractability of tiers once they are in a contract—and they have shown how tiers can actually be defeated.
UAW’s 2023 stand up strike against the big three auto companies knocked a tiered wage system out of their contract. And this year IBEW power workers in Philadelphia won full pensions for all members after a strike.
Join us to hear from those workers about how they fought and won.
When: Tuesday, November 17th
Time: 7:30 – 9:00pm EST
Where: This is an online workshop and will be held via Zoom
Workshop hosted by Labor Notes ($10 registration fee covered by the Local).
How to Have a Good Meeting
Chances are that we have all been to a bad meeting. One person talked the whole time, the meeting ran way too long, people left with no clearer sense of what to do about their workplace problems, and so on.
But meetings do not have to be this way. Meetings can be a way for shop stewards to bring their co-workers together to build strength in their fight against the boss—when they are run effectively.
Join Labor Notes for an online workshop for shop stewards on how to hold effective meetings that bring workers into the union (instead of potentially driving them away).
When: Wednesday, November 18th
Time: 8:00 – 9:30pm EST
Where: This is an online workshop and will be held via Zoom
Workshop hosted by Labor Notes ($10 registration fee covered by the Local).
Winning a Strong Contract: Parts I and II
We will cover the basics of building a Contract Action Team (CAT), putting together an escalating campaign (potentially culminating in a strike), and dynamics between the bargaining committee, CAT, and the membership.
This workshop is for union members looking to build their skills for contract campaigns.
When: Mondays, December 7th and 14th
Time: 7:30 – 9:00pm EST
Where: This is an online workshop and will be held via Zoom
Workshop hosted by Labor Notes ($15 registration fee covered by the Local).
Contact Ronda at rackerson@local459.org or 517-887-8844 to register.