Happy Retirement, Betty Ann!!

Today is the last day at work for my friend, Betty Ann Smith. Betty Ann has been a key part of the team at Dalhousie Generating Station forever -- I don't think it would be a stretch to say she's the heart of the station.

Betty Ann has also been a key player in the IBEW -- she served for many years as the Dalhousie Unit Chairperson and on the Executive Board of the IBEW, on bargaining teams and many committees. She also is a founding member of Local 37, and her name is recorded for all time on the Charter issued by the International. And as if she wasn't busy enough, she found time to volunteer for lots of other things, including a memorable stint as the NB Power 25-year-club president.

The key thing is, she gained the respect and admiration of everyone she has worked with, members and management alike, and I believe it is especially because she has always been a shining example of IBEW values -- the best skills, the highest quality of work and the best work ethic (that and, she never backed down from anyone, or anything).

She has especially been a good friend to me, putting up with (well, usually putting up with) the many DUMB questions I have asked, and the multitude of favours I went looking to her for, over the years.

So, although she'll probably be mad that I did this (but hey, I'll push my luck -- she wasn't too upset last time...), I want to tell everyone how much I respect and look up to her, and to thank her for everything she has done for her co-workers and her employer, over a long and successful career.

You're the best, Betty Ann.

An e-mail from a former member who's been reading this blog.

A few days ago I received the following e-mail from a former member, Brad Legassie. Brad used to work at Coleson Cove, but left New Brunswick for an opportunity in Alberta. He ran across this blog, and decided to write to me. Take a look at what he says:

"Ross, I was surfing your IBEW 37 blog and was reading an article on welcoming new members to Local 37. It was refreshing to see such a positive reception and support of the new members being swore in.

As you know, I left NB Power a little over two years ago for another opportunity that arose. My pregnant wife and I made the long journey to Alberta to take advantage of the prospects that were presented. I arrived in Alberta and was immediately placed on a commissioning team where I was able to broaden my skills as an operator. After this, I was given the role of control room operator for the start up of the plant.

During this time, my wife gave birth to a healthy and beautiful baby girl. We felt very blessed with this addition to our family. Her grandparents and my in-laws made frequent visits to see their first grandbaby.

As time passed, we started to recognize the value of family support and the resources that our daughter was missing out on being so far away from family. This November, we decided to sell our house in Alberta and start the transition back to New Brunswick. We felt that this would be of a great advantage to be closer to friends and family while our family continues to grow.

From our experiences while away from home, we have also come to further appreciate the support that was made available to us in our times of need while a member of the Local 37. This is especially true when you went above and beyond your duties while my little brother was diagnosed with cancer. This showed compassion and support that was greatly appreciated. (My brother has made it through his treatments and is now cancer free!)

Therefore; if there are any opportunities that may be available to former employees and former members of Local 37, I would be thankful for a chance to become part of this team once again. It would mean the world to our family to be involved in such a great organization. Should you want to further discuss any of this or just catch up, you can call me or contact me by way of email. I look forward to hearing from you!

Thanks,

Brad Legassie"

A few thoughts on Leadership

Earlier this year I had an opportunity to hear the person in Charge of the IBEW Membership Developement department, Buddy Satterfield, talk about the qualities a union leader needs. Buddy is a straight shooter, who tells it like it is. I wrote down what he said, and I'd like to share it with you.

"Leaders must tell the truth, we can’t just tell members what they want to hear, or what is popular. We have always said that union workers are the most skilled and productive workers, and receive the best wages and benefits. We need to deliver this promise. There is nothing wrong with companies being successful – we need our partner employers to do well, and we can’t let the very small number of our members who do not live up to our standards of excellence, pride in our labour and citizenship, bring us down. We need to look in the mirror and make sure we are living up to our values. It takes guts, and honesty."

Saying Goodbye to Courtenay Bay Generating Station

Today I had an opportunity to attend an event to mark the closing of the Courtenay Bay Generating Station after 47 years of operation. Many of you may not know this, but Courtenay Bay holds a special place in my heart, because in some ways, and like what has happened for so many others, it is where I started down the road that lead me to the place I am today.

In 1991, 17 years ago, I worked at Courtenay Bay G.S. for 4 months during the last co-op work term of the Chemical Technology Program I was enrolled in. I worked with a great bunch of people – Chem Techs Kevin Thorne, Mark Allaby, Sean Maxwell, Malcolm Manderville and Bernice Lanigan, and they sure taught me a lot. Like the rest of the people down at “the Bay”, they were great role models and they went out of their way to help me learn.

Glen Brown was the lab supervisor then, and I remember that one day he wanted to see me in his office. I was a little nervous, because as a student I wasn’t often asked to go to the boss’s office, but I found out he just wanted to get to know me a little better – I was more than just a worker at the station, I was part of the family, which was the way things worked at Courtenay Bay. At the end of the conversation, he told me he was pleased with my work and he was going to put in a good word for me. Later the next summer, I did start working with NB Power, and the rest as they say, is history.

So like many other people, it all started right there for me, and today was a bit of a sad day, as we said goodbye to Courtenay Bay Generating Station. Having said that, I do want to tell you that the men and women who started there, or spent some time there in the Courtenay Bay family, have now dispersed and brought the lessons they learned at the Bay to the other stations throughout NB Power. For that, all employees of NB Power, and all the members of the IBEW, can be grateful, and in spreading the knowledge, and more importantly, the values we all learned at Courtenay Bay, the station will continue to live on.

Welcoming new members to Local 37

Last night I was attending the Point Lepreau Unit meeting where I had the pleasure of watching as Unit Chairperson Don Dickson swore in Nick Reiker as a new member of Local 37. It's great that Nick is starting his career by participating in our union meetings -- it's a way to have real involvement in what goes on in the work place, and it always makes me happy to see new members participating.

New members are something we are going to see a lot more of, since the average age of our members in in the high forties. As more and more of our existing members retire each year, we are going to have to make sure that we welcome the new people who will be replacing them.

As a union, we need to make sure we invite these new members to participate and have a real say in the running of our union, in order to strengthen our organization with their energy and new ideas. We can also help these new members excel by looking out for them and teaching them how to be sucessful and safe on the job - after all, we're all in the IBEW family together.

It's important to talk to the media

Today I received a call out of the blue from Mike Cameron, a reporter for ATV news. He was doing a story about the energy hub, and whether or not the downturn in the economy would impact some of the big energy projects that were planned. He wanted to know if I would do an interview with him.

I know it can be a real problem for reporters to find people who are willing to talk to them -- people are generally nervous about reporters and concerned they will look bad or end up misquoted.

But when I receive calls like this, I look at them as real opportunities to get the Union's message out to the public. I'm always available for reporters and if I feel it's something we can weigh in on with credibility, I'll always do the interview -- in fact I'll go the extra mile to make myself available. If we're part of news story, we may get our message out to hundreds of thousands of people in Atlantic Canada, and if I can do a good job, it sends a positive image of the IBEW too, as a responsible union that engages in intelligent debate on the issues that are important to our communities.

Health update, and a few thoughts on safety equipment

I've had a lot of people call and ask about this, so I thought I would give you an update on my recovery from a fairly serious accident I had about four weeks ago.

As many of you may know, I've been involved in harness racing as a hobby ever since I was a teenager (my Dad trained horses for a living). I was driving in a horserace and at the end of the race my horse ran into another driver’s sulky. The horse fell suddenly, throwing me to the ground. I was immediately knocked unconscious, suffering a serious concussion (my brain was bruised with some of the blood leaking into the spinal fluid) and some other injuries. I ended up with two CT Scans, three spinal taps and an angiogram as a follow-up, and in intensive care for several days.

Many have asked how the horse is - I'm happy to report he came through better than I did, with only a few scrapes and bruises.

I'm back working now, although I am (with difficulty) trying to slow it down a bit, since I am having some lingering effects from the head injury. I'm scheduled for a follow up CT scan in November, and I'm hoping for good news from the neurologist.

This accident has caused me to think about safety, and the importance of using the right safety equipment. It's something thst I'd like to pass on to all of you.

As I always do when racing, I was wearing a good helmet and a protective impact vest as a precaution. Like most people that are in accidents, I wasn't expecting anything to happen and when it did, it was so sudden it was too late. My head hit the ground so hard I put a crack in my helmet (it’s similar to a motorcycle helmet) and the neurologist was pretty blunt about telling me that the helmet saved my life.

And although I had a separated shoulder, after watching a video of the race I know that the safety vest is the reason I didn't suffer any broken bones.

My point is that because of the precautions I took, even though I wasn't expecting anything to happen, my life right now is a lot better than it would have been otherwise. The same thing may happen for you too, every time you make the choice to wear your safety glasses, a helmet or other types of personal protective equipment, or fasten your safety belt, etc.

You just never know when that little precaution may have a big impact.