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Summer 2019 EditionPLUMBERS 12An informational newsletter for the Local 12 Plumbers and Gasfitters membersBusiness Manager’s LetterAs a plumber or an apprentice in, not only Local 12, but in Massachusetts we have been trained to adhereto the Massachusetts State Plumbing and Fuel Gas Code. The Code is also known as 248 CMR underMassachusetts General Laws Chapter 142. Chapter 142 provides the structure of the plumbing industry andcreates the Board of Examiners of Plumbers and Gasfitters.Massachusetts is only one of a handful of States that has its own uniform plumbing code, and rightfullyso. There is also a lucrative code business that has gone on around us mainly not affecting us because we haveour own code. Is that about to change?Our code may change in the near future. On June 26, 2019 the State Plumbing Board will hearpresentations from two code entities. One is from the International Code Council representing the ICC(BOCA) and IAPMO representing the UPC.Why is this discussion happening is a good question. One reason may be that the ICC folks have hired awell-connected lobbyist that has a direct line to the directors of the Department of Professional Licensure.Possibly another compounding reason is fact that the staff that historically worked and supported the board internally has been virtuallywiped out. Therefore limiting the work that needs to get done. Kind of sad that the State has no problem taking our license fees but puts noneof those resources back into the operation.Now the idea of going to a national code may have some merit provided it’s maintained by the Board of Examiners and is as close toour code as it can possibly be. But ultimately the decision will be made by a vote of the members of the Plumbing Board. A vote to keep ourcode the same is an option as well.There is a real reason for us to be very concerned. If anyone has been paying attention to what’s been happening in Texas. Texas has,or maybe had, a system that was similar to what Massachusetts has. They have a State Board of Examiners and rules and regulations verysimilar to ours. Over the past month the Texas legislature voted to eliminate the whole division. No licensing, no inspection, no codes, acrossthe whole State effective September 1, 2019. Gone.I was recently with Business Manager ,Wayne Lord, of Plumbers Local 68 in Houston and he told me that the Governor of Texas afterhearing the outrage from the plumbing industry claimed that he can override the Legislature and keep the Texas system in place. That remainsto be seen. The point is we always need to be on guard. This type of discussion has never been had here and you can never be sure when itcomes to politics.Just to also note in the past couple of years Louisiana also eliminated ALL codes and regulations for all crafts because it’s good forbusiness and will lower costs. Get It. Once again we can’t sit back and say, “It won’t happen here”.The strong independent code that we enjoy provides everything we need here. Approved industry standards, training requirements,testing competencies, product approvals, and it’s all here. It’s a proven fact that where there is strong licensing there are better wages, betterstandards, and better protections for the workers in the industry, as well as the consumers.I hope that nothing changes quite frankly but I certainly would never want to see the State adopt the BOCA Code. It’s written bybuilding officials and others and it brings nothing to the table for us. If the Board was to move in another direction it needs to be the UPC. Itis a code that is already very similar to our code and I’m sure that the Massachusetts Plumbing and Fuel Gas Code would look very similar ifthey were to be utilized.The UPC with IAPMO is a code that is written by plumbers, engineers, manufacturers; people like us. They are also the only“national” code that is approved by ANSI. They will be making the case that our code and board structure will remain in place and besupplemented by the vast UPC resources. The code is recognized by twenty one states and has been around since the 1920’s.Obviously our Code is very near and dear to all of us. I wrote the article in Progress Magazine to try to let ALL plumbers andapprentices across the State know that this conversation is even happening. I found it terribly unfair that over twenty five thousand licenseholders have no idea that this is going on.So what now? On the 26th there will be presentations to the board and there will be no vote, there is no board meeting scheduled forJuly and the August meeting will be held in Springfield. We need to sit tight and be ready to react to anything adverse that may come our way.When and if something happens I will reach out to everyone with the appropriate information as well as any who, what, when, and where weneed to direct our resources. I really hope nothing happens but we need to be ready.With that being said, I hope everyone gets to take a little time off this summer and enjoy some vacation and or family time. Those arethe important things we need to really take care of.Thanks for reading,Harry
Plumbers & Gasfitters Local 12Officers & StaffOfficers:Harry J. BrettBusiness Manager/Secretary Treasurer617-288-6200 x132Tim FandelBusiness Agent617-794-9333Barry C. KeadyBusiness Agent617-750-7882Jim VaughanBusiness Agent617-297-6045David BarbatiDirector of Business Development andRecruitment617-288-6200 x134Frank AmatoRecruitment Specialist617-288-6200 x135Courtney PereiraAdministrative 288-6200 x 133Andrew MacWalterAccounts Payableamacwalter@local12boston.org617-288-6200 x 150Ann O’ConnorLabor Management Co-operative Trust617-288-6200 x 139Health & Welfare Fund: 617-288-5400Roger Gill, Health and Welfare FundAdministratorDoreen Mount, Office ManagerLynn Curtin, Computer OperationsHeather Ferullo, Funds AccountantKeri Gilbert, Medical Claims ManagerTraining Center: 617.288.1010Richard D. Carter, Education FundAdministratorKimberly Garside, Office StaffIn Memoriam(View obituaries by logging onto our website)James McDonald, 87Passed on February 21, 2019 – Initiated on August 14, 1967James Johnson, 86Passed on March 8, 2019 – Initiated on July 22, 1957Carmelo Cuscia, 97Passed on March 8, 2019 – Initiated on September 26, 1947John Zella Jr., 58Passed on March 15, 2019 – Initiated on October 23, 1979Michael Pizzi, 94Passed on March 16, 2019 – Initiated on May 13, 1964John Skinner, 85Passed on March 30, 2019 – Initiated on September 27, 1967John Gunn, 61Passed on May 5, 2019 – Initiated on September 2, 1986Robert C. Sawtelle, 77Passed on May 22, 2019 – Initiated on September 23, 1968Francis Pasquine, Jr., 73Passed on May 24, 2019 - Initiated on July 22, 1963Joseph P. McKenna, 82Passed on May 30, 2019 – Initiated on October 27, 1958Tuong Loi, 71Passed on June 14, 2019 — Initiated on September 11, 1984Dates to RememberExecutive Board - 1st Tuesday of every monthNext Meeting at 5:00pm - July 2, 2019General Membership - 2nd Tuesday of every monthNext Meeting at 5:00pm - July 9, 20192nd Quarter New Member OrientationSaturday, June 22, 2019 - 8am-12pmLocal 12’s Sobriety MeetingSunday, June 30, 2019/Sunday, July 28, 2019 - 10amCanobie Lake ParkSaturday, June 29, 2019 - 10amLocal 12 Golf TournamentSaturday, September 14, 2019 - 1pmDUES INFOLocal 12 Retiree’s ClubDues are due on or before thelast business day of the monthby 4:00pm. After 3 months ofnon-payment of dues you willreceive a reinstatement stamp.You are not eligible for deathbenefits until 6 months after thereinstatement fee is paid.Local 12 Retirees recently visited the EM Duggan fabrication shop in Canton, MA. The Retirees spentan enjoyable day taking in all of the new technologies as well as enjoying a nice lunch supplied by EMDuggan. The Retiree’s Club will break for the summer and resume in September.The following members have recently retired from Local 12. We congratulate you on your retirementand wish you all the best going forward!Douglas CampbellHarold DenhamEdward FahertyThomas CunhaCraig DoyleLawrence RoweJospeh DavidsonWalter DyerPaul WelchJohn DebenedictisCharles Essenheimer
SCHOLARSHIPS (AFL-CIO & ORLANDO) ANNOUNCEMENT FOR WALTER WILSONOn Sunday, April 28, 2019 at the annual AFL-CIO scholarship brunch Local 12 was proud to give out over 35,000.00 in scholarships to deserving high school seniors. It is always a great event and to meet these fine youngadults as they head off to further their educations. Congratulations again to all of the recipients and especially theirproud parents.At the recent Local 12 ApprenticeGraduation, Brother Tom Orlandopresented two 250.00 “Jake OrlandoScholarships” to deserving graduatingapprentices, Charles Galvin andYasmani Santiago. Congratulations toyou both!Walter Wilson UMass ScholarshipThis year Local 12 will be giving away 5 - 1,200.00 scholarships to children of Local 12 members that are attendinga UMass Campus. They will be entered into a drawing and picked at the August union meeting. Please e-mail,Courtney Pereira, at cpereira@local12boston.org with the following information BEFORE July 31, 2019:First and Last Name of Local 12 Member:First and Last Name of Student (as registered):UMass Campus Location:Year of Graduation:Field of Study:Contact Phone #:
BUSINESS AGENT - TIM FANDELBrothers and Sisters,Spring is now a memory and Summer has officially arrived, with it, a promise ofsoaring temperatures and longer days. The construction environment remains strong andproject backlog for our signatory contractors is growing. We continue to positionourselves to take advantage of this unprecedented building boom; not only in Boston andCambridge, but in the entire jurisdiction. In the last update, I ended with an appeal to themembership for greater participation and attendance at planning and developmentmeetings. I talked about how important member participation is and the impact it canhave. I would like to highlight an upcoming project where direct member engagement inthe public process resulted in securing a Project Labor Agreement.The project I am referring to is Suffolk Downs. The site straddles the border ofRevere and Boston and encompasses over 160 acres. This project represents the singlelargest private mixed use Transit Oriented development project in the areas history. The overall cost of the project is projected toexceed 6 billion dollars and will be developed in 10 phases over the next 15 to 20 years. The site is home to two MBTA stations andprovides access to the Commuter Rail as well. At more than two and a half times the size of the massive Seaport Square Districtproject, this project will also act as an economic engine for the area, creating work opportunities for our members for many yearsto come.The project is scheduled to break ground in July of 2019. Here are some details. Two retail squares will welcome you to thesite as you exit the train at Beachmont as well Belle Island stations. These squares represent only a fraction of the half a millionsquare feet of retail and restaurant space expected to be developed. An additional 5.2 million square feet will be development asoffice space with a number of building potentially focusing on R &D. The developer has proposed 3 hotels to be built as well. Last,but certainly not least, the plan envisions upwards of 10,000 residential units. This would be a mixture of high rise structural steelbuildings and wood frame multi residential structures.In closing, securing a Project Labor Agreement for this project has been a top priority for your leadership team at Local12. The PLA ensures our members will be employed on this project for many years to come. Thanks to all who took the time toattend these meetings. It is not always convenient, but it is always necessary.In Solidarity,Tim FandelBUSINESS AGENT - BARRY KEADYDear Sisters and Brothers,What a busy spring we had, and we expect an even busier summer,fall and beyond. We work hard pushing developers and general contractors to useunion plumbers. Our residential division is hitting jobs all over. We just recently gotjobs in Westwood, Canton and Walpole for contractors, and developers who wehaven’t worked for before, but you can bet it won’t be our last job. Our well trainedand hardworking members out preform non-union plumbers all day, everyday.Once we get on a job, the GC’s and developers want to use Local 12 plumbers.Boston, as everyone knows, is booming. The hospital area and colleges are eitherbuilding or plan to build major projects. A private company is building 3 dorms forcolleges in the Fenway area, with a union commitment. We had dozens of members at public meetings to push theseprojects through the community process, and we had about a hundred come in and sign letters. This is how union jobshappen. We do need more participation because there is constant push back from developers and GC’s who don’t wantto pay a fair wage. The non-union companies are always pushing, we need to push back in large numbers. Recently we’vehit a few more jobs on the south shore, one in Quincy Center and one at South Shore Hospital. They were goingnon-union, we pushed back with leaf-footing and pressure from our friends and turned the jobs around. Another job,a major renovation at Stop and Shop headquarters was going bad. Our members supported the striking Stop and Shopworkers walking the picket lines. Their members told Stop and Shop, they would honor our lines at their headquartersand it was turned around.Everyone’s favorite time, election season is coming up. We are going to need help. We don’t support candidateslightly. We need to support our friends, regardless of other issues they support, if they support union labor, we need tosupport them. We have many important races coming up. We need to make these go our way.In solidarity,Barry
BUSINESS AGENT - JIM VAUGHANHello Brothers and Sisters,What a great time it is to be a local 12 plumber. The amount of work comingup is unbelievable. Phase-1 of the Lawrence gas project is completed. Here are a fewinteresting facts, we had well over 300 travelers from 30 different states. 44 miles ofplastic gas main was replaced, 5,100 gas services replaced, 8,447 gas meters replaced,18,000 gas appliances replaced, 24,992 plumbing permits, and 91 plumbinginspectors. Even though we didn’t do all the work up there this was a great job forlocal 12.Phase-2 is going on as I write this. We have four local 12 signatorycontractors up there and approximately 30 members doing replacements and testinggas lines.The best part of it is during phase-1, Glionna plumbing was a non-union contractor. With some great work fromour organizing team Glionna plumbing is now a 12-15 man shop, who is working on phase-2 as a Union Contractor.Glionna is bidding all types of public work and has recently hit a few brand new fire stations. This is a great win!!!I had the chance to work on a charity job for the Lawrence youth group. We had 18 local 12 female apprenticesworking on the underground and water mains. The apprentices were 1st-5th year with a few recent graduates. I wasvery impressed with the work ethic, camaraderie and workmanship shown by this group. A job well done by them.As a Business Agent for the last 3 plus years you get a unique overview of what is going on in the local. I haveseen members at their best and their worst. The Sunday sobriety meeting started with the help of all the officers and Iam proud to have been a part of it. I want to thank the seasoned members who gave guidance. I know these meetingsmight be far from perfect but it is a step in the right direction. Going forward the meetings will be run by members wholive with sobriety every day. I would encourage members to attend because I have seen first-hand meetings work.If I can ever help all you have to do is ask! Save your money and have a great summer.Best,JimORGANIZING DEPARTMENT - DAVID BARBATI AND FRANK AMATOHello Brothers and sisters,How quickly time has flown by. I have been an Organizer for 2 years this month! Alot has happened in those two years. David and I have continued to have great successwith the Wednesday night interviews. With social media, we are able to connect withplumbers that were not aware of Local 12. With these interviews we are able to sitdown and really get to know the candidate and what other work and candidates areout there. We just passed 1500 interviews!Another great organizing tool is the new members talking on how their lives havechanged since joining Local 12. Health insurance, pension and an annuity. Oureyecare program is one of the best. My wife just got glasses and the optometrist saysthe insurance was great!Organizing is a necessary tool to continue growth and to have more employmentopportunities. With both the commercial and residential divisions opening up moreconstruction and service jobs we need to fill these spots with quality, safe, andtalented workers. Thank you all for your continued support!Sincerely,Frank Amato
LOCAL 12 RESIDENTIAL DIVISIONOur residential division continues to hold steady. With 8 participating shops and 150 members, new jobsites are starting and many have been completed over the last 3 years. Residential members have addedhundreds of thousands of hours and dollars to our funds. Residential service is expanding. Growth in thisarea will help safe guard the Local in economic downturns.The Residential Division has come full circle, as agreed upon in our contract, 19 journeyman memberswith 3yrs and 4500 work hours will have transferred to the commercial division, 8 transferred last yearand 11 are eligible this year, congratulations! We continue to work at growing this division, with newshops and members.Thank you,Dave Barbati25 homes being done with Jeff Peabody Plumbing in MiltonAdam Valente and John Wiroll at 20 Locust Ave DanversARTHUR MCINTOSH CELEBRATES HIS 100TH BIRTHDAYLocal 12’s most Eldest Brother, ArthurMcIntosh, celebrated his 100th birthday at aparty held at the Neighborhood Club inQuincy. His family was nice enough to inviterepresentatives from Local 12 to take part inthe celebration. Arthur joined the UA in1955 and enjoyed a great career retiring in1984. At Arthur’s birthday celebration, heshared a story from 1955. He was on a jobwhen a Business Agent showed up saying“Why are you selling yourself short? You should join the Union!” Arthur explained that it wasthe best career move of his life. He just recently gave up driving but spends a lot of his timeworking around the house and gardening in the good weather. We wish him all the best!
SPIRIT OF BOSTON - RETIREES LUNCHEONOn June 19, 2019, the Local 12 Retirees Club had their 2nd Annual Lunch Cruise. Many of theretirees are simply amazed by the development that is going on, not only in the Seaport, butthroughout the city as well. The forecast was for a cloudy day but the minute the boat left the dock thefog lifted and the sun came out making for a great day on the water. The retirees club will resumemeetings in September, have a great summer!
LOCAL 12 TRAINING CENTERGood day from the training center! As we start into the summer monthsat the center, we are preparing for the UA District 1 Apprentice Contest. Thisyear the contest is held at local 777 in Meriden CT. Our contestant this year isCory Dalton. Cory has just completed his apprenticeship and won the MAState Apprenticeship Contest in April. I am sure he will represent us very welland we wish him all the best. Hopefully he will make it to the national contestin Ann Arbor MI.The summer months also means working on the training center with therenovations building in our new annex space and our new hot water lab. Wewill be fitting out both spaces and it will close to double our shop space!We are also starting a new apprentice class. They will be starting in the fields in June and will be ourlargest class to date. Please welcome them when they come to your jobsites.Please continue to check our website local12training.org for updated class offerings in the fall.Until next time, have a safe summer!Best,Rick CarterPLUMBERS 911 UPDATEOur Plumbers 911 referral program continues to open new doors and create more work opportunities. Local12 recently teamed up with our tool partner, Milwaukee Tool, and supplied our 911 Contractors with a newMilwaukee cordless drain cleaning machine. We want to incentivize our contractors into pursuing moredrain cleaning work and provide more hands on opportunities for apprentices. If you are in contact withanyone in need of plumbing service please refer them to www.Plumbers911.com in support of yourhardworking Brothers and Sisters and the good contractors they work for.
IN THE COMMUNITYWe would like to thank all of our members who have answered the call to attend meetings in theircommunities. Together with politicians, developers and especially our members we can secure morework for the membership. Pictured are some of the activities from the first half of 2019. Membershipparticipation works!
APPRENTICE GRADUATIONOn May 5, 2019, Local 12 graduated 72 apprentices from the training program. Local 12was honored to have UA General President Mark McManus and his wife, Nancy, as ourspecial guests. This was the largest class ever graduated from our program and theseapprentices represented all of the things that the Local has accomplished over the past fiveyears; day school, residential division, service and construction. The future looks strongfor Local 12 and we wish all these new Journeymen and women all the best!
MAY 5, 2019submit your photos from Local 12 events at info@local12boston.org
ua local 12e1240 Massachusetts Ave.Dorchester, MA 02125www.plumbersandgasfitterslocal12.orgFIDELITY EDUCATION BENEVOLENCE PROTECTIONHEALTH AND WELFARE PLANThe Trustees have recently completed procurement for service providers to the Welfare Plan foreligible, active employees and eligible pre-Medicare retirees. Through this process and with theassistance of industry professionals the Trustees have selected Blue Cross Blue Shield ofMassachusetts HMO Blue New England (BCBSMA) to be the fully insured medical and prescriptionprovider for active members and pre-Medicare retiree coverage beginning September 1, 2019.The Trustees and BCBSMA will be providing you with much additional information in the weeks ahead.We will be holding informational meetings here at Local 12 as well as at various locations North, Westand South of Boston, where members and dependents are encouraged to attend. You will be informedin detail on the BCBSMA HMO Blue New England provider network, pharmacy benefits, copaymentsand deductibles. We have made a concerted effort to have the BCBSMA HMO Blue New Englandbenefits mirror the existing AllWays Health Partners Schedule of Benefits. BCBSMA HMO Blue NewEngland has committed to working with our members and families to ensure there is no disruption incare for those dealing with ongoing, serious illness. AllWays Health Partners is also committed toproviding what is necessary for transition to help ensure as little disruption as possible. Effectiveimmediately you may visit www.bluecrossma.com to lookup up your current prescriptions or to makesure your providers participate in the BCBSMA HMO Blue New England network.Also effective immediately BCBSMA HMO Blue New England will have its Member Services teamavailable to assist Local 12 members and dependents with any questions they may have. The BCBSMAMember Services Number is 1-800-241-0803 and will be available Monday through Friday from 8 A.M.to 6 P.M.
Local 12's Sobriety Meeting Sunday, June 30, 2019/Sunday, July 28, 2019 - 10am Canobie Lake Park Saturday, June 29, 2019 - 10am Local 12 Golf Tournament Saturday, September 14, 2019 - 1pm Local 12 Retiree's Club In Memoriam (View obituaries by logging onto our website) James McDonald, 87 Passed on February 21, 2019 - Initiated on August .
