A first time contract for Housekeepers at Montage Kapalua Bay has been ratified by the 29 members who now belong to ILWU Local 142, Maui Division. The advantages of joining a union—obtaining better wages, employer provided medical and dental benefits, job security and decent working conditions—is clearly demonstrated in the newly negotiated agreement.

Are You a New Member?

Are you a new employee, hired within the last twelve months? If so, this issue of the VOICE of the ILWU was prepared especially for you. As a union member, you are entitled to many rights and benefits and some responsibilities. This issue will help get you started with the essential information you need as a member of the ILWU. Even longtime members may find the information useful.

A guide to what every member should know

As a member of ILWU Local 142, you are a part of a long and proud tradition where workers join or form organizations for their mutual benefit and to promote fairness and justice on the job. These organizations are called labor unions, trade unions, or just unions.

A very important benefit of union membership goes far beyond your job. You are now a member of a workers’ organization—dedicated to defend your interests as a worker and to promote the general welfare of you and your family.

Maui FTOs with the unit bulletin editors recognized at the Maui Division Awards Dinner (l-r): Division Director Stephen Castro, Business Agent Steven Lee, Lourdes Rivera with the David E.Thompson Award for Statewide Excellence awarded to Seini Dennis, LaPhena Wahinehookai, Local Representative Cyrus Kodani, Emmanuel Baltazar accepting the award for Melissa Widing, Business Agent Stephen West, and Joseph A

HILO—On February 21, 2015, Hawaii Division held its 38th Annual Recognition Awards at the Garden Court banquet room at Nani Mau Gardens. It rained most of the day in East Hawaii, darkening the late afternoon sky and slicking roads. But bad weather did not put a damper on the spirits of Big Islanders—nearly 200 ILWU members, pensioners and guests showed up to attend the event celebrating the hard work done by Hawaii Division in 2014.

The letters I.L.W.U. stand for International Longshore and Warehouse Union, a union created in 1934 when longshore and warehouse workers on the West Coast of the United States merged to form a single union. In 1937, longshore workers in Hawaii chose to join up with the ILWU, because it was a democratic union that stood for racial equality within its membership.

The tri-annual Convention will be held at the Sheraton Waikiki 2255 Kalakaua Avenue, Honolulu, HI 96815 beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, June 8, 2015, and closing on or about Friday, June 12, 2015. The elected Convention delegates will vote to decide the International budget, proposed increases in per-capita rates, as well as policies and direction of the ILWU for the next three-year period.

Unit officers and Union Chief Spokesperson Michael Yamaguchi going over the MOA and answering questions at ratification meeting. (l-r): Robert Uyeshiro, Neill Amasaki, Randall Tenn, Lawrence Young, and Michael Yamaguchi.

ILWU members elect worker friendly candidates to office

The ILWU Local 142 would like to extend its deepest gratitude for the tireless efforts of members who canvassed, sign waved, talked with fellow workers and family members, and voted for ILWU-endorsed candidates on Maui, Oahu, the Big Island, and Kauai.