Watts. “As a woman, I refused to use my family name, so I could just see how far I could go. I never even told my father I was applying for the job I’m in now. My brother in Longshore didn’t know either, until his coworkers asked if I was his sister when they saw my name on an application. But I just knew I had to try as a woman to get it on my own as much as I could. People always talk and I didn’t want them to discredit me as a “I constantly get sh*t for my short stature and the size of my hands.

The theme of the LEAD Institute in Seattle was “Taking Responsibility for the Future.” Attendees learned how to address membership with the changing times, union values, union history and solidarity, and member involvement and activation. Can you spot the eight Local 142 representatives that attended the LEAD Institute?

...reopening this fall as the `Alohilani Resort at Waikiki Beach’

HONOLULU -- Renovations at Pacific Beach Hotel started March of last year and the whole unit stayed open for business. The workers and the union have been working together to ensure fairness and continuity amidst all the changes to the property.

the five negotiating committees, no one had ever been involved in negotiations, and only one worker had even belonged to a union before.

However, the members were not deterred.

“Members of all the committees worked hard, learned fast, and took their responsibility seriously,” said Furtado

“It wouldn’t be possible to run five separate negotiations for first contracts without strong committees. We also had great support from the Hawaii Longshore Division.”

As a member, you are now a part of a family over 15,000 members strong. You are part of a long and proud tradition where workers organize to promote fairness and justice on the job. This issue of the Voice details your rights and responsibilities so you can make the most of your membership. Your membership in the ILWU started when you were hired into your job.

ILWU members joined with other workers, community organizations and church groups on Saturday, February 25th at a union hall in Hayward, CA where a training was held to prepare for immigration raids supported by President Trump. Those attending from Local 6 included Alejandra Leon, Mirella Jauregui, Pedro Sanchez, Delfina Casillas and SecretaryTreasurer Chris Castaing.

What do the letters stand for?

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. This was important to the Hawaii members who were mostly of Hawaiian and Asian ancestry.

A NOTE FROM LEAH BERNSTEIN, Director Treasurer of The Harriet Bouslog Labor Scholarship Fund:

Aloha and a big mahalo to the members of ILWU Local 142 for helping to secure a record number of applications for the Harriet Bouslog Labor Scholarship Fund. By the time you read this we will have extended scholarship offers to 18 applicants consisting of six freshmen, nine sophomores, and three seniors to the Fall 2017 class.

Harriet Bouslog was an attorney who defended the rights and freedom of ILWU leaders and members. She was the first female labor and civil rights attorney in Hawaii. She provided the legal support many of the sugar plantation workers needed in their efforts to unionize and stand up for themselves in the 1940s when the Big Five controlled Hawaii. The Big Five were the five companies that dominated Hawaii’s political and economic order; they did not care that their wealth was made off of brutalizing the working class.