Category: Members Journal
A year of progress: Looking back on BE4ALL’s 2023
The Belonging and Excellence for All (BE4ALL) Committee is a joint venture between SMART, SMACNA and the International Training Institute (ITI), with members of the committee pursuing one crucial goal: to create a diverse, inclusive, unionized sheet metal industry that is wel [...]
SMART-TD helps win two-person crew in N.Y.
Given a second chance to act, New York Governor Kathy Hochul has chosen to side with safety. In late 2022, a bill requiring two-person crews on freight trains in the state reached her desk — and she vetoed it. But something changed in 2023. Perhaps it was seeing legislatures [...]
High-speed rail projects will create jobs for SMART members
On December 8, 2023, United States President Joe Biden and SMART-TD President Jeremy Ferguson announced a $6 billion investment in America’s rail infrastructure and in the value of union jobs through two high-speed rail projects in California and Nevada. “When I ran for presi [...]
SMART-TD Alt. VP/General Chairperson Anthony Simon wins New York labor award
LaborPress honored SMART-TD General Chairperson and Alt. Vice President Anthony Simon and other labor leaders with its annual Labor Leadership Awards on November 28. Simon is general chairperson of GO 505, where he represents Long Island Rail Road conductors, track workers, b [...]
“The more of us that hold elected office, the better” — how and why to run for elected office
Across the country, SMART members are running for elected office — and winning. As leaders in their communities, these members are able to influence the policies that matter to their fellow union workers, and they can ensure union issues are prioritized. There are a variety o [...]
SMART members get out the vote for pro-union candidates
This election cycle, SMART members across sheet metal and the Transportation Division flexed their muscles at the ballot box, helping elect union-friendly candidates across the United States. That includes SMART members who ran for office themselves, pledging to pursue policy [...]
Father and daughter experience the union advantage at Ventcon
For father-daughter sheet metal workers Anthony Smith and Amber Jones, joining SMART Local 4 (Memphis, Tennessee) and working for signatory contractor Ventcon has demonstrated the difference between a nonunion gig and a union career. “Before I joined the union, I didn’t think [...]
Colorado rail safety bill gets key endorsement
The SMART Transportation Division Colorado State Legislative Board announced that a railroad safety bill it supports received a key committee endorsement on October 3 and looks likely to be considered in the state Legislature’s 2024 session. By a 14–6 vote, the state’s Joint [...]