Third SMART General Convention recap: Tuesday, Aug. 13

NABTU president to delegates: “What we do will impact future generations.”

North America’s Building Trades Unions President Sean McGarvey has spent decades working alongside SMART members and leaders to win progress for workers in the legislative, organizing and economic development arenas. In his Tuesday speech to delegates at the Third SMART General Convention, McGarvey took time to note the victories we have won together — and emphasized that we cannot stop pushing.

“With these wins and significant investments coming online, we must capture as much work as possible,” he declared. “We must be intentional about recruiting and retaining the next generation of unionized building trades workers and growing our contractor base.”

SMART members made incredible progress in the last several years. Under the Biden-Harris administration, McGarvey said, labor standards in pro-union laws and unprecedented investment in the United States’ core infrastructure created opportunities for building trades workers that once seemed unthinkable — not to mention the administration’s actions to strengthen Davis-Bacon prevailing wages and pension reform in the American Rescue Plan Act.

In turn, he added, unions like SMART have been able to expand their focus on organizing, recruiting and retaining workers from all communities and bring our neighbors — people of color, the justice-involved, veterans and more — into our best-of-class apprenticeship programs. He specifically credited the SMART Belonging and Excellence for All (BE4ALL) initiative, Women’s Committee and Director of Special Projects Louise Medina for their work to make the building trades welcoming to all, especially in this crucial moment.

Now, as election 2024 approaches, the rubber meets the road, McGarvey said. Our ability to build, organize, grow and keep members on the jobsite rests largely on who takes office in November. Referencing Project 2025 and the ABC-endorsed Trump administration’s previous efforts to gut building trades unions — with Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Programs being just one example — he highlighted the importance of putting pro-union lawmakers in office.

“We are on the cusp of an infrastructure decade,” McGarvey told delegates. “You helped us get here, and we need you more than ever between now and November to prevent a hostile administration from taking away all of the gains we made by meeting the challenges placed in front of us.”

USA’s Ingram touts solidarity, service and the great outdoors

Across the United States, SMART sheet metal and Transportation Division members have worked with the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance (USA) to conserve wildlife, connect with local communities and, of course, enjoy the great outdoors — whether hunting, fishing or hiking.

In remarks to delegates, USA Executive Director and CEO Walt Ingram expounded on the important relationships that the USA-SMART partnership helps create — and how it helps SMART take on a variety of challenges. Foremost among those is bringing members together in true solidarity.

“We’re a member engagement tool for you at your local unions, and I want to encourage you to take advantage of that,” Ingram said.

SMOHIT evolves with the times to meet members’ needs

Sheet Metal Occupational Health Institute Trust (SMOHIT) Administrator Aldo Zambetti presented to delegates on Tuesday, August 13, where he overviewed the ways the fund has morphed and evolved to help members meet health challenges. Perhaps the most high-profile example: SMOHIT and SMART’s ever-growing focus on members’ mental and physical health, exemplified through continuing programs like the SMART Member Assistance Program (MAP), SMOHIT Helpline, suicide awareness trainings and the use of apps like Wellbeats.

Zambetti also told the audience about SMOHIT’s efforts to provide members with resources they can take with them, such as information on where to find support when traveling for work (the Make Yourself at Home app) and a weekly, virtual 12-step program. Helping members is an ongoing process, he added, and will require our union’s commitment moving forward.

BE4ALL, RISE, Women’s Committees meet to forge a stronger union

Following the first day of proceedings at SMART’s Third General Convention, members of the SMART Belonging and Excellence for All (BE4ALL); Representation, Integrity, Support, Empowerment (RISE); and Women’s Committees came together for a celebration of progress and comradery — and a recommitment to their important work moving forward.

While differing in their specific missions, the committees broadly focus on strengthening SMART by making our union a more welcoming and inclusive place for all members. Each committee works with current members, local union and regional council officers, International staff and potential new members on recruitment, retention, empowerment and solidarity within SMART, all of which are key to our continued success.

In Las Vegas, members arrived from the furthest reaches of our union — everywhere from Vancouver to Ontario, San Francisco to Atlanta — to engage in this important committee work. General President Michael Coleman and General Secretary-Treasurer John Daniel met with committee members for an open question-and-answer session; attendees also had the chance to open up to one another and forge deeper bonds of solidarity.

Director Reports

Carlough reports on SMART’s wellness and mental health efforts

SMART’s inaugural director of Wellness and Mental Health Support, Chris Carlough, reported on expanded and continuing efforts to support the holistic well-being of members across North America. That includes through peer-to-peer mental health and suicide awareness training; naloxone training to prevent opioid overdoses; and ongoing SMART Member Assistance Program sessions in every corner of our union.

Wood updates delegates on the status of SMART’s pension funds

Lori Wood, the executive director of SMART’s National Pension Fund, National Supplemental Savings Plan and Local Unions and Councils Pension Plan, spoke to the convention on Tuesday, Aug. 13. The director updated delegates on the status and projections of SMART’s pension funds. Wood also reported on the health of SMART employee investment funds and informed the delegates of recent changes to our death benefit.

Paswisty reviews Canadian affairs

Former SMART Department of Canadian Affairs Director Chris Paswisty overviewed the state of the union in Canada, which represents members working in the sheet metal, roofing, dockyard and shipyard industries, plus strong production locals representing members in the HVAC, automotive and garment sectors. There are large amounts of work, and huge investments, coming down the pipeline across Canada, he noted, and SMART is working to take advantage with organizers across the provinces.

Paswisty also detailed SMART Canada’s efforts to leverage existing strengths to make future gains: legislative strategizing to win green jobs — including pro-labour laws that have already been passed — messaging around wildfires and indoor air quality to raise SMART’s profile, and much more.

Nevada Rep. Lee pledges continued partnership with SMART

On the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 13, delegates heard from Congresswoman Susie Lee of Nevada’s Third District.

Lee grew up in a steel town — Canton, Ohio — where she witnessed firsthand the lifechanging power of a union job, as well as the devastating effects of attacks on the labor movement and American manufacturing.

“When I fight for worker protections, for PLAs, for pensions, for worker safety, for two-person train crews, let me tell you — it’s personal to me,” she said.

That’s why Lee cast major votes in Congress for the American Rescue Plan, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, CHIPS and Science Act and Inflation Reduction Act, she explained. Those laws have funded projects like the Brightline West high-speed rail line, set to create 140,000 new, good-paying union jobs, and put SMART sheet metal and transportation members to work.

Lee concluded by vowing to continue partnering with SMART to win for workers, from Southern Nevada to the rest of our country.

“The fight is never over,” she declared.