Barnes - Business Agent - Article Q3 2024 (8/9/24)

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I would like to start with politics and the importance of union-friendly candidates.

First congratulations to Wesley Bell for winning the Democratic primary for Congress. Bell has a strong family history with unions and came to join Local 396 in the 100th-anniversary celebration, talking to our members and our international officers. In 2018 Bell helped fight against right-to-work, even knocking on doors and taking time away from his own campaign. Electing someone who will fight for labor unions in Washington D.C. is crucial during this election.

I would also like to congratulate Kamala Harris for being our Democratic Presidential nominee. Harris has said that “the US is only as strong as its unions” and has been a champion for workers throughout her career. Harris has worked alongside President Joe Biden in passing some of the strongest pro-labor union laws in history and played an important role in rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure and investing in good-paying union jobs throughout America. Harris has saved over 1 million dollars in pensions for union worker retirees and as a senator walked the picket lines beside the unions.

Kamala Harris has announced that Tim Walz will be running on the Democratic ticket beside her as our Vice President nominee. Tim Walz is a union member himself, working as a public-school teacher, and understands the struggles of the working class. He has signed some of the largest pro-union legislation packages and helped the working-class time and time again throughout his career. He has enacted some of the most pro-union worker packages of legislation of any state in the county, walked the picket lines alongside President Joe Biden, and helped invest in 2.6 billion dollar infrastructure projects to help working-class families with jobs that pay prevailing wages, which is helping pay for 3 major bridges in our jurisdiction at the current time.

If you have any other candidates the hall should endorse please contact us before the November election.

If you are worried about unborn babies that no one wants to pay for once they are born

– OR –

Your gun rights, which without a paycheck you couldn’t buy ammunition for

– OR –

illegal immigrants at the border, then you can always go work on the wall in a right-to-work state. Because, none of these things will affect you as much as a national right-to-work law that will strip power away from the unions and money out of our pockets with declining benefit packages such as your health and welfare insurance, retirement, and annuity. These are serious issues to consider when choosing a candidate on a local, state, and national level.

Just remember, to vote with your pocketbooks, you must elect pro-union candidates!

Ongoing Work in My Area:

Ameren Facility in Park Hills
South County WWTP
American Water Intake Facility
Windsor Schools
Herculaneum Bus Garage
QuikTrip off Lemay Ferry
TG Plant
Great Minds Health Center in Farmington
Mississippi Lime in Bonne Terre
Chester Bridge

I’d like to touch on three major jobs that may be upcoming:

We are still waiting for funding for the Herculaneum Port.

The James Hardy Plant in Festus still has the green light to my knowledge, but they are watching the stock market and nothing will happen until mid-2025. There is a lot of chatter but nothing is set in stone as of now.

Ameren Missouri plans to build a new national gas power plant in South St. Louis County, on the site of the former coal plant and this will be called Castle Bluff Energy Center. This could be an 800-million-dollar project if all goes as planned.

In close, I would like to invite everyone to join in the 2024 Labor Festival on August 25th from 12-4 pm. Tug of War weigh-ins will begin at 1:00 pm and pulling begins at 2:30 pm.

Also, the Desloge Labor Day Parade is on September 2nd. The lineup starts at 8:00 am and the parade starts at 9:00 am at the North County Intermediate School (801 E Elm Street, Desloge, MO 63601).

Safety first productivity second,

Travis Barnes

#1227747

Tbarneslocal396@yahoo.com

(573) 631-439