WHAT WE DO IS
IMPORTANT TO YOU!
IN LOCAL 9510 'WHAT WE DO IS IMPORTANT TO YOU' MEANS:
WHAT
WE DO IS IMPORTANT FOR A FEW OF THE OFFICERS!
THIS IS WHAT
BROUGHT US TO AUGUST...
The meeting began in its usual
manner (boring) and quickly turned ugly. It started when a steward asked a
couple of questions about the expenditures on the financial report. What were
office supplies that cost $3,476.74 for one month? What miscellaneous expenses
cost $600.00?
Neither the
President nor Secretary-Treasurer could explain the office supplies
expenditures. When they got angry the members responded in the same
manner.
At the meeting, members from the GT unit were on a mission. They had questions about finances. They wanted answers and they got rhetoric. President Moreno, who is unaccustomed to answering to anyone, had already exceeded the local's budget of $100,000.00 for lost time wages. Her only explanation was, "We have the money". Because we have the money, she was attempting to increase the budget by another $100,000. Moreno's explanation provoked a not so subtle remark from the floor suggesting another way to dispose of this excess money. "Perhaps it could be used to send all members a gift certificate for $50.00 to offset the cost of fireworks?" A ripple of laughter set the tone for the rest of the meeting.
They wanted another $18,000.00 for the education committee. When the President & Sec'y-Treas.were asked how the Local spent the $7,000 for education on the April financial report, neither Moreno nor Natoli could answer. Let's hope the money was not spent on a "How to Improve Your Memory" workshop. If it was, it is another example of how easy it is to spend money when it isn't yours. Instead of pointing out the painfully obvious (they hadn't educated anyone) the members sent the budget back to the officers for further work (back to August night for more on the budget).
Next: A motion directed the President to refuse LTW (Lost Time Wages is reimbursement for wages lost from the company when off the job) to anyone who refuses to provide a copy of their company payroll stub within two weeks of the union time incurred. (This was to enforce a past order by the membership requiring payroll stubs to verify lost time wage requests.) The membership approved the directive over the objection of President Moreno. She was fuming now! For a split second some members thought they saw a trail of smoke come from her ears.
Another motion passed to overturn her hand picked appointee to run the GT United Way Campaign and replace her with the Unit Vice-President. The members also tried to stop her from sending six individuals to a meeting in Las Vegas (limiting it to 3) she lost it, and blew a fuse. Why? Because it would affect her official unofficial assistant in waiting. What is a beleaguered President to do? What else? Shoot from the hip! Moreno begins hurling insults and yelling at the members.
By the time the meeting ended, there
was a division of the house, two votes challenging Moreno's rulings, name
calling, physical threats and a member who left in tears because the President
ridiculed her loyalty to CWA when she tried to speak up. After the meeting,
President Moreno regrouped with her loyal subjects. She vowed to get even at
the next membership meeting. The next day one of the GT Board members and Unit
Vice-President found an AFL-CIO poster with the phrase "PUNISH YOUR ENEMIES"
highlighted.
Mike Drake (GT Unit Vice-President) wondered who the enemy was
and
wrote a letter 
to Moreno. Want
to see it? 
Shortly after the membership meeting, Moreno cancelled the officer's meetings. Her reason: "To save the local money". Members who attended the June meeting requested a written apology for her behavior. She refused and a complaint was filed with the CWA District Nine Vice-President, Tony Bixler regarding her behavior. Once again, in Local 9510, the wheels of democracy begin to turn forward (slowly).
In the mean time? The steward who raised a question or two would fell from grace (Moreno will no longer speak to her). She removed Linda Gendreau from the newsletter committee (nobody knew until Gendreau's name was no longer on the Orange Empire News masthead) and replaced her with Mike Milliman and Vivian Thunell.
Gendreau protested and made a motion to be reappointed at the July Executive Board meeting. Evidence was produced to show the minutes were changed to the motion to add Milliman & Thunell to the committee and say 'as the committee'. Does the truth matter? Will proof of underhanded tactics make a difference? Naaaa! Welcome to our nightmare. This is the NEW democratic leader, who would lead us into that "Hot August Night".
Say, was this the movie ("The Iron Hand of Andrea Montoya") that was playing when our Local 9510 was taken over by the National Union?
Do you want to find out what happened
on that "Hot August Night"? Click me