The transition of Davey Tree Surgery to Wright Tree Service in Humboldt County is underway. Wright Tree Service held a “Job Fair” on February 15. The successor language in the Tree Agreements allowed the former Davey employees to transition to Wright, although they will have to serve a three month probation period.
Wright was set to begin operations March 1 and planned to have an all-hands stand down that day for a day-long orientation regarding Wright’s policies and expectations. Wright showed up with good equipment, and has promised new climbing gear for all.
So far we have no official word on which of the bidders for SMUD tree trimming contracts were successful. There are two tree trimming contracts at SMUD—north and south. The rumors are many but no official word.
Asplundh Tree Expert, Wright Tree Service, Utility Tree Service, Trees Inc., and Local 1245 will meet with the mediator on March 7 regarding the stalled negotiations. The ratification vote was a strong “no” vote and the companies have shown no interest in going back to negotiations.
Skyline Tree Service ratified a one-year contract extension this week with a 100% yes vote. This extension will expire at the end of this year.
The members at TID Davey Tree Surgery are interested in changing their agreement to the PG&E type of an agreement. We are waiting to hear from the company regarding our position.
The 2012 Gold Cup Soccer Tournament is shaping up well with fourteen teams signed up. This will be the second tournament and a tremendous amount of goodwill was generated by last year’s tournament along with increased interest on the part of the members. Local 1245 Organizer Eileen Purcell has been working tirelessly on the tournament. She deserves special thanks for her efforts.