As a California State Assemblymember, Christy Smith has proven to be a strong ally of IBEW 1245 and its members. In 2019, she voted in favor of the IBEW 1245-backed wildfire bill (AB 1054) as well as our bill to improve wages and benefits for our line clearance tree trimmers (SB 247). When Smith announced… [Read More]
Archives for May 2020
PG&E appeals new probation conditions, asserting they’ll ‘undermine wildfire safety’ (via UtilityDive)
Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) is appealing a new set of wildfire mitigation requirements imposed by a federal judge, arguing that the conditions would cause the utility irreparable harm and “are more likely to undermine wildfire safety” than they are to promote it. U.S. District Judge William Alsup, who is supervising PG&E’s five-year criminal probation,… [Read More]
California wildfire victims approve $13.5 billion payout by ‘overwhelming’ margin, PG&E says (via Sacramento Bee)
PG&E Corp. said Monday it believes thousands of Northern California wildfire victims have approved the utility’s $13.5 billion payout plan, clearing the way for PG&E to emerge from bankruptcy. In a prepared statement, the company said that, based on preliminary results, the plan has won “overwhelming acceptance” from the approximately 70,000 victims who were eligible to vote…. [Read More]
Troubled Waters at TTSA: State board rules sanitation agency retaliated against unionizing (via MoonshineInk)
The single sheet of paper, hung on a bulletin board among operating rules and invasive weed awareness posters, announced that Tahoe- Truckee Sanitation Agency management interfered with employee rights. Required to be displayed where employee notices are posted and sent in electronic form as well, the paper summarizes a 69-page report from California’s Public Employment… [Read More]
CDC Warns of Counterfeit Respirator Masks
Counterfeit respirators are products that are falsely marketed and sold as being NIOSH-approved and may not be capable of providing appropriate respiratory protection to workers. When NIOSH becomes aware of counterfeit respirators or those misrepresenting NIOSH approval on the market, we will post them here to alert users, purchasers, and manufacturers. NIOSH-approved respirators have an… [Read More]
Letter Agreement 20-32: GCC Extension to Temporary Work Schedule (Extension of LA 20-21)
The Company and Union discussed the need to continue the temporary work schedule at the Vacaville and Rocklin Grid Control Centers and have agreed to extend the expiration date of Letter Agreement 20-21, under the same terms and conditions, to June 27, 2020. Either Company or Union may cancel this agreement by giving the other… [Read More]
PG&E bankruptcy judge weighs concerns about fire victims’ lawyer (via SF Chronicle)
A 2017 wildfire survivor sought to persuade PG&E Corp.’s bankruptcy judge on Tuesday to make a key attorney in the case provide a better disclosure about his ties to Wall Street financiers. San Antonio lawyer Mikal Watts, who represents thousands of fire victims, has admitted that two financial firms connected to the PG&E bankruptcy also had… [Read More]