Building with Union Pride
Livermore & San Leandro – On a mild summer day, IBEW 1245 Business Representative Cruz Serna facilitated a visit to Trayer Switchgear Plants in Livermore and San Leandro, California to hear directly from IBEW 1245 members about their work and what it means to be part of a union.
IBEW 1245 Members at the Trayer Livermore Plant
IBEW 1245 Members at the Trayer Switchgear at the San Leandro Plant
From Family Business to Multi-National Corporation
Trayer Engineering Corporation has been making high quality switch gear for decades. The family business was known for its design and manufacturing of low-maintenance vacuum switchgear for electrical distribution systems, including PG&E, San Diego Gas & Electric, and others.
Switch gears are vital component parts utilized by Utilities to connect or disconnect power systems and open or close circuits. The equipment is essential for the protection and safe operation of high voltage power systems, for the workers who maintain them and for the public.
In 2024, Siemens AG acquired Trayer Engineering Corporation and committed to a seamless transition.
Eleven years ago, Trayer workers joined IBEW 1245 through a merger. Six years later, unrepresented production workers – Welders and Electrical Technicians – voted to join the union. And in 2023, Laser Operators joined, making representation wall to wall.
Long time IBEW 1245 member and Shop Steward Arnaldo Lizarraga played a central role building support for the Union and winning representation. An Electrical Technician at the San Leandro Plant, Lizarraga noted that since the purchase of Trayer Manufacturing by Siemen’s, “We’ve seen dramatic growth. There’s a greater number of employees, greater diversity, including more women, and they’ve brought in a lot of new work and projects.” He added, “There are always growing pains, but we’re adapting and learning as we grow. It’s making us stronger as a Union,” he said.
Members’ Voices
IBEW 1245 member and Trayer Sub Foreman Dillon Harrington has ten years at Trayer. For the last two years, he has served as a Sub Foreman, overseeing operations at the Livermore Plant. What does he like best? “I enjoy dealing with people, the resolution of issues, from design flaws to welding issues.” Harrington oversees seventeen Welders, six Electrical Technicians and three Machine Operators. Since joining the Union he has seen an increase in wages and a culture shift. “The Union adds a layer of unity. We’re here as Trayer, but it’s an extra layer of community,” he said. And with the recent acquisition of Trayer by Siemen’s Corporation, “We’ve moved from being a mom-and-pop shop to being owned by a multinational corporation with a laser focus on safety.”
IBEW 1245 member George Perez, an experienced Electrical Technician with eight years at Trayer, goes back and forth between the San Leandro plant and newer Livermore Plant. He splits his time between training the growing number of new welders and electrical technicians and building component parts for the switch gears and boxes as well as experimenting new green technologies. “I’m kind of like a floater. At the Livermore Plant, everything’s new; it’s a nice location,” he said.
Blain Vang, an Electrical Technician with four years at Trayer, demonstrated his craft at the “Fuse Saver” workstation. Vang builds and tests battery packs, inserts brackets and bolts on Fuses which, in turn, are attached to power lines. Why are “Fuse Savers” important? They can quickly release the fuse and communicate when power lines are de-energized, employing a “Rechargeable Communications Module.” Vang received his training at the Wild Tech Trade School along with hands-on training from Delta Star before coming to Trayer. More recently Siemen’s trained him on the Fuse Savers.
Tony Orrozco is just eight months into his job as a Welder and loves his job. He showcased a large stainless steel box, employing both spray Arc Welding and Tig Welding. He outlined the process of putting in the bolts, aligning the box, putting on the hood, inserting the hinges, placing the tac and welding. The finished product was pristine. Orrozco shared that his brother introduced him to the craft, practicing in their back yard and applying common sense. What does Orrozco like about his work? “It’s professional, clean, kind of like detailing a car,” said Orrozco.
Roxanna Fisher is a Welder and one of the newer workers at the Livermore Plant. Young, curious, and dedicated. “I’m very content. I got into welding through a friend. I figured if they could do it, I could too,” she said. She got certified at Chabot Community College. Her first job was at a nonunion shop. The Trayer job is her first union position where she works on some of the more advanced units. The difference? “They didn’t care about us at the first job,” she said.
IBEW 1245 member Crystal Brush is also a Welder with three and a half years’ experience at Trayer. Before pursuing a welding job, Brush built cabinets, electrical units, and other side jobs. After her daughter was born, she went to Las Precitas Community College and took up welding thanks to her mother. “It fits my personality. I’ve always liked to fix everything,” she said. As for the union difference, “With the union it feels like there is a camaraderie and a lot of benefits. For one, we’re protected. I feel safe,” she said, “Especially as a woman. And that’s a big thing.”
IBEW 1245 member Alyssandra Yochelson has just started working as an Electrical Technician. After two months, she says, “It’s everything I’ve ever wanted. My grandpa was a Teamster.” Asked what she likes most, Yochelson responded saying, “The community, the camaraderie.” She proudly demonstrated her work on a low voltage control box which she described adding, “It’s the brain that directs power and protects things and people. We’re building the brain!”
Machine Operator Timothy Caprara has worked for more than twenty-six years, including the last six and a half years at Trayer. Originally from Romania, he pointed to meticulously stacked stainless steel poles and his workstation with pride. He declared, “The Union helped me. It has my back. I like it.”
Shipping and Receiving Clerk David West has been at Trayer since 2007. As a young man, he worked at a plumbing company. When a manager threatened to physically attack a co-worker, West stood up for his friend. Years later, the same young man suggested he join him at Trayer. “Brothers looking out for brothers,” he said. He added, “IBEW 1245 is great. If someone asked me why pay dues I’d say, the Union negotiates for us. If issues come up, they stand up for us. There’s strength in numbers.” He added, “The Union is good. And this company has been good.”
Lizarraga looked on as each worker shared their experience. He summed up what he enjoys most about being a Shop Steward and union representative on the shop floor, saying , “I enjoy getting the stories of my co-workers. I like being of service to my co-workers and helping them become better workers and a better people. And I like to empower them; to tell them not to be afraid or to limit themselves.”
– Eileen Purcell, Senior Advisor; Photos by John Storey