IBEW 1245
  • Main Menu
    ▼
    • Our Union
      ▼
      • Merchandise
      • New Members
      • Structure
      • Bylaws
      • History
      • Obituaries
      • Our Employers
      • Members at Work: Photo Slideshow
      • Find a Job
      • Update Your Contact Information
    • Unit Meetings & Events
      ▼
      • Events
      • Unit Meetings
    • Agreements
    • Education
      ▼
      • JATC Classes
      • Scholarships
      • Tuition Reimbursement
      • First Aid & CPR Training
    • Update Your Info & Pay Dues Online
    • Contact Us
  • Sections
    ▼
    • 1245 News
    • PG&E
    • Outside Construction
    • Nevada
    • Manufacturing
    • Public Sector
    • Vegetation Management
    • Safety
  • Quick Links
    ▼
    • COVID-19 News Center
    • Benefits
    • PG&E Contract Section Index
    • Latest News
    • Find Your Rep
    • Unit Meetings
    • Organize
    • Calendar
    • Library
    • Stewards
    • Retirees
    • Community

IBEW1245

The power is in our hands

PAY YOUR DUES ONLINE
PART-1

Chapter 12: The Reid IBEW in the West

Crew working in PG&E Desabla Division in early 20th century. The 1910 IBEW contract provided for wage hikes and an allowance for the keep of a horse and wagon. Pacific Gas & Electric

Crew working in PG&E Desabla Division in early 20th century. The 1910 IBEW contract provided for wage hikes and an allowance for the keep of a horse and wagon. Pacific Gas & Electric

The Pacific District Council was aligned with the Reid IBEW. From 1909 to 1912, the Council bargained some 30 agreements for 7,000 IBEW members at 56 local unions. In 1910 the Council negotiated wage increases for PG&E electric classifications. That agreement also provided a closed shop and an expense allowance for the keep of a horse and wagon. Similar provisions were negotiated in 1912. With 700 members in 1912, Local 151 was the largest local in the Reid IBEW.

In 1911 Local 151 helped craft bills regulating overhead and underground electric construction in California. Over the strenuous protests of the Merchants’ and Manufacturers’ Association of Los Angeles, the bills were signed into law by Gov. Hiram Johnson.

Around this same time, United Railroads was pressuring San Francisco for outsized concessions to expand the transit system for the upcoming World’s Fair. In a slap at its old enemy, Local 151 joined others in proposing that any such transit facilities should revert to municipal ownership at the Fair’s conclusion. United Railroads’ grip on San Francisco was broken, giving way to the municipal transit system known today as Muni.

In March of 1912, the IBEW Pacific District Council incorporated gas workers into the labor agreement with PG&E—a further step toward unity. With a new round of negotiations coming up in early 1913, the top leaders of the Pacific District Council believed they could bring all PG&E crafts into one organization and present a united front at the bargaining table. The workers wanted more power. PG&E was not enthusiastic about this idea.

Next: Chapter 13

  • Introduction to the History of IBEW Local 1245
    • Skip to Part II
    • Skip to Part III
  • Chapter 1: Because Somebody Needed Their Help
  • Chapter 2: Gas Workers Organize
  • Chapter 3: The Earthquake
  • Chapter 4: The United Railroads Strike of 1906
  • Chapter 5: The Industrial Union Prophet
  • Chapter 6: The Street Carmen and the Slave Owner’s Son
  • Chapter 7: Bloody Tuesday
  • Chapter 8: Linemen Refuse to Back Down
  • Chapter 9: The “Hello Girls” Make a Stand
  • Chapter 10: The Strike Against Naphtaly
  • Chapter 11: The Split
  • Chapter 12: The Reid IBEW in the West
  • Chapter 13: PG&E Strike – An Exuberant Spectacle
  • Chapter 14: Contest of Wills
  • Chapter 15: No Neutral Position
  • Chapter 16: Brotherhood and Betrayal
  • Chapter 17: Thugs and Gunmen
  • Chapter 18: Dynamiters and Snitches
  • Chapter 19: Appetite for Direct Action
  • Chapter 20: Coup de Grâce
  • Chapter 21: The 1917 Telephone Strike
  • Chapter 22: The Big Frame-Up
  • Chapter 23: The 1919 Telephone Strike
  • Chapter 24: The American Plan
  • Quick Link: Organizing Sacramento Municipal Utility District
  • Quick Link: Organizing Sierra Pacific Power
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service

© 2022 IBEW Local 1245 - Responsive WordPress Website by HyperArts