Business Manager's Message
Valentino B. Ceria
Aloha Members!
Last year the By-Laws and Working Rules of Local 675 was finally completed thanks to the hard work of President Matthew Brady and the By-Laws Committee. You all should have received the By-Laws and Working Rules handbook in the mail by now.
On Saturday, February 24th, Business Agent Sam Barrett, Jr. and I attended the Dry Dock #5 Anchoring Ceremony at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. Earlier, I signed the Project Labor Agreement along with other Unions, and Dragados/Hawaiian Dredging/Orion ("DHO") Joint Venture. The P-209-Dry Dock 3 Replacement Joint Base Pearl Harbor- Hickam, Hawaii Project ("P209"), is a $2.8 billion project for the new larger Dry Dock #5 buildout. We are looking at early 2025 when pipefitters will be needed for the job.
Recently, I signed new Labor-Management Agreements with AG Repair, LLC, Clyde T. Hirata, LLC, and Elite Mechanical, Inc. The companies are recognized as Local 675 signatory contractors.
The Plumbers and Fitters Local 675 Maui Fire Special Fund was an account established last year for donations to assist our members who were impacted by the Lahaina wildfire disaster. The checking account was closed last month in February, and the checks were equally distributed to three members who were directly affected by the fire. Both Business Agent Ben Panis and I flew out to Maui to meet with the three Maui members who lost their homes to the fire. The three members who were presented with the checks were Iokepa Auwae, Curtis Kunishige, and Wilfred Shim. Click here to read more.
I want to update you on the progress of the property acquired by the Union. The property is a 2.5-acre feesimple lot with an existing building on Moanalua Loop in Aiea. I initiated a New Building Committee consisting of myself, President Matthew Brady, Training Coordinator Dean Kobashigawa, Trust Fund Trustees, Kent Matsuzaki and Mark Suzuki. We selected an architect, RM Architects who we feel will meet our needs and budget. This portion of work will be for the construction of the mezzanine deck and common areas inside the building. The work will be done by union contractors funded by the Union. Future buildouts for the Training facility will be subsidized by the Training Fund. Our focus right now is on the Training facility since the current lease will expire in mid-2026 at Iwilei. We will be developing classrooms and hands-on work areas that will accommodate all the trades - plumbing, air conditioning and refrigeration, fire sprinkler, pipefitting, and welding. After that, we can focus on moving the Union Office and Trust Fund Administration Office over into the new Local Union 675 Building. It will be a "One-Stop-Shop" in a convenient area with lots of parking space. During the year, I will be keeping the membership informed of the progress.
Just to inform you that the 40th Annual Great Aloha Run took place on Presidents Day, February 19th. There were 50 participants representing Local 675 this year. We sponsored the entry fees for our members and families and were happy they wore our GAR Union tee-shirts to represent us in the Run.
In this newsletter, we focused on The Pipeline event. We see this as a good opportunity to educate the public on the benefits of belonging to our Union and to focus on the students who already show an interest in a trade. I would like to thank Head Training Coordinator Dean Kobashigawa and his staff as well as the many volunteers who made this first-of-its-kind program a successful one.
This year's Imi Loa Foundation Board of Directors reviewed the finances and decided to increase the Union's scholarship amount from $1,500 to $2,000, so be sure to check here for more information and other available scholarship opportunities offered to our membership.
Lastly, I want to congratulate former Business Agent Lance Hayashi who retired in February of this year. I want to thank him for his loyal service and wish him all the best for a happy retirement.
As always, stay informed, stay healthy, and be safe!
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