Please read the following new changes carefully. If you have any questions about them, please do not hesitate to call the District Council or talk to your Business Representative.

JOB REFERRAL SYSTEM CHANGES

1. The 11 day rule will be expanded to 25 days. That’s right! To allow members to work longer before being dropped from the Out-of-Work List, you will be able to work a total of 25 days before your name is dropped from the list. This will enable members, who regularly rely on the job referral list for employment opportunities, the ' chance to work more and not be distressed by those “short jobs'' because you will keep your spot on the list until you have worked 25 cumulative days. This change will take effect November 6, 2006.

2. One job refusal will be allowed. We have heard the concerns of members who have been dropped from the Out-of-Work List because by the time they received the dispatch call for work the next day (dispatch calling hours are between 3 and 6 p.m.),they had to refuse it because of previous commitments or obligations they have for that day. Now, you will be able to refuse a call from the Out-of-Work List office. The rules are: (1) You can do it only once in any dispatch cycle', and (2) you have to tell the job referral dispatcher you cannot accept the referral BEFORE you are told the details of the job. This change will take effect November 6, 2006.

 3. New Journey-Level Job Skill - Amtrak Safety Instruction. If you have taken this training at our Labor Technical College, you may call the job referral office to add it to your portfolio. lf you want to register for this training, please contact the school at 2 12-727-2224. This skill can be added effective immediately (subject to the 30 day lag for shop stewards). In the meantime, if you are called and offered a Market Recovery Rate job, you will be allowed to refuse it without affecting your position on the list

4. New Journey Level Job Skill - Market Recovery Rate. The District Council has negotiated a special wage and benefit package designed to enable Union contractors to effectively compete for, and take back from non-union contractors, work in the low rise residential housing market. The wage and benefit package is $46.25 per hour. If you will accept work on these projects, call the job referral office to add the Market Recovery Rate to your skills portfolio. This skill can be added effective immediately (subject to the 30 day lag for shop stewards). In the meantime, if you are called and offered a Market Recovery Rate job, you will be allowed to refuse it without affecting your position on the list.

5. Foreman/Layout skill divided. Al1 of you who have had the Foreman/Layout skill up until now will continue to have both of these skills listed; they have just been split to appear individually. Now you can choose either or both of these skills to be included in your portfolio. If you want to drop one of them, please call the job referral office.This change is effective immediately (subject to the 30 day lag for shop stewards).

6. Soon to come: Automated "riding the list'' notification. We are close to finalizing an automated, computerized program that will read the work hours reported each week by the contractors you work for and compare those hours to the 25 day rule.When you accumulate more than 200 reported hours (equal to 25 8-hour work days) and the program sees you still on the Out-of-Work List, you will get a pre-recorded telephone message informing you that your name will be dropped from the list in 48 hours. You will be instructed on how to call the job referral office if you think there is an error. It is our hope that this automated system will alleviate the hundreds of union charges tiled against members each year for striding the list'' and make the list fairer for everyone. You will receive more information about this inventive new program in the months ahead.

SHOP STEWARD CHANGES

Several important changes for Shop Stewards are about to be implemented. Please read them carefully.

1. Stewards must be active members in "good standing". This means you must have a current work card and cannot have any other outstanding fines or assessments due to the District Council or your Local Union. Retirees will not be sent out as Shop Stewards since they are only able to work limited hours per month. Shop stewards should be an example of the kind of Union member all our members should be. A shop steward found by a Business Representative to not be in good standing will be removed from his or her assignment and dropped from the Out-of- Work List, just as if you failed to report for work or reported for work without your tools. This rule will become effective immediately.

2. Stewards must finish the job they are assigned to. It is common knowledge that stewards often leave short term job assignments if they find themselves bucking up against the old 1 l-day rule. Sure, just like other carpenters, you don't want to go to the end of the list either. The unfortunate result of this is that some good, but short term jobs often see a merry-go-round of stewards being sent to the job. That creates problems for Business Representatives and contractors alike. Now that we are increasing the 1 l-day rule to provide for 25 days of work before you are dropped from the job referral list, stewards are advised that you are required to complete whatever job you are assigned to, or risk being dropped from the referral list if you quit before the job is completed. Business Representatives in the field will be enforcing this rule in the same the way they have reported shop stewards and other  carpenters who have failed to show up for their assignments when first dispatched. So do the right thing . . .when you get to the job, stay until the end.

3. New shop steward eligibility requirement. Effective immediately, in order to be eligible for shop steward certification, you must have at lest 5 years journey level experience in Union work.

4. Tightening up some loop holes - Shop steward dispatches and 48-hour delay on freeze holds. We have detected ways some people have tried to gain advantages in dispatches. As a result, for some time now, we have discontinued dispatching shop stewards on an immediate basis. Al1 shop steward dispatches will be made during regular dispatch hours for the next work day. In addition, an automatic 48-hour delay will be placed on the effective date, whenever a shop steward asks the job referral office to release a freeze hold earlier than originally requested. Under the current rules, any member can ask that their name be frozen on the dispatch list for up to 30 days simply by faxing a note to the job referral office. You can use this option to make sure you are not called for work when you know you will not be available (i.e. vacation or sickness). Longer freeze holds are available with a doctor's note or for other documented reasons (check with the job referral office if you have specific questions about this.) In order to prevent certain referral list manipulations through the use of freeze holds, if y-you release a previously registered freeze hold before the date originally requested, there will be a zl8-hol.l.r delay placed on that request. This change is another attempt to make the job referral process operate fairly for all. This change will take effect in early November, as soon as the computer programming is completed.

5.New Shop Steward Training In an effort to upgrade the skills and professionalism of our shop stewards by improved training, a new, comprehensive shop steward training program |will be launched in the coming months. Developed in cooperation with our Labor Technical College, shop steward training will be a full day, hour, daytime program. Instructors from our Labor Technical College, Business Representatives, District Council staff, lawyers and the Independent Investigator |will conduct the training. Look for more details in the coming months.

These are just some of the many improvements and changes your District Council has passed to make our operations more effective, fairer and open for all members to participate in. I look forward to communicating with you again in the near future to tell you about other ways we are working to have the District Council serve you better. Again, if you have questions or comments about any of the matters addressed in this letter, do not hesitate to contact the District Council-or to speak-up at your Local Union meetings.

Fraternally,

Michael J. Ford ,

Executive Secretary-Treasurer