Organized Labor

Sprinkler fitters are among the few craftspeople who are happy never to see the fruits of their labor put to the real test. They are content if the miles of fire sprinkler pipe they install in modern skyscrapers appear merely ornamental. Occasionally they read a news story about a fire that was put out by a sprinkler system. Then they smile and take pride in knowing that, once again, their trade saved lives.

Sprinkler fitters’ work begins when construction begins and continues until the building is nearly completed. First, they run underground pipe to get the water from the street to the building. As the structure goes up, they insert and sleeve the floors before the concrete is poured.

By Richard Bermack
Contributing Writer 

"I'm like one of the guys who worked on the great Egyptian pyramids," marble finisher Ricky Saelee told Organized Labor, as he wheeled a large stone that was to become part of the marble wall of a cathedral. Bricklaying is one of the oldest trades, and Bricklayers, Tilelayers and Allied Craftworkers Local 3 is the oldest continuously running union in the United States. It represents bricklayers, tilelayers, marble masons, finishers, pointer-cleaner-caulkers, and terrazzo mechanics. They build and restore everything from modern, grey, concrete-block office buildings to ornate, century-old marble floors. The local represents almost 3,000 workers from Monterey County to the Oregon border including all 45 counties of Northern California.

By Richard Bermack
Contributing Writer

'Often as a woman you'll be on a job site and feel alone. It is so amazing to walk into this conference and know you are really not alone, that all these women here today are in the trades and shared your experiences," said Carol Toliver of Tradeswomen, Inc., addressing the audience at the seventh annual California Women Building California Conference in Oakland, May 17-18. "It is also about union strengthening and making sure we are the best union members we can be. We have a lot to contribute, and it is only through unity and community we can remain strong," she continued.

Some 400 conference attendees came from as far away as Texas and Oklahoma. They ranged from pre-apprentices to master tradespeople and instructors. Every aspect of the building trades was represented.

The Show Must Go On

By Richard Bermack
Contributing Writer

The cyberworld of online shopping was predicted to be the end of trade shows, but just the opposite happened. In the last few years, trade shows have blossomed into a major Bay Area industry. The larger shows attract between 50,000 to 100,000 visitors. Many of the shows feature theatrical performances with major stars. Over a million people attend trade shows in the Bay Area each year, according to Sign Display and Allied Crafts Local Union 510 Representative Mike Hardeman. "People are hungry for the touch and feel of products, and the company of other people with similar interests," he explains.

Each week Local 510 members transform huge empty halls at convention centers and hotels into small metropolises with hundreds of booths and flashing lights.

Building Cable Cars at the Woods Carpentry Shop

By Richard Bermack
Contributing Writer

Along with the Golden Gate Bridge and Fisherman’s Wharf, cable cars are San Francisco icons. This month we went to the Woods carpentry shop to talk with the workers who build and rehab them. Bob Harris, the shop supervisor, has worked on cable cars for over 30 years. “We have different tools today, but we accomplish the same thing, and the cars are pretty much the same,” he says. Many of the cars are over 100 years old, imbuing those who work on them with a sense of tradition and craftsmanship. “We are building moving historical monuments. They are pieces of art,” comments carpenter David Valstad.

The workers create every piece that makes up the car. They have a room filled with century-old patterns that they use to mill the wooden pieces or fabricate the metal ones, sending them out to a foundry. They recently hired a pattern maker, He Du, to maintain and update the patterns.