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 When people think of union carpenters, massive construction sites and downtown skyscrapers spring to mind. But Industrial Carpenters Local 2236 represents more than a thousand members at a variety of small shops which build custom products. McRoskey Mattress Company, founded in 1899, is one of those small, boutique shops.
McRoskey’s main facility, a three-story Victorian building on Market Street, was built in 1925 by the grandfather of owner Robin Azevedo. Walking through the building, with its high ceilings and bay windows, one is taken back to a time when manufacturers took pride in their products, when they were more interested in bragging about quality than pumping out the cheapest product; when crafsmanship and best practices ruled. And that meant using skilled union labor.
 McRoskey builds their mattresses from scratch, starting with 700-pound stands of wire that are turned into coils and woven into the steel innersprings that are the heart of their mattresses. The work is largely done by hand, with the use of a few machines the company purchased in 1948 from an innersprings manufacturer that was going out of business.
After the wire is wound into coils, Vera Griboyedova, Boris Reynish, and Lucy Ortiz crimp the coils and lace them together with a helical wire. After the innersprings are put together, they are baked in an oven for 30 minutes at 400 degrees to temper the steel.
 Workers can rotate tasks, giving the factory the feel of a workshop rather than an assembly line. The mattresses are custom built to order, including custom sizes and dimensions. The company has a mattress showroom at the Market Street building we visited. Those interested in buying a union-made mattress can also check their website, http://www.mcroskey.com
The company provides its employees with mattresses at a very affordable rate, so after a hard day’s work, they get to enjoy the comforts of their labor.
How is the mattress to sleep on? “Wonderful,” all the workers replied with pride.
Industrial Carpenters Local 2236 represents 1,200 workers in over 35 shops in the San Francisco Bay Area. McRoskey employs about 25 union workers.
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 Boris Reynish
10 years
I worked in a factory in my old country (Ukraine) making measuring tapes. I did construction and welding. I like doing different things. Everything is interesting about this work. I’m doing helicos today, but sometimes I do framing or make the covering. There is a lot of variety.
When I was in Mexico I stayed in a hotel, and I compared the hotel mattress to our mattress. I was glad to come home to my McRoskey mattress, which is very comfortable.
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 Manuel Ordonez
10 years
After the mattress is sewed closed, it still resembles a balloon. Then Ordonez tacks the top and bottom together with ties. He uses a wood pattern to create the rows of hills and valleys one is used to seeing on the top of a mattress.
I’m a topper. This is the last part of the process. It’s a tough job. The responsibility is to try to make sure the mattress is perfect. I use a pattern board to make sure all the tacks are perfect and then check them by hand.
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 Ramon Novarro
30 years
Right now I’m preparing the frame to lay the coils in the box spring. I’ve been doing this for quite a while, but every day is still a new experience. We have to get it right. I want to make sure the coils will go straight up and down after I’m finished. I sleep on one of these, and any time I go on a trip, I miss my McRoskey mattress.
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 Lucy Ortiz
20 years
It’s fun. The product is very good. We make the best. I have my own king-size McRoskey. Lacing together all the coils with the helical can be a little tricky, but once you get through, it’s fine. I love this job. It was my first job, and I’ve never worked anywhere else.
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 Mayya Grechko
10 years
I sew, I cut, and I seam the mattresses. Today I might sew and cut; tomorrow I seam the mattresses. My family has one of these mattresses. I recommend them. If you are ready to buy, I make it for you.
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 Navia Colindres
8 years
Alejandra Martinez installs eyelets on the side of the mattress, providing ventilation.
The eyelets allow for air circulation in the mattress. The eyelets give the mattress style and allow air to flow. Before we got this mattress, my husband had disc problems and trouble sleeping. Now he can sleep at night without as much pain.
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 Marijana Dokic
10 years
The mattress is covered with bats of cotton and a polyester blend, stuffed in the mattress cover, and pinned together. Dokic is trimming the stuffing.
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 Gennadiy Dubrov
8 years
When Dubrov gets the mattress, it looks like a blown-up balloon, the cover swelling from the stuffing. He must sew canvas tape around the mattress, sealing the seams. He is from the Ukraine, where he worked as a fireman. He did window and door installation in the U.S. before working for McRoskey.
The job is difficult, but it’s fun. You need to get the feel of the machine. You use your body to push down on the mattress to make it easier to sew it closed.
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 Gennadiy Feygenberg
15 years
I make the box springs. The best part is being able to make a good quality mattress. I was a carpenter in Russia and did construction. We tried to do quality work there, but it’s not possible. Here it’s much easier to do a good job, and that’s what I like.
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 Vera Griboyedova
9 years
I like the job. I like lacing and crimping.
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On the Jobsite 
