Business Manager’s Message — December 2022

Happy Tidings for the Holiday Season

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Happy holidays to all our IBEW 11 family! As we look back at the year winding down, 2022 has been a very strong year for our union. Work was very healthy, with our members posting over 11 million man hours of work in our pension plan, we won big on the political front in the Nov. 8 mid-terms, and thanks to President Biden’s infrastructure bill as well as Gov. Newsom’s climate bill, we can look forward to hundreds of new projects coming online around the state and the country.

In addition to looking forward to a very robust work picture in 2023, our pension and medical plans are healthy. There is every reason to be optimistic this holiday season, as we all look forward to so many good work opportunities in the next few years. 

The 2023 Work Picture

I want to begin by thanking the IBEW and the Biden administration for passage of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill last year, with many of those projects just coming online now. IBEW 11 members are huge beneficiaries of that infrastructure money, as tens of thousands of work hours are being created and will continue for many years to come. 

In California, the Governor’s climate bill, which we were instrumental in helping to pass, will create much work for our members. Now, we can all look forward to over $1 billion in EV charging station work around the state. So be sure to get EVITP certified. An Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Training Program certification will make you qualified for this work. The certification is offered through our very own ETI, so be sure to reach out.  

I just returned from the State Building Trades Association meeting, where the new “Energy Czar” was announced — former LA mayor and labor’s friend Antonio Villaraigosa. So look forward to a close working relationship between your union and more electrical work.

Political Clout

We spend much time talking about politics in our communications to you. Why? Because politics is so important to our daily lives – as workers, as community members, and as heads of our families.

I’m proud to say labor did very well in the recent mid-terms. We elected a very labor-friendly mayor – Karen Bass. I want to welcome to my long-time friend as she takes the reins of our city. I was honored to attend her inauguration and look forward to a close working relationship with her and the new City Council.

We elected dozens of new legislators around the state and passed measure ULA (the United to House LA measure), the mansion tax, that will provide annual funding to help build tens of thousands of low-income housing to get our homeless population housed and off the streets.

Our union has clout. IBEW 11 is a known entity in Sacramento, as well as City Hall. The current speaker of the Assembly spoke at our recent General Membership meeting about the state of the state and all the incoming projects he looks forward to building with us.

On the horizon is billions of dollars in infrastructure work, solar, EV charging stations, and now, the ramping up of alternative energy sources in nuclear and hydrogen. And don’t forget, the Olympics are coming in 2028, which means even more infrastructure and rebuilding work for us.

2023 is a very good time to be an electrician.

Here’s to wishing you and yours a joyous holiday season and a happy new year. As always, be safe and stay healthy. 

In solidarity,

Joël Barton
IBEW 11 Business Manager