Education & Training Dept. announces October Local Chairman workshop
CLEVELAND, September 17 — The BLET Education & Training Department will conduct a Local Chairman Workshop from Sunday, October 21 through Saturday October 27. It will be held at the Maritime Institute Conference Center in Linthicum Heights, Md.
The workshop is not for only Local Chairmen. Vice-Local Chairmen are also eligible to attend, but precedence will be given to Local Chairmen. All attendees other than Local Chairman must be approved by their Division’s Local Chairman. The workshop is limited to the first 20 who register.
Among other assignments, the workshop will include BLET organizational structure and functions, representing members at disciplinary and decertification hearings, union leadership skills, claim and grievance handling, and writing and editing skills. Participants also will learn how to effectively use the BLET arbitration database. A highlight of the workshop is when attendees participate in a simulated disciplinary hearing.
Local Chairmen must register for the workshop online through the BLET website at: http://www.ble-t.org/lc.
Workshop instructors will include: BLET National Secretary-Treasurer William C. Walpert; National Vice-President Marcus J. Ruef; Special Representative & Coordinator of Education and Training Ken Kroeger; and Assistant Director of Arbitration Doug Davidson.
The BLET National Division pays the costs of books, equipment, tuition and a graduation banquet. BLET members who attend are responsible for their transportation costs as well as their room and board. Members will be provided with instructions on how to make room reservations after registering for the workshop through the BLET website.
Upon successful completion of the course, attendees will qualify for a $123 per day stipend from the North American Railway Foundation (NARF). The stipends will be paid directly to their Division Secretary-Treasurer.
NARF is a non-profit operating foundation formed by the Brotherhood’s Relief and Compensation Fund (BR&CF) to support rail history, education, safety and technology in the United States and Canada. With initial funding and continued Board of Directors stewardship coming from the BR&CF, NARF has supported many non-political projects throughout the United States and Canada over the past 10 years. The primary focus of these efforts has been in support of organized rail labor — giving back to all of the men and women of the railroad community across North America.
The workshop will take place at the Conference Center of the Maritime Institute in Linthicum Heights, Md., which is approximately five minutes away from the Baltimore Washington International (BWI) Airport. A complimentary shuttle service is provided to and from the airport.
Anyone with questions should contact Ken Kroeger, Coordinator of the Education and Training Department, at: (216) 272-0986 or Kroeger@ble-t.org.
Monday, September 17, 2012
bentley@ble.org
