The one that PMA offers me, and I assume all in the Longshore Division are offered the same, has 5 funds. Three of them have an annual return rate of approximately 5.45%. The other 2 are 28.14% and 43.60% respectively (for 1998 the last year I have total figures for). I can get a money market at my credit union that pays as much as the first 3 so why even bother with investing in them except for that you hopefully won’t have to pay as much in taxes at the end??
I can not borrow from it, or get into it for financial emergency, period. You have a different plan then I am offered. You should also consider that we have a graduating tax system that means you are going to pay a much larger percentage at the back end so any saving could be moot. Besides, what does this have to do with anything?? How you or anyone else cares to invest their money is none of my concern. Some Longies I know think investment is $100.00 worth of lottery tickets a week!!
And it should not have anything to do with our contract. PMA still does not offer this “perk” to all of our brothers and sisters (and apparently does not offer the same plan) that should be what’s addressed not how much we as individuals have in an investment portfolio. That’s something that needs to be brought up. Matching funds is something that the Foreman got off of our bargaining (again). I would like for once to let them do their contract negotiations first then let’s us get something off of their effort instead of the other way around.
Unless things have changed the foreman sit in on our negotiations but we aren’t allowed to sit in on theirs. That bothers me. When you consider that on average a foreman/walking boss makes 3 times as much as a longie (and has matching 401K funds to $2.00) and their wages are always quoted by the press as our own. We always take the heat for them....... Always... They quietly go along as the employers rich little lap dogs..... When was the last time you read a story in the JOC detrimental to them?? Or in any other paper for that matter?? People tend to call the steady crane drivers as the “prima donnas” of the waterfront but the foreman/walking bosses are by far...... They have better manning, conditions, pay, and other perks we could only dream of. If they need another foreman on the job, no problem, we will give you two, but if you ask for a couple of more lashers they cry poor!! Tell me who’s laughing all the way to the bank?? And if we go on strike the foreman collect unemployment, not bad huh??
I don’t mean this as an attack on any one foreman, just like I was not attacking anyone from Tacoma of SF when I wrote about them, I just want to point out these inequities that occur up and down the coast in MY opinion. And what Tacoma does, or San Diego for that matter is my business. I have been emailed by members from Tacoma about my opinion on their doubling practices and they have cried foul!! How dare I wash their linen in public. It is none of my business. They say they’re autonomous and have the right to dispatch anyway they chose.. Well autonomy only goes so far and when you consider that Tacoma agreed to NOT double back (as did all of the ILWU locals) it is my business no matter what local I or anyone else belongs to, ALL locals are subject to caucus decree. ALL locals and longshoreman ARE subject to the principles of this Union.
Tim 35181
