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FROM THE BUSINESS MANAGER
Greetings Local 44 members and Happy New Year! 2025 is looking to be very busy with several projects and happenings throughout the jurisdiction. We recently had seven new members join us from NorthWestern Energy’s Dave Gates Generating Station site. Local 44 is excited to add these individuals to our membership and we look forward to representing their interests for many years to come. If you meet any of these guys at an upcoming meeting, please give them a warm welcome. Our staff is ready to get to work on drafting up a new collective bargaining agreement on their behalf. In addition, we are gearing up for impending contract negotiations with Marias River Electric Cooperative in Shelby and have already started discussing, researching, and gathering ideas for Triangle Communications and Missoula Electric Cooperative negotiations for later in the year. And speaking of later in the year 2025, we will be assembling our NorthWestern Energy Pipes & Wires and Hydro negotiating teams in prep for Spring of 2026 contract negotiations. If any member of these groups has an interest in participating as a negotiator, please reach out to me and let me know sooner rather than later. I’m open to having a Q & A with you to see if this process might be a good fit for you or not. Your Local 44 President, Eric Cheney, per the IBEW Constitution in Article 17 oversees appointing members to all committees. He and I work closely to make sure we assemble the proper individuals who will in turn represent the entire group regardless of Classification. My goal is to request an international bargaining training class likely to be held in early January 2026. So, I will need both NWE negotiating teams appointed and committed to this by December of 2025.
Finally, and in conclusion, in another good news story, NWE has recently partnered with North Plains Connector LLC, which is owned by Grid United, to join a new high-voltage transmission project. This project is a 3,000 megawatt, 420-mile HVDC line, which will be built with endpoints near Bismarck, ND and Colstrip, MT. Their goal is to complete the permitting phase by 2026 with construction expected to begin in 2028 and a completion date of 2032. More info to come later.
Thanks everyone and be safe and well.
In Unity,
Scott Klungland
FROM THE ASSISTANT BUSINESS MANAGER
Boe and I were able to carve out some time to chat with some students at a few different high schools and schedule a few school visits in the months to come. This is by far my favorite part of this job. I don’t know what it is about being able to help steer students or young adults toward success in life, but I really do enjoy it. Maybe it’s the fact that they are trapped into listening to dad jokes like this one. Q: What did the scarf say to the hat? A: You go on ahead, I’m just going to hang around. It’s so good, literally one of the best, you know you’re laughing! Some of the most challenging talks with students are when there is no connection, and it seems like a waste of time or that I failed that day. It is these failures that force me to adjust and try that much harder to connect the next time. It is crazy to think that some people just don’t enjoy listening to me talk. Hahaha another joke! A few of the things I try to impress upon the students is that our worst memories can be our most driving factors, our greatest success comes from our worst failures, and a good attitude will take you a long way. Anyone who would like to join us and maybe share your story with some high schoolers, give Boe or I a call and we can get you some dates and times. Who knows, you may help put someone on the path to success!
Happy New Year,
Your Brother,
Kyle Hintz
(406) 565-3250
khintz@ibew44.org
JOURNEYMAN UPGRADES
Local 44 would like to congratulate the following members for achieving Journeyman status:
Bridger Barnett – Journeyman Lineman
Mark Mathews – Journeyman Lineman
Caleb Naldrett – Journeyman Lineman
Clay Telles – Journeyman Lineman
Blaine Wetzsteon – Journeyman Lineman
Kyle Zumwalt – Journeyman Operator
Great job and best wishes for a great career!
MEMBERSHIP ORGANIZER
Happy New Year! And with the new year I am very happy to announce our new I.B.E.W. Local 44 members from NorthWestern Energy’s Dave Gates Generation Plant in Anaconda Mt. If you are not familiar with these individuals and what they have been trying to accomplish for the past 9 years, let me shine some light on what has been a tremendous uphill battle for them to become I.B.E.W. members. To sum up their battle in a few sentences, it started back in 2015 with us taking a couple swings at it, going in front of the N.L.R.B. for a hearing that did not go our way. Then the Operator Engineers tried to organize them which resulted in another swing and miss. A few of them contacted us again earlier this year asking for representation and wanting to become part of the I.B.E.W. I had only been doing this gig for a couple of months and really did not know where to start. So, after talking to a few of the previous predecessors at our local, asking for guidance from the I.O., researching our files from the original tries, reading through the hearing files, asking more questions and probably driving some retired members crazy, we made a plan and worked it. I was told that this would be nearly impossible to accomplish and that it will be a marathon not a sprint. Man, that is no S#@t! But here we are, on November 26th, 2024, their ballots were counted and with a mass majority “yes” vote the first and huge hurdle was crossed. We are now in the process of getting their negotiations started and are extremely excited to get these individuals their first C.B.A. worked out, signed, and stamped.
The first step in the process of organizing is meeting with a group or individual that we are trying to get on board, asking questions about what they want to accomplish and if there are any issues they need addressed. These questions in my limited experience have been answered with the responses of financial gains and protection from management. The coolest thing about this story is when we met with this group one of their main reasons for wanting to become union is that they live and work amongst our members, have seen the brotherhood from the outside looking in, and want to be part of it. In one of our meetings they asked if the current membership would be welcoming to them coming in? I responded “Hell yeah” they will be welcoming! So, if you run across these new members, please throw out your hand and give them a huge congrats and welcome to the I.B.E.W.
The fun thing about my job is that now my next question is “Who is Next”? So, let’s go “More in 2025”.
Your Brother,
Boe Shuman
RETIRED MEMBERS
Local 44 would like to congratulate the following members who have retired from the trade:
Thomas Baber
Shane Myers
Best wishes for a long and happy retirement!
JANUARY UNIT MEETINGS
Great Falls Jan. 06, 2025 6:00 PM Great Falls Labor Temple
Havre Jan. 07, 2025 6:00 PM Elks Lodge
Lewistown Jan. 08, 2025 5:30 PM NWE Service Center
Billings Jan. 09, 2025 5:30 PM NWE Service Center
Missoula Jan. 15, 2025 6:00 PM Missoula Labor Temple
Butte Jan. 16, 2025 5:30 PM Local 44 Office
Helena Jan. 20, 2025 5:00 PM Townsend **
Bozeman Jan. 21, 2025 6:00 PM Bozeman Labor Temple
**Helena Unit meeting will be held in Townsend, location TBD**
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