NECA contractor Guarantee Electrical Co.’s Colorado office has earned a special federal designation for its excellence in workplace safety, health and welfare programs. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has awarded Guarantee Electrical Contracting with its Star designation in the agency’s Voluntary Protection Program. The designation covers the company’s mobile workforce at its Colorado worksites, including those where it does business as Berwick Electric. In addition to holding daily huddles on workplace safety to assess hazards, Guarantee Electrical Contracting’s health and wellness program includes mental health awareness and suicide prevention. Learn more.

The national trade publication Electrical Contractor recently featured IBEW/NECA Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Director Sylvester Taylor in an article about opportunities in the electrical trades.  It noted that “last July, he was selected to serve as a Department of Labor apprenticeship ambassador, expanding opportunities for those historically underserved. ‘For years, Blacks were trying to join the unions, and nobody wanted us,’ Taylor said, who is president and co-founder of Greater St. Louis Electrical Workers Minority Caucus (EWMC) and IBEW 1 recording secretary. ‘Now that sentiment has changed because unions need the numbers, so we’re going to strike while the iron is hot.’

Besides informing schools with large minority populations about apprenticeship opportunities, Taylor has led the local EWMC chapter in a mentorship program with the Missouri Department of Social Services Division of Youth Services. The division serves boys and girls under 18 who have committed felony-level offenses by supporting them to earn GEDs and gain employment. 

Once a month for the last eight years, local EWMC member volunteers have visited young people residing in youth services facilities to promote strategies to improve their lives and bring awareness of the electrical trade. Many have found jobs in retail, which the EWMC chapter encourages for transitioning to more solid ground, but two found employment in the electrical trade, Taylor said.” Read more.

Flags gently fluttered in breeze on Memorial Day at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery after IBEW Local 1, its family and friends placed them at graves to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice.  The annual effort was organized by IBEW Local 1’s Ricky Dinella.