Proposition K supporters forgot about the workers: Eddie Trevizo
The authors of Proposition K had El Paso Electric Company in their crosshairs. They were so focused on taking down the utility company they forgot to stop and think about how Proposition K would affect the workers of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) 960 and their own community.
IBEW 960 is the local blue-collar workforce for El Paso Electric. We are the workers responsible for maintaining our community’s electric grid and have been doing so since 1944. How is it that no one endorsing Proposition K ever bothered to ask the labor force how it would affect us?
Proposition K calls for a hostile city takeover of El Paso Electric. We have all heard how costly and unfeasible this is, but let’s envision this happening for a minute and how this could affect the workers.
No matter what line of work you are in, rumors of your company being taken over brings a ton of stress. How will things change? Will there be layoffs? Will there be a change to compensation for workers? How about health care, or other benefits? How will my daily duties change? You get the idea. These thoughts have been bouncing around the heads of many IBEW members since Proposition K was put on the ballot.
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Proposition K will ban the use of city water for fossil fuel industry activities. What does this mean for the workers?
First, we need to understand that our power plants cannot generate power without water, which means the units will be shut down. If these plants are shut down, then there is no need to staff them. The plants in question employ hundreds of workers. So essentially, Proposition K will cost hundreds of jobs before creating one. This will create a domino effect that will undoubtedly raise customer rates.
Proposition K reads more like a fine print disclaimer or run-on sentence than an actual proposal. It is bloated, misguided, and not in the right direction for our community.
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IBEW 960 answers the call day and night, rain or shine. We work through severe heat, windstorms, and frigid winters. We were there to help get us through a pandemic and we never wavered. We are the men and women who work hard every day to make sure we keep the lights on.
IBEW 960 has stood by our community; now we are asking for our community to stand by us. Vote no on Prop K.
Eddie Trevizo is president of IBEW Local 960.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Prop K supporters forgot about the workers: Eddie Trevizo
