Things You Need to Know!
By: Niel Dawson, IEC Atlanta / GA Executive Director
2020 is off to a great start at the Atlanta, IEC State and National levels! Having just come back from the National Business Summit, I wanted to share a few important things that I learned that are of value.
First, the US House passed the PRO-Act (Protecting Right to Organize Act), which has just about everything the union wants to more easily organize independent companies. This went very closely along party lines and currently has no chance of passing the Senate, however, if the Democrats were to win the Senate and keep the House, along with winning the White House, then the PRO-Act would certainly pass. This is why it is important to get involved at the National level and why you should consider attending the National Legislative Conference in DC on April 28-30 (IECI.org to register)
I also learned that the 529 Savings Plans that many parents use to save for their kid’s education can now be used for IEC’s Apprenticeship Program books and tuition. This is a great selling points to parents when talking with them about their children’s education, and also gives more validity to our apprenticeship program.
The Secretary of Labor, Eugene Scalia, addressed the attendees at the conference and IEC Atlanta was the only chapter that he mentioned in his speech for our work with the local community and Goodwill Industries. He also went on to provide very significant numbers regarding President Trump’s initiative regarding government regulations. For every one new regulations, the Federal government has implemented they have eliminated seven, thus making it easier for small business to conduct business.
Serving on the National IEC Membership Committee, we were provided with the growth of IEC chapters over the last four years and I’m very proud to report that out of 52 chapters, Atlanta was number 4 with 46% growth and Georgia was 11th at 36% growth! The national average growth of members by chapter was 13%, with a high of 100% and a low of -33%.
I’m also very proud of our member’s involvement at the National level and their service to our industry.
National Regional Board Member
Kristen Williams, Penco
Government Affairs Committee
Ralph Ireland, Ireland Electric
Niel Dawson, IEC Atlanta/Georgia
Emerging Leader Committee
Kristen William, Penco
Industry Recognition/Workforce Development
Todd Hawkins, IEC Atlanta/Georgia
Apprenticeship & Training Committee
Mike Gunter, IEC Atlanta/Georgia
Codes & Standards
Bruce Bowman, Fox Systems
President’s Advisory Council
Niel Dawson, IEC Atlanta/Georgia
IEC Foundation
Kristen Williams, Penco
Membership Committee
Niel Dawson, IEC Atlanta/Georgia
Professional Development
Todd Hawkins, IEC Atlanta/Georgia
