The committees funded under this program are not limited to any particular activity. Such committees in the past have focused their efforts on such goals as improving labor relations, increasing productivity and enhancing the quality of work life.

It is the intent of the Act that funds awarded under this program support efforts of employees and employers who are covered by a formal collective bargaining agreement.

For information on how to apply for an FMCS Grant, click here.

FY2005 Funding Summary

05-OH/I-001 (NC)                       Akron General Medical Center

                                                    Ohio Nurses Association

                                                            $35,778

The AGREE (Akron General Respects Each Employee) Program is a Dynamic Adaptive Dispute System (DyADS) to help Akron General Medical Center and the Ohio Nurses Association develop a process to manage workplace conflict.    The FMCS grant enables the AGREE Program to obtain the assistance of an Ombuds person who will coordinate and manage the disputes, maintain statistics, serve when appropriate as a third-party neutral, and promote awareness of the AGREE Program through education and training. 

05-WI/I-002                       Federal Mogul Corporation Powertrain Systems

                                                     IAMAW Local Lodge 1438

                                                               $64,994 

In the past 6 years, Federal-Mogul Corporation Powertrain Systems of Schofield, WI, has experienced a 24% reduction in both staff and sales (globalization has lowered the price of piston rings).  Federal Mogul Corporation and the Local Lodge 1438 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers have been in the process of executing a new labor-management relationship based on the High Performance Work Organization (HPWO) Partnership process developed by the IAMAW, and the grant will enable them to successfully implement the HPWO Partnership. 

05-OR/PS-003                                Multnomah County, Oregon

       AFSCME Local 88

                                                                $125,000

Multnomah Oregon has the largest population in the county, and the American Federation and State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 88 represents the biggest number of county employees.  Relations between labor and management have deteriorated because Multnomah County’s ongoing revenue shortfall has caused insecurity among the workforce with severe budget constraints, staff layoffs, and elevated stress and anxiety.  The FMCS grant will give the county and the union much needed funds to leverage their resources in order to jointly improve organizational effectiveness, promote cooperative relations, and enhance communications. 

The Pacific Coast Maritime Labor-Management Consortium (PCMC) and Inlandboatmen’s Union of the Pacific are comprised of the leadership of five Pacific maritime unions and five Pacific maritime employers in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California and Hawaii.  The PCMC was formed to seek an innovative regional solution to the converging problems of an aging mariner demographic, a lack of entry-level positions and the new international and Federal training requirements.  Using prior FMCS grants, PCMC has developed new and innovative approaches to maritime workforce development through partnerships with state and local educators and labor organizations, government workforce development agencies, community coalitions, and U.S. Coast Guard certifying authorities in two states.  Additional FMCS funding will help labor and management continue to work together to establish more regional groups in the other Pacific Coast States.

05-OH/I-005              Electrical Trades Center

                                    IBEW Local Union #683

Central Ohio Chapter of National Electrical Contractors Associations

 $122,997

An application for the LAMP (Labor and Management Performance) project was submitted by the Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee (JATC) for the Electrical Trade Center, its educational operations.  The goal is to form a more productive relationship between labor and management by improving organizational effectiveness and capabilities, facilitating positive communication between labor, management and the community, and emphasizing labor-management team-building, in order to deliver value to customers and to build a shared vision for the electrical industry in Central Ohio.

05-NY/I-006                                Skilled Trades Diversity Council

                              Tompkins-Building & Construction Trades Council

The Skilled Trades Diversity Council is composed of members of Tompkins Workforce New York, the New York State Department of Labor Apprenticeship Program and other local construction contractors, Tompkins-Seneca-Tioga Area Board of Cooperative Education Services and local community organizations that work with youth and underrepresented populations and women.  With the FMCS grant, the Council plans to increase workplace diversity in the construction industry with expanded outreach to underrepresented populations and women, a pre-apprenticeship program and exit interview for employees who are leaving skilled trades.

 05-IA/I-007                             Iowa Health Buyers Alliance 

Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical & Energy Worker International Union

                                                       $125,000

The IHBA was founded in April 2004 by the Dubuque Area Labor Management Council, the Health Policy Corporation of Iowa and the Labor Management Health Care Coalition, Upper Midwest.  With almost 10,000 members, the Alliance works to improve the quality, operation, performance and cost-effectiveness of their health care and benefits plans.  The FMCS grant will enable the IHBA to (1) identify, develop, evaluate, recommend and provide access to cost-effective and high performance policies, practices, providers and products; (2) increase the membership base; and (3) solidify administrative roles and develop key partnerships

05-OH/I-008 (NC)                       Akron General Medical Center

                                                    Ohio Nurses Association

                                                             $14,222

Additional FMCS funding will assist the Akron General Medical Center and the Ohio Nurses Association  with the continuation  of an Ombuds person to manage workplace issues and disputes that do not fit a traditional grievance process and promote awareness of the AGREE program through education and training.

                                                               $99,522

The Construction Employers’ Association (CEA) in conjunction with five management associations have come together with the Chicago Building Trades Council (CBTC) to create a joint labor-management coalition for the specific purpose of exploring and addressing the reason for journeymen’s reluctance to assume leadership positions.  The future of first line supervision in construction depends on identifying motivated and qualified journeymen to step-up to effectively execute foremen roles and responsibilities.  The Coalition is comprised of seven industry partners: the Construction Employers Association  (CEA), the Chicago & Cook County Building and Construction Trades Council (CBTC), Chicagoland Sheet Metal Contractors Association (CSMCA), the Electrical Contractors Association (ECA), the Mechanical Contractors Association (MCA), the Plumbing and Mechanical Contractors of Northern Illinois (PAMCANI) and the Plumbing Contractors Association (PCA).

                                                          $119,187    

The North Central Wisconsin area includes nine counties; Adams, Forest, Langlade, Lincoln, Marathon, Portage, Wood and Villas.  A grant will assist the Council in a transition to a Regional Training Partnership capable of effectively responding to area economic and workforce development needs of their member unions and employers.  The initial focus will be on the paper industry, to expand to other manufacturing industries and one additional sector such as Health Care or Construction. 

 05-CT/I-011                     GrowJobsCT Labor-Management Program

                                         District Lodge 26, IAMAW, AFL-CIO  

GrowJobsCT is a state-wide labor management program to retain and expand manufacturing jobs that are disappearing in Connecticut at an alarming rate.  The grant will provide valuable funding to help GrowJobsCT and District Lodge 26, IAMAW build labor management cooperation, create advanced educational and communications programs on the importance of the manufacturing sector and greatly expand outreach efforts to manufacturers, union-represented manufacturing workers, media and policy makers.

 05-PA/I-012                                   Penn Metal Fabricators                        

                                              IAMAW Local Lodge 2779 

                                                          $48,519

Penn Metal Fabricators performs metal fabrication and welding for the United States military, aviation, US Postal Service, biomedical, construction and electrical industries. In order to remain competitive, both labor and management leaders at Penn Metal Fabricators recognized the need for change and instituted an HPWO (High Performance Work Organization) Partnership in order to improve work processes, reduce costs and generate growth opportunities to save and create jobs.  The FMCS grant will enable the partners to continue this joint effort.   

 05-WI/P-013                              Waukesha Engine Dresser Inc.                        

Waukesha Engine is a business unit of Dresser, Inc. which has a worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of highly sophisticated engineering equipment and services sold worldwide since 1929.  Currently, 80% of its workforce requires training in one or more skills in their job.  The FMCS grant will help Waukesha Engine and the Local Lodge 1377 IAMAW transition from a voluntary training center to a mandatory training system with classrooms and educational resources that will focus on employee workplace skills development.

The Montana Labor-Management Alliance (MLMA) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the interests of everyone in public works construction – the worker, the contractor, the awarding agency and the taxpayer.  To increase the number of young people entering apprenticeship programs in the construction trades the program will focus primarily on high school and college students and workers in minimum wage jobs seeking to improve their situation.  Emphasis will be on schools in rural areas of Montana, and the goal is to visit a minimum of 130 high schools. 

So that their workforce can better compete with non-represented companies, The West Michigan Construction Alliance and Ironworkers of Local 340 propose to improve the productivity skills of construction employees and the economic development skills of construction management through a labor and management cooperative program.

WMCA will initiate training, business and marketing programs to educate their signatory contractors, union leadership and contractor organizations; and provide management, customer service, and technology and advocacy education to empower both labor and management to use modern presentation practices and marketing materials to assist with visibility. 

 05-WI/PS-016                                                    City of Milwaukee  

               International Association of Fire Fighters Local 215                                                                                                            $101,383

The Fire Department of the City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Local 215 of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), in partnership with the Center for Dispute Resolution Education at Marquette University, applied for a grant to expand and enhance the existing dispute resolution system in the Milwaukee Fire Department by designing and implementing a new training component for probationary firefighters and paramedics (Fire Cadets) that will emphasize cultural competence and knowledge of dispute resolution systems. This will be done through in service training to the rest of the department by specialized teams of trainers.