My decision to step down from the Union Executive was not an easy one, but I believe it is the right one to make. There are capable people that can handle the problems that develop and I believe that our members will be represented in a professional manner. I have indicated that it makes no sense for a person to stay in the President’s position until one retires. That would only leave the local in a vulnerable position. I think that the local will have an orderly transition and probably not “miss a beat”.
I must thank all of the members of this local for giving me the opportunity to advance through the positions of the local. I have had the opportunity to work with many dedicated individuals, who put the interests of the Local before their own. We have tackled many problems that have improved the workplace for our members. This could only be accomplished by having members who provided me with support, and for this I am grateful. It made my job a lot easier knowing that the membership was behind me.
The next few years will be very interesting. I believe that the oil industry will become the key player in world economics and the value of what we produce will be considerably greater. It would be foolish to exclude workers from the benefits of such a valuable commodity. We need to stay in touch with our National Bargaining Program and we need to continue to be an active participant in this program.
We have built a strong Local, which has never been stronger. Build on this by providing our Executive members with support. The Company does not offer these folks any support, so we have to do this. Once again, thank you for all of the support the members of Local 594 have given to me.
In Solidarity,
Ray Limacher – President CEP Local 594