Secretary-Treasurer reports to delegates
Union remains financially sound, squeaky-clean

By DEBORAH A. MILES

Addressing delegates at PEF’s 25th Annual Convention, PEF Secretary-Treasurer Jane Hallum said the union’s finances are in good shape. She applauded PEF President Roger Benson for his integrity and values and noted the importance of a “squeaky-clean” membership, especially during the current PS&T contract negotiations.

“We are at war,” Hallum said. “Having any financial discrepancies would be a distraction to our message. We are held to very high standards of accountability. We will exceed those standards and not provide ammunition to the enemy. Our hard-earned rights are at stake.”

Hallum blasted the Bush administration for being anti-labor and for the negative attitude it has toward working families. She cited the escalating costs of health insurance as one example, adding that Bush could resolve this problem by stopping companies from spending millions of dollars on advertising.

Push Bush out the door
“We can be ready for this fight and we need to be focused on this fight,” she said. “We need to put someone in the White House who is friendly to workers, addresses our causes and who will help us advance. Let’s unite, because there is nothing like old-fashioned solidarity.”

Hallum noted that workers’ safety is also an issue. “There are six million Americans injured on the job every year,” she said. “There are more people killed in the workplace each year than the number of people who died in the World Trade Center.”

Flaws in the system
To inspire new delegates at the convention and explain why she became an activist, Hallum also reflected upon work-related incidents she has seen in her life that illustrate how management

and the government can be unfair and abusive to workers.

She talked about two wealthy college students who raped a mentally challenged girl, and how the district attorney handling the case worked to free the rapists.

“The law sometimes works against people and not for them,” she said. “Some people who are supposed to be your allies will sell you out for their own best interest.”

And she spoke about a bank teller who was literally slapped in the face by a management assistant for closing her window three minutes early.

“Allowing the government to turn a blind eye to these kinds of things is a crime,” Hallum said. “It’s time for solidarity and to fight the war.

“That is why we conserve our money and prepare for the challenges ahead. Our enemy may no longer send the police to beat up workers, they just legislate our rights away.”

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Inside This Issue
Features
Convention: wrap:
Delegates set top PEF Priorities
Resolutions focus on benefits, work...
PEF ready for many challenges ahead
Union remains financially sound...
Delegates reject constitution changes

Departments
President's Message: Delegates lead
You Said It: Member's letters this month
PS&T Contract Update: Patience, timing
Members' take on contract talks
Member Mobilization: Workshop keys
Members Highlights
Nurses' Station: Fight for public health..
Legislative Update: Gov. vetoes bills
Health Benefits: Enrollees’ costs rising
PEF Membership Benefits & Travel Corp

Union Matters
We will never forget...9-11-01
The Trustees Report '03 Convention
Financial Statements & Information
DOCS members Privatization Buster
Phipps wins 2003 DeBow scholarship
Nurses respond to blackout
Closings of VA hospitals spur action
Taking the state workforce pulse
Nominees needed for Region 4
MVP to serve 3 more counties in ’04
Convention Photo Gallery

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