IBEW Local 861 (Lake St, Charles, LA) pickets on behalf of underpaid electricians

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Union protests wages
Electricians walk picket line at three area sites
Gannett News Sevice
June 4, 2004

LAFAYETTE / Picketers have been walking the line this week at three different construction sites around Acadiana, saying a local company is not paying workers their due.

The Lake Charles branch of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers is responsible for organizing the protests against Lafayette-based E.P. Breaux Electric. Five or six union members have picketed for four hours a day at a construction site at the corner of Pinhook Road and Audubon Boulevard, waving signs that allege E.P. Breaux Electric provides substandard wages and benefits.

"He's paying some of those kids $12 an hour with just health care and nothing else," said Harlin Duhon, an IBEW union representative. "I have nothing against him personally, but he�s paying substandard wages, and that I have a problem with."

Duhon and his assistant, Jeff Sanders, said the picket is not aimed at shutting down the construction site or firing current workers. They just want to educate the public about what�s going on with Ernest P. Breaux's company, they said.

"We've made the public aware of which contractors are paying well and which ones are not," Sanders said. "(Breaux) drove the wages down for electrical work in Lafayette."

The protests have not had much effect on the company, said Breaux Electric President Philip Breaux. They started a job in February and expect to finish by September.

Breaux said he believes the protests stem from a job in New Iberia that a union associated contractor had started and went bankrupt. Breaux's company was asked to take over that job.

"We take issue with what's on their signs. We completely disagree with it," he said. "We pay our people the top pay for their craft. We offer health insurance, 401k. ... We have over 300 people working for us, and we take care of all of them. They have their right to say (what they�re saying), but we've been in business for 60 years, and you don't stay in business that long by taking advantage of your employees."

Breaux declined to say what his employees are paid but did say that wages are comparable to competitors' rates.

Duhon maintains his position that Breaux's rates are substandard. He said union workers were paid about $19 per hour after money for benefits is deducted. Duhon added that he knows Breaux is paying low wages.

"We've got people working for Breaux, and we see their checks," Duhon said.

Of eight local electric service companies polled, the average wage paid to a experienced electrician was about $15 per hour. The state Department of Labor reports an average pay of $16.22 per hour for electricians working in the Lafayette metropolitan statistical area.

"Some guys might be getting paid less with really good benefits, but I can't imagine someone taking a job getting paid less than $14 an hour," said Ricky Trahan, an electrician for Jim's Electric.

Duhon said the union remains confident that their picketing will have a positive effect for workers, adding that he is ready back up the claim in court.

"If he's paying decent rates, he can sue me," he said.

The Lafayette Daily Advertiser
June 4, 2004