The Spring 2025 Belonging and Excellence for All (BE4ALL) Challenge asked SMART members to answer the question: Why are you proud to be a SMART member? Dozens of members answered the call, with three selected in a raffle as the quarter’s winners. Read their submissions below.

Local 280 (Vancouver, British Columbia) Business Rep. Troy Clutchey went long in his answer:

“I am proud to be a union member, as I believe in the union movement all around. I am a third-generation sheet metal worker. I have benefitted from Local 280, as well as unions in general, since well before I was born.

“My grandfather came to British Columbia and joined Local 280 as a journeyman sheet metal worker in 1950. He told me that the journey rate was about $2.50/hour when he started here. This obviously would have had an influence on my mom’s upbringing, as she wasn’t born until 1953. My mom also understood and believed in the benefits of union.

“She met my dad many years later, and in 1974, at the suggestion of my grandfather, he too joined Local 280, obtaining his Red Seal in 1979. This led to my family having a good, full, enjoyable lifestyle. Born in 1983, the benefits and pride that came from union membership have been with me my whole life. My father’s membership in 280, and my mother’s union membership as an employee of the government provided so many great aspects to our life.

“In 2003 I started my pre-apprenticeship at SMART Local 280, and I have never looked back. I went through my apprenticeship, and I obtained my Red Seal certification in May 2008. The benefits that I have received are amazing. From the very beginning, everything from the “automatic savings” to go through apprenticeship, to the registered program for training that entitled us to unemployment insurance benefits while in school, to the more affordable tuition costs, to having our own training centre with amazing instructors who are Red Seal certified tradesworkers.

“Move ahead a few more years, and I started a family of my own. With my wife being able to get benefits, and then us having two children together, the union has never stopped helping with our lives. Everything from psychology assessments, medical benefits, dental coverage, to glasses coverage and even wage indemnity coverages during times of need.

“The benefits are great, and so is knowing that everyone is together and looking out for one another. Safety conversations are much easier with everyone on the same page and a backing the size of a local union. We believe that we are setting the standards for industry all over the place.

“Knowing that even things like counselling and mental health services — not to mention addiction services and everything along those lines — are covered and organized through the union is amazing.

“For the last seven years, I have had the honor of serving as an elected business representative at Local 280. This work can be stressful and draining at times; however, the benefits and belief that I am helping as many people as I can join and benefit from the union makes it all worth it. Knowing that I might be able to get even one more person to join the union, grow and strengthen it, while obtaining some of the amazing benefits union membership affords the working class, is so fulfilling.

“I hope that the union, and all proper unions, can thrive for generations to come, as I truly believe that they bring out the best in everyone.”

Scott Raia, a member of SMART-TD Local 1626, said in his answer:

“My membership in this union has been the single most important step I have taken in my family’s financial life. It came right after my daughter was born. Finally, we were able to purchase a home, access quality medical care and think about the future. Every worker in this country should have those privileges. The men and women in this union have fought hard for generations to afford us the protections and security we enjoy as members. I owe this organization everything.”

Adrian Murcia, a member of SMART Local 565 (Wisconsin), discussed not just his union pride, but the support and happiness his membership gives him as well:

“I am very happy to belong to SMART. Ever since I was hired and joined the union, I have felt proud to belong to it. It was incredible to receive the bonus in the negotiation of the contract after just six months of joining Sub-Zero. With SMART, I feel supported in the resolution of any conflict that may arise, and SMART gives me the peace of mind that I have job stability. Additionally, and thanks to the strong negotiation of our salary, I have been able to make investments for my future.

“Thank you, SMART.”

Congratulations, all!

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The spring 2024 Belonging and Excellence for All (BE4ALL) challenge asked SMART members to tell their union story, prompted by the question: Why are you proud to be a SMART member? For Paul Garner, a longtime Local 55 sheet metal worker out of Boise, Idaho, the answer boils down to our union’s tradition of mentorship and solidarity:

“My story begins in May of 1998. As an aimless young man, I applied for a shop clean-up job at a sheet metal shop. But it became an experience in guidance-by-exposure to the materials and parts the shop created. As well as gaining friendships with mentors (both gruff and patient), that guidance encouraged me to pursue this career. It occurred to me then that I admired their knowledge and would seek to be that source of knowledge and mentor the generations that followed me.

“In my four-year apprenticeship, I gained more friendships with classmates of varying ages and backgrounds. But we were brought together in this program, and we bonded over a shared set of struggles. Learning to be good workers, having a good income for ourselves and our families, and gaining knowledge for our careers ahead. Back then, you could tell who would coast through easily, and who would have a harder time doing HVAC work. But the folks who were doing better helped those who weren’t getting the understanding as easily. And we all had different strengths to lend in that experience.

“So, 26 years later, I have mentored and taught. Bought tools, meals and drinks for young workers, shared travel expenses, beat up my body and learned what not to do, to keep myself able to return to work each day. I am sought after by different foremen to help guide their workforce. I am approached as a person that others want to learn from.

“In a decade, I will be able to retire with an income comparable to or better than my weekly income. My parents didn’t have that stability. And I have guided my kids to understand the true benefits of unions and the trades.”

Thank you, Brother Garner, for embodying the best of our union!

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On August 1, 2024, Belonging and Excellence for All (BE4ALL) launched its brand-new standalone website, beforall.org — fulfilling a need the BE4ALL Committee had heard numerous times from SMART members and signatory contractors, and providing visitors with a one-stop shop for information, resources and more.

“Our duty as a union is to represent our members – to ensure they are protected and safe, from the job to the union hall,” said SMART General President Michael Coleman. “The new BE4ALL website expands our ability to provide welcoming, inclusive environments for all members of the unionized sheet metal industry, providing our members with needed information, resources and avenues for officers to protect their well-being.”

Launched in 2021, BE4ALL is a joint effort of SMART, SMACNA and the International Training Institute (ITI), created to ensure that all current and future members of the unionized sheet metal industry experience welcoming, belonging and inclusion. By better recruiting and retaining SMART members from all backgrounds, BE4ALL aims to grow and strengthen our union – both today and well into the future.

The new BE4ALL website is part and parcel of that goal. In the past, SMART members and officers noted that information about the initiative felt scattered, and resources were difficult to track down. The BE4ALL website stores information about BE4ALL, progress updates, frequently asked questions and much more in one place; in addition, past BE4ALL resources can be easily accessed by visitors, including Toolbox Talks (many available in Spanish), recorded BE4ALL Learning Journeys and the BE4ALL Calendar, to name a few.

But that’s only the beginning. A BE4ALL Member Portal gives SMART members, local union and regional council officers and SMACNA contractors the ability to log into the website and access resources tailored specifically to them and their jobs, from Toolbox Talks on difficult conversations with coworkers to guidance on how to use the BE4ALL Rapid Response Protocol. Importantly, the website also provides the ability for members to submit Rapid Response Protocol complaints to their local union or regional council through a web form – offering a secure avenue for members to detail incidents of harassment, discrimination, hazing, bullying or other inappropriate behavior on the job or at a union event.

“We are strongest when every single member, no matter who they are or where they’re from, knows that they have a home in our union and in our industry,” Coleman concluded. “We will continue to use every tool at our disposal, including the new BE4ALL website, to create environments that foster welcoming and belonging as we move forward.”

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As with everything our union does, there will be members who do not agree with the commitment to fostering an inclusive environment. They may be misinformed about what the commitment entails, misled by figures in the media who disagree with the commitment, or genuinely concerned about what all of this could mean for them and their career. You will not convince all of your members that this work is worth doing, but by following a few simple messaging practices, you can increase your chances of convincing the skeptics in your ranks:

1. This is fundamentally about respect. Most members would agree that all workers deserve to be treated with respect and that no worker should have their opportunities limited because of a preconceived notion about who they are or what they are capable of. But like it or not, we all walk around with a lot of unchecked biases. Adopting these practices and policies will help each of us keep those biases in check and, by extension, more meaningfully respect one another.

2. This is not about shaming members. Some members may feel that the commitment to building an inclusive environment is an attack on who they are, what they believe in or where they come from. There is a lot of media out there that advances this line, but it could not be further from the truth. This work is about ensuring that all members feel welcome and have a place in our union. It is about building solidarity between workers and forging a stronger union.

3. Recruiting and retaining a diverse membership is strategic. Everybody knows the statistics about the massive shortage in skilled construction workers. While that shortage may be good for labor in the short term, in the long term our union needs to recruit and retain more skilled construction workers to thrive and grow. Future skilled construction workers will work the hours that fund each of our retirements, and the simple fact is that those future, potential members are more likely to be women and/or people of color than ever before. Tolerating discrimination and harassment undermines our solidarity.

4. Those we do not welcome will end up as our competition. If those future members do not feel accepted by our union, then they will seek other careers, work nonunion or join other building trades unions, and SMART will only be weaker for it. They will also share their negative experience with SMART with other nonunion workers or other building trades unions, which will hinder our organizing efforts.

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SMART’s Rapid Response Protocol is intended to help union officers prepare for and respond to incidents of bias, discrimination and harassment. Why is this important? There are many reasons: (1) we should be welcoming all members; (2) this is a safety issue; (3) we need to recruit and retain members; (4) legal liability; (5) our governments and communities expect change; and (6) union solidarity.

1. We should be welcoming ALL members – At the end of the day, every member wants to feel welcome in the workplace. No one likes to feel excluded or that they are not part of the team. And at the end of the day, people will not want to join the sheet metal trade if their work environment would subject them to discrimination, harassment and bullying. Reviewing the Protocol and taking the steps listed here will help make our environment better for every member, regardless of their background.

Our union should make every member feel valued and respected not only for their skills, knowledge and excellence on the job, but also as human beings.

2. This is a safety issue – As union leaders, representing members is our ultimate purpose, and ensuring safe and inclusive work environments for every member should be one of our greatest objectives. Eliminating discrimination, harassment, hazing and bullying is important for workplace safety because these incidents and behaviors erode workplace cohesion. These incidents are bad for employee morale and productivity, and they can cause significant emotional distress.

Workplace bullying and harassment, for instance, is meant to harm and to cause people to feel powerless to respond. By disempowering a member and reducing their sense of safety and security on the job, such behaviors contradict the basic principles of organized labor. Your members count on you to stand up for them, since they look to their union leaders for protection against any violation of their rights and dignity at work.

3. We need to recruit and retain members – Right now, and for the foreseeable future, we face workforce demands like never before. It is thus essential that we recruit and retain every member with the skills necessary to perform our work. Ensuring that work environments are free of bias will not only better position us to retain our current talent; it will also allow us to recruit new talent to the workforce. In addition, every time an apprentice or a journey-level member leaves our trade, the industry loses their skills, along with the thousands of dollars that were invested in their training. Taking the steps listed in the Protocol will ensure that the opportunities our union offers – skilled, middle-class jobs with great wages and benefits – are available to every person across North America, regardless of their background.

When these incidents occur, it is important for our local unions and regional councils to respond quickly and appropriately. Depending on the severity of the incident, it may hit the news, which can lead to embarrassment and harm to the union’s reputation. That would hinder our organizing and recruitment efforts with any potential members who come across the news article. Furthermore, anti-union organizations, such as the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC), have claimed to embrace diversity and are trying to argue that they have a competitive advantage when it comes to supporting and broadening it. This is our opportunity, as the union sheet metal industry, to prove we support and embrace diversity across North America.

4. Legal liability – Proper response to these incidents is also important for ensuring compliance with all applicable laws, including the duty of fair representation (DFR), and for guarding against legal liability. A union may be liable for discrimination against its members and applicants for membership. If a member complains to their union about unlawful harassment/discrimination and the union fails to do anything, the local union/regional council may be held liable for harassment/discrimination or for a violation of the duty of fair representation. This can be very expensive.

5. Our governments and communities expect change – The U.S. Equal Employment and Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has taken a particular interest in the construction industry recently. And in Canada, the federal government has ratified ILO-C190, a global treaty aimed at eliminating workplace harassment and violence. Government focus and action increases the importance of our union being seen as a leader of these initiatives by our communities, the building trades and society as a whole.

6. Union solidarity – Discrimination and harassment result in toxic and unhealthy environments and create division among our membership. This undermines our union solidarity and our ability to come together on the issues most important to our members. This is our moment to make clear across this union that it is unacceptable for any of our members to face harassment, discrimination, hazing or bullying. Every member is part of our SMART family, and we must look out for each other. We are only strong if we stand together as one.

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Helen Jury Armstrong was a union activist, feminist and anti-war leader who rose to fame during the 1919 Winnipeg general strike. Born in 1875 to a father who worked as a tailor and was a member of the Knights of Labour, Helen “Ma” Armstrong spent her life advocating for working-class women, unions, minimum wage and social security.

In the early onset of World War 1 in 1917, Helen revived the Winnipeg Women’s Labor League and became its president. She successfully campaigned to set minimum wage legislation for women in Manitoba in 1918, and she led the organization of unions for women workers – which included the Retail Clerks’ Union (organized in 1917), the Hotel and Household Workers’ Union and Housemaids’ Union (organized in 1918), and the biscuit-factory workers, laundry workers and knitting machine operators (organized in 1919). She was also appointed to the Winnipeg Trades and Labour Council – the council’s only woman.

On May 1, 1919, unions representing Winnipeg’s metal and building trade workers went on strike for the right to form an umbrella union and grow their collective bargaining ability. Two weeks later, leaders from across the labour movement proposed a general strike, leading approximately 30,000 workers to walk off the job on May 15. About 10% of those 30,000 workers were women, who – along with general workers’ rights issues – were fighting against gender-based discrimination and advocating for equal pay.

Helen played a prominent role in the 1919 strike, serving as one of two women on the male-dominated strike committee. Not only did she convince women workers to join the strike as they arrived at their jobs each morning – she established the Labour Café, which provided women strikers with three free meals a day. She was arrested three times during the strike, for disorderly conduct and for her actions to prevent strikebreakers from selling newspapers.

Later in life, Helen and her family moved to Chicago, mostly due to her husband being blacklisted for his role in the strike. By 1929, however, Helen and her family had returned to Winnipeg, continuing the fight on behalf of women and the working class.

Learn more about her life and legacy.

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SMART Local 219 (Rockford, Illinois) sheet metal worker Josh Reynolds is a first-year apprentice who learned about the union from his friend, fellow member Isaiah Myers. After completing his pre-apprenticeship and starting his career at Local 219, he says the trade has already “changed my life for the better.” Read his BE4ALL “How I became a SMART member” submission:

“My buddy Isaiah Myers told me about Local 219, and I’d been trying to get into the field for a while prior. I came from website development and design and jumped straight into the sheet metal field – I haven’t looked back since, and I’ve loved every minute of it. I was lucky enough to get a spot as a pre-apprentice; I proved – through hard work and dedication – that I could be taught well, and landed an apprenticeship as a first year (which I currently am). This journey changed my life for the better simply by introducing me to this trade!”

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Local 473 (London, Ontario) member Patrick Gordon took a long, somewhat convoluted journey into the union sheet metal trade – one that brought him face-to-face with the exploitation and disregard that often afflicts nonunion workers, and demonstrated first-hand the union difference. That makes his current job as an organizer even better, he says: “I feel blessed that my job now is to go and talk to nonunion workers about how great it is to join SMART.” Read more from Gordon’s BE4ALL “How I became a SMART member” submission:

“After I graduated high school, I didn’t know what I wanted for a career. I went to an unemployment centre in my small town; they suggested a trade, and I chose sheet metal. I was sent to work for a nonunion company – after working there for three years and not being signed up for an apprenticeship (as required by law), I was let go from that job due to circumstances beyond my control. Little did I know: That was a blessing in disguise.

“I couldn’t find any jobs in the small community I lived in. A friend of mine was living in a larger neighbouring city and already working as an apprentice in the United Association of Plumbers and Pipe Fitters. He suggested I join the sheet metal workers union – I exclaimed that I didn’t even know such a thing existed! I was so excited to start a new career in a union, where I would be protected from unjust discharge among other great things.

“Unfortunately, I had another setback due to a contractor. However, this time a brother stuck up for me and had my back, and made sure the business manager knew that the contractor was in the wrong. That was a huge moment for me: to see someone pick me up when I was down and have a brother have my back. I definitely knew that this was the career for me; not only that, but that I belonged to an organization that would always look out for my best interests.

“This past spring, I received my 15-year pin as a member of SMART. I have served as an executive board member for nine and a half years, and I’ve been working as an organizer for five and a half years. I am so proud to be a SMART member, I am so grateful for the opportunities this organization has provided for me and my family, and I feel blessed that my job now is to go and talk to nonunion workers about how great it is to join SMART.”

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Another entry from the Belonging and Excellence for All (BE4ALL) fall challenge: Bob Bomboy, a sheet metal worker member of SM Local 44 (Northeastern Pennsylvania) shares how he overcame career-change nerves and joined SMART!

“I was a mechanical/architectural draftsman with an associate’s degree in architectural engineering before becoming a sheet metal worker. As a draftsman, the pay scale wasn’t what I wanted, so I started to look for a part-time job on the Internet. I came across a union sketcher opportunity. So, I got in contact with the union organizer. I met up with him, and we discussed the career and all the perks to being a union worker. I told him it would take me a few days to think about it because I was nervous about leaving my career after seven years. But I discussed it with my family and decided to take the opportunity.

“I started my apprenticeship and also started sketching for a local contractor. I was strictly a sketcher for the first couple years of my apprenticeship, using 3D software and 2D software to sketch our projects. I also went to job sites to do 3D scans of point clouds and shoot layouts for hanger points to insert them into our models at the office. When things got slow in the office, I was sent out into the field to install duct work, GRDs and set equipment. I also would work in the shop, fabricating ductwork, to learn more about the craft.

“I finally finished my apprenticeship and became a journeyperson. All of the hard work and training has paid off. It was the best choice that I ever made for my family.”

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As part of the Belonging and Excellence for ALL (BE4ALL) Committee’s fall challenge, Anthony LaBeau, an eight-year member out of Local 104 (Northern California) recently shared how his life changed when he joined SMART:

“I was 24, working dead-end restaurant jobs for six years when I first heard about any trade unions. I went home and researched anything I could find about the trades. I narrowed it down to pipe fitters and sheet metal, and my decision was made after I attended a trade fair where I met the sheet metal workers and we made mini tool trays. I was instantly intrigued and had this feeling that I was born to do this. After I went through the application process, I was called into action as a service technician and immediately started work installing and servicing residential equipment in track and custom homes.

“It was a bit of a culture shock coming from a completely different industry, but my union family put me at ease. I had no construction skills, no college education, and not a dollar to my name when I started, but the promise of on-the-job training, raises every six months, benefits, and a great retirement was all I needed to continue on this path. Once I fully learned about everything this trade consists of, I decided to pursue further education and become a building trades sheet metal worker.

“I made a lot of quality friends on the jobs and in the classes I’ve attended in the last eight years and am scheduled to be a journeyperson next month. Since starting in 2015 I’ve been able to support a family of my own and live comfortably while doing it. If I had never attended that workshop or met another sheet metal union member, I may never be where I am today. Building America with the quality craftsmanship that we learn and providing for my wife and two kids brings me the most pride and give me the greatest sense of fulfillment.”

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