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Season 6, Episode 5

Iron Workers Local 549 on building paths to the middle class

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America's Work Force Union Podcast AWF Ironworkers

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Guest Name:

Kenny Smigle

Guest Website:

IW Local 549 

Guest Social Media:

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Kenny Smigle, Business Agent for Iron Workers Local 549, joined America’s Workforce Union Podcast to discuss the industry's thriving opportunities and challenges. Based in Wheeling, W.Va., Local 549 is at the forefront of several major infrastructure projects, offering many a pathway to the middle class.

Smigle's journey into the ironworking trade is rooted in family tradition, with a father who was a union carpenter and a grandfather who was a union finisher. Smigle, however, followed his uncles, all ironworkers, whose stories of working on monumental projects in the 60s, 70s, and 80s captivated him. Their legacy and pride in the craft led Smigle to pursue a career as an ironworker, a decision he said he made as early as seventh grade.

Smigle emphasized the importance of the apprenticeship program in shaping the future of the trade. The current apprentices are the future of the Local, he said, highlighting how it ensures the transfer of skills and craftsmanship to the next generation. Smigle also noted that the apprenticeship program has evolved significantly, now incorporating technology like laptop computers to enhance learning and engagement.

Recruitment remains a key focus for Local 549, especially in reaching underserved communities. Smigle acknowledged the challenges of operating in a so called Right-To-Work State like West Virginia but he sees an opportunity to educate young people about the benefits of union membership. He added that many don't realize the opportunities in trades, and it’s the Local’s duty to educate their community on the possibilities available with a union career.

To learn more about Iron Workers Local 549, listen to the show above.

America’s Work Force is the only daily labor podcast in the US and has been on the air since 1993, supplying listeners with useful, relevant input into their daily lives through fact-finding features, in-depth interviews, informative news segments and practical consumer reports. America’s Work Force is committed to providing an accessible venue in which America's workers and their families can hear discussion on important, relevant topics such as employment, healthcare, legislative action, labor-management relations, corporate practices, finances, local and national politics, consumer reports and labor issues.

America’s Work Force Union Podcast is brought to you in part by our sponsors: AFL-CIO, American Federation of Government Employees, American Federation of Musicians Local 4, Alliance for American Manufacturing, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes-IBT, Boyd Watterson, Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, Communication Workers of America, Mechanical Insulators Labor Management Cooperative Trust, International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Allied Workers Local 50, International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Crafts, International Union of Painters and Allied Trades District Council 6, Ironworkers Great Lakes District Council, Melwood, The Labor Citizen newspaper, Laborers International Union of North America, The National Labor Office of Blue Cross and Blue Shield, North Coast Area Labor Federation, Ohio Federation of Teachers, United Labor Agency, United Steelworkers.

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