[ HAWAII AT WORK ]
CRAIG T. KOJIMA / CKOJIMA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Union organizer
feels his sense
of purpose
Jimmy Kuroiwa was born into
a union family on Kauai
I am a fourth generation Kuroiwa in Hawaii, raised as the son of a union member. My father was a union member on a sugar plantation on Kauai, where I helped in the victory garden and kitchen as a 10th grader during the 1958 sugar strike.
My parents, like most parents of the generation who were forced to drop out of school to support their families, emphasized education for their children. I graduated with a bachalor's in horticulture from the University of Hawaii at Manoa through my parents' hard work and sacrifice. I chose to pursue a career in ornamental horticulture, first working for an orchid and export plant nursery. Later, after a stint as a 100/442d Army Reservist activated in 1968 and serving a tour in Vietnam in 1969, I returned to go into landscape contracting.
During my 30 years as a union landscape contractor, I was a management representative negotiating with the Laborers' Union. Those years of experience have prepared me well for my job as the union organizer for the Laborers' International Union of North America, Local 368.
My job is to support members of our local and of other locals, and to convince the employees and management of non-union operations that it is to their economic advantage to become a signatory contractor. To do this, I begin with the review of non-union operations within our jurisdiction that are competing against our signatory contractors. I then have the organizing committee select those companies to contact. When the selection is made I begin research and follow with the development of a strategic plan to organize the company. The field agents visit the project sites and report the job site activities to the committee and decisions are made on appropriate action.
As a private sector union, Local 368 depends on signatory contractors in the service and construction industries obtaining contracts. These contracts provide them the opportunity to continue employing our members. We are responsible for preparing and providing highly qualified labor in the non-construction and construction fields. The partnership developed between Local 368 and the contractor provides the contractor the competitive edge against non-union contractors.
Each week I must track all of the contracts awarded in the state. Lots of fine print to read! All of this information is entered into the computer for future reference and data support. Although this is tedious work, I believe in the overwhelming good unions do for members, their families and for Hawaii's communities, and that is what drives me to do this job well and with integrity. It truly gives me a sense of purpose.
