In a story reported by PhillyLabor back in June, after spending the entire morning volunteering at the Gary Papa Father’s Day Prostate Cancer 5K Run, on a scalding hot father’s Day, IBEW #98 Business Manager Johnny Doc, accompanied, #98 rep Brian Stevenson and other Local #98 officers in greeting and distributing informational handbills to the general public in support of their member’s hard fought wages and standards while demonstrating at the Roxborough Shop Rite who were alleged to have hired non-union electrical workers to work at night for substandard wages.

Why was this such a big story? Because it speaks volumes to why John Dougherty, local #98 and our entire Philadelphia area union community have been able to progress in the face of oppression when many of our country’s other former geographical area union strong holds have regressed. It also gives faith to know that high profile union leaders like Doc, not only give back to their communities in the morning, but they also are willing to “Walk the Walk” in the afternoon!

To put it in perspective, it was father’s day, the union officials volunteered all morning at the charity event and the protest was on the other side of town. Thus it would have been easy for Doc and Co to send out a few apprentices to do the un-glorified grass roots work of protesting a non-union job but they didn’t. The leaders of #98 went out there themselves and, to me, that speaks volumes to why the Philadelphia region is the Number #1 Union region in America!