Local Union 25 Feature

Cross a bridge, visit a hospital or drop your kids off at school almost anywhere in the Quad Cities, and there's a good chance Local Union 25 members helped build it. For more than 125 years, Local 25 has trained the pipe trades workers who build the Quad Cities and beyond.

Mergers through the years have expanded Local 25's footprint. Today its members serve a 19-county area stretching from East Dubuque in Iowa to Quincy, Illinois, including the entire Quad Cities. The addition of Local 387 put the whole Quad Cities area under one jurisdiction, which Business Agent Chet DeSmet said makes it easier for contractors and members to bid and perform work.

That reach shows in the projects members have built. Local 25 pipe trades workers were involved in the state-of-the-art IH Mississippi Valley Credit Union headquarters in Moline, improving water quality at the Niabi Zoo and renovations at Augustana College.

Keeping members ahead of a changing industry is a never-ending process, according to Training Coordinator Chuck McKnight. Each year, the JATC's instructors attend the UA's Instructor Training Program and bring new skills and technologies home. The union is also a recognized continuing education provider in both Illinois and Iowa, helping members earn and renew certifications in everything from welding to crane signaling.

Today’s training now extends beyond construction skills. Members have recently completed VitalCog suicide prevention and awareness training, a program developed in response to the industry's staggering suicide rates. DeSmet said it will pay off as more members learn to look out for their brothers and sisters.

That sense of responsibility reaches into the wider community. Local 25 is typically one of the largest groups in the East Moline Labor Day Parade, and its Veterans Committee raises money for Honor Flight, a cause McKnight, a veteran himself, takes particular pride in. During COVID, the local donated funds and PPE to area hospitals.

DeSmet and McKnight are also advocates for changing how people think about union careers. McKnight wants people to know the trades demand real skill, noting that many Local 25 members earned associate or bachelor's degrees before starting their five-year apprenticeship.

DeSmet said non-union workers often misunderstand union dues and overlook how much they pay out of pocket for retirement, healthcare and training. In his view, dues are small compared with what comes out of the average non-union paycheck for benefits that rarely offer comparable value. Both men say that once you're in the union, the value of those benefits — and a whole lot more — is immediately apparent.

"The greatest resource Local 25 and the UA has is the members," McKnight said. "The amount of mentoring that goes on is unbelievable."