Johnny Doc's IBEW 98 adds Philly suburbs

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98, the Philadelphia electricians' and computer workers' union headed by John Dougherty, the most politically successful of area labor leaders recently, has doubled its geographic jurisdiction by absorbing smaller IBEW Local 380 and its 100-acre Collegeville office and training center, Doughtery told me.

By Doc's count, Local 380 had 700 dues-paying members and a few hundred retirees in a jurisdiction that stretched  along U.S. 30, from Wayne on the Main Line to Coatesville in Chester County, north to the North Penn area in central Montgomery County.  98 has 6,000 active members, according to Dougherty. Like many smaller unions, 380 faced a challenge funding its long-term pension payments as the number of retirees began to approach the number of working members. Dougherty says his union is already at work organizing new job sites for the 380 members, and growth will keep the union healthy.

"I'm looking forward to working with Liberty, Brandywine, O'Neill and all the (landlords and developers) we have good business relations with who are also active" in what he calls the "98 North" suburban territory, Dougherty says. The move, backed by the IBEW international union, was effective in December. "I'm not looking to bring Philadelphia out to Montgomery County," he added. "I am looking at creating an economic engine for a lot of IBEW members." Statement by "Local 98 North" here, map here.

Dougherty is well known as a financier of Pennsylvania politicians of both parties, and several members and allies represent Philadelphia districts in City Council and the state General Assembly. Dougherty's union and its allies, including the Laborers, displaced the Carpenters as major suppliers of labor at the Pennsylvania Convention Center last year.