Utility Workforce: Kris Anderson

If you were wondering why the lineman braves the elements, and sometimes drives the truck across states to join the fight, read on. It'll be easy to see then that they are truly the passion of power.

PUF: What is your role?

Kris Anderson: I work as an international rep for the IBEW's third district. I'm assigned as the executive assistant to the third district, for Vice President Mike Welsh. I serve the utility locals in the state of Pennsylvania, and work as a political coordinator in Pennsylvania. I help in getting out our political plans for the election season, as well as notifying locals of any pending legislation that could impact them.

PUF: Do the locals have members at the utilities, like Duquesne Light and First Energy or AEP?

Kris Anderson: Yes. Some of the utilities that we represent in the state are Duquesne Light, and First Energy has seven properties in Pennsylvania including Penelec, West Penn Power, and Met-Ed. There are several others. Exelon has some utilities that we represent and Talen Energy too.

PUF: Do the members work in the field and the plants?

Kris Anderson: We represent people in all forms of electric generation in Pennsylvania. We have some folks in the coal industry, the natural gas generation side, and the nuclear industry.

PUF: What's your typical day like, and has anything changed?

Kris Anderson: It's certainly been quite an adjustment. Like everyone else, we're trying to adapt and make the best of it. At the same time, we're trying to represent the membership as best we can.

The Pennsylvania utilities have been a great partner throughout this whole process. They've been more than willing to accommodate the workforce to ensure that everyone's safety is covered.

That's a compliment to the relationships we've built over the years. I pride myself in showcasing it as a partnership that the employers and the IBEW have formed over the course of business.

It's because whenever something drastic like this happens, we need to come together and realize there is a human element, that we need to ensure everyone's safe so we can continue to provide the electricity everybody relies on.

PUF: There's a lot of dangerous work involved, and you have an apprentice and journeyman program to ensure electricity stays on. How important is safety to your members?

Kris Anderson: One of the first things we try to instill in a newer member, as well as the young apprentices, is that safety is of the utmost importance because the set of skills that any utility worker possesses is of great value, but that value is useless without you as a person.

Without you remaining safe on the job, you're unable to perform those skills. That's why we try to hammer home the need to treat every job with safety as paramount of everything that we do.

PUF: IBEW gets involved in energy issues. Why is that important for IBEW and others?

Kris Anderson: One of the important things that we can do as the IBEW is to advocate for the industries that we work in. Right now, there's a big push for a lot of green energy and that puts a lot of our members in the electric generation field, in the cross hairs.

We want to show that these people are dedicated to the communities. We feel that we can invest in some technologies to keep these plants around for a lot longer, rather than just closing them down right now. One of the things that we don't want to lose sight of is that our members are consumers as well, and we feel that a diverse energy portfolio can regulate prices better than anything else.

PUF: What led you to this role?

Kris Anderson: Prior to this, I worked as a lineman at Duquesne Light Company. I went through the apprenticeship, the same way a lot of folks do. I started from the ground up and I've always had an interest in politics.

The vice president right now used to hold my position and I was able to work in conjunction with him on a lot of issues. I got exposed to a lot of different things in the Capitol and the different operating procedures. It wasn't a perfect match, but I fell into it and have enjoyed it ever since.

PUF: Was that a rewarding job?

Kris Anderson: I always joke around and say, it's not the work, it's the people. If you're with a good crew, any job is enjoyable. But I thoroughly enjoyed my time as a lineman. It is rewarding.

One time, I got forced to work on a night shift on Christmas Eve, going into Christmas day. We were in a borough in the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. There was a big outage and once we got the problem fixed, and the wires hung back up, we closed the fuse in and saw all the Christmas lights pop on.

That was awesome.

I know that it meant a lot to those folks.

PUF: Did you have any experience in restoring power after a storm?

Kris Anderson: In order for you to consider yourself a lineman, you have had to have dealt with a vast amount of storm restoration. We always would say that a lot of what we do goes unnoticed until people don't have any power. That's when we feel that we are at our best and we strive to be there for the customers whenever they need us.

PUF: In power restoration, at first, you're the hero, then they want it restored immediately and lose patience.

Kris Anderson: It usually comes full circle because after seven or eight days, they're happy to see anyone.

PUF: How was making the transition to working for the union and not being in the field?

Kris Anderson: I don't often miss working in the elements, but I do miss the camaraderie and working with the guys. That was one of the most enjoyable parts of line work. It's almost like a team atmosphere in the way that everyone relies on one another.

PUF: What would you say to the industry about the importance of what you do in the third district and across the country, including Canada?

Kris Anderson: One of the most important things that the IBEW has done is to partner with the employers where we represent members. That's important because it gives us a chance to put our differences aside and understand that there's a lot more to be done whenever we're cooperating, as opposed to fighting back and forth. That's what I enjoy working in my capacity now, is finding common ground where we can get good things accomplished.

Saluting the IBEW and Utility Workforce conversations:

• Jerry Bellah, VP for the IBEW Eighth District (Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming)
• Donnie Colston, IBEW Utility Director and Mark Brueggenjohann, Media Director
• Drew Stover, Business Manager for IBEW Local 84 (Atlanta)
• Virgil Melton, Curriculum Specialist at the Electrical Training Alliance
• Kris Anderson, Representative for the IBEW Third District (Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania)
• Rich Meisinger, Business Manager for IBEW Local 111 (Denver)