Nearly 17 years ago, Ron Heimel found himself with a child on the way. He knew he needed to make a change in his life to pursue stability and consistency. Heimel had a friend in the Carpenters Union who worked in floor covering, so he decided to see what the union had to offer.
“Joining Local 364 was the best decision of my life,” Ron said about deciding to become a union floor coverer. Not only was the stability a selling point, but the union benefits appealed greatly to Brother Heimel with a newborn. The work of floor covering was naturally appealing to Heimel, as he linked the camaraderie in the craft to the stability he was seeking.
“Everyone looks out for each other. The brotherhood is the best part of being a floor coverer,” Ron said about this togetherness among the trade. This familiarity goes well beyond Heimel’s local, however. He says he has a unique view of the relationship between the different crafts because he’s a floor layer.
Floorcovering is the finish line; according to Ron, “The other crafts go in and get a building up, but we make it habitable.” Floor layers have a lot of respect for other crafts and vice versa. Without both working in complete harmony, the overall goal wouldn’t be achieved. However, that’s not to say there aren’t hiccups along the way that floor coverers encounter.
With flooring being one of the last things done on a job, floor layers are often at the mercy of how the rest of the job has progressed. Depending on this, the conditions of each jobsite vary and are unpredictable. Ron said there have been summer jobs where air conditioning wasn’t operational yet and winter jobs where heat wasn’t working correctly – creating an environment where the sealants and materials used by floor coverers aren’t as effective as they normally are. Rolling with these struggles and adapting on the fly is crucial to success in this craft.
Since joining the union, Ron has become quite accomplished. It all started when he went to his first union meeting to network and get to know the other members in his local. From there, he decided to take on an executive board position while being a 3rd-year apprentice, which ultimately led to him becoming the president of his local. As president, Ron tries to keep attendance up, be there for apprentices who need guidance, and be supportive of every member in Local 364. Ron even goes as far as to pick members up for meetings who need a ride just to ensure each voice is heard and valued.
“One thing I would tell anyone about myself; I still love my trade after all these years.” Ron, like most Central Midwest Carpenters members, values what he does. He also values the people he works with daily and wants to see the success of his local continue. He concludes each meeting by encouraging those in attendance to bring new members from their jobsites so they can continue to strengthen the bonds between brother and sister within the floor covering community.
