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Retired Staff Rep James Dinkins Dies at Virginia Home
James Dinkins, a retired CWA representative in District 2, died at his home in Richmond, Va., May 28 after a long battle with heart disease. He was 73.
Dinkins was raised in Yadkinville, N.C., and went to work for Western Electric Co. in nearby Winston-Salem in the late 1940s. During his 19 years there, he served as a union officer and later president of CWA Local 3060.
He was hired as a CWA trainee in January 1967 and became a staff representative eight months later. He worked as an organizer in his early years, coordinating campaigns at Western Electric plants in Shreveport, La., and Mesquite, Texas, as well as a lengthy campaign in Towson, Md. Ultimately, he worked out of District 2’s Richmond, Va., office.
Colleague Jack Dotson, a staff representative in the same office, said Dinkins understood well the “manufacturing setting” and it made him a strong organizer. His victories included organizing the Viasystems circuit board plant in Richmond, Va., which employed 1,800 people before the company’s recently announced plans to move to China.
Dotson said Dinkins was also a good negotiator who handled many telephone contracts. “He understood what kind of power and leverage he had and what he needed to do to be successful,” he said.
In a letter to CWA headquarters just before his retirement in 1990, Dinkins said, “It’s been a great career — one that I wish I had the privilege to live again.”
Dinkins had undergone several heart surgeries during his years with CWA and received a heart transplant in 1995. He is survived by his wife, Mary, three children, Gary, Michael and Cheryl Dinkins Spain, and four grandchildren.
Dinkins was raised in Yadkinville, N.C., and went to work for Western Electric Co. in nearby Winston-Salem in the late 1940s. During his 19 years there, he served as a union officer and later president of CWA Local 3060.
He was hired as a CWA trainee in January 1967 and became a staff representative eight months later. He worked as an organizer in his early years, coordinating campaigns at Western Electric plants in Shreveport, La., and Mesquite, Texas, as well as a lengthy campaign in Towson, Md. Ultimately, he worked out of District 2’s Richmond, Va., office.
Colleague Jack Dotson, a staff representative in the same office, said Dinkins understood well the “manufacturing setting” and it made him a strong organizer. His victories included organizing the Viasystems circuit board plant in Richmond, Va., which employed 1,800 people before the company’s recently announced plans to move to China.
Dotson said Dinkins was also a good negotiator who handled many telephone contracts. “He understood what kind of power and leverage he had and what he needed to do to be successful,” he said.
In a letter to CWA headquarters just before his retirement in 1990, Dinkins said, “It’s been a great career — one that I wish I had the privilege to live again.”
Dinkins had undergone several heart surgeries during his years with CWA and received a heart transplant in 1995. He is survived by his wife, Mary, three children, Gary, Michael and Cheryl Dinkins Spain, and four grandchildren.