Cory DePoppe ran unopposed to be business manager of Plasterers Local 82 and on April 1 began a three-year term. He succeeds Kent Sickles, who retired May 1.
Local 82 has about 110 members, employed mostly in ornamental and acoustic plastering, synthetic stucco, and fireproofing structural members. They work for about 14 signatory contractors, of which the largest are WPI, Harver, PCI, Fred Shearer and Sons, and Cascade Acoustic. Lately Local 82 has sent Portland-area members to Boise, Idaho, and it’s adding new local members there as well — they’re doing fireproofing at Micron’s massive new semiconductor manufacturing facility.
DePoppe, 46, came to Local 82 in 2005 after 10 years on the non-union side of the trade. He worked for union-signatory Cascade Acoustic until he was hired as a Local 82 organizer last September. DePoppe had served on the union’s executive board since 2017.
His eight months on staff ended up being a kind of business manager apprenticeship. Next year, he’ll lead the renegotiation of a master agreement that expires July 1.
Sickles, 65, is retiring after 33 years in the union. After growing up in Beaverton and Battle Ground, he went to work for Fred Shearer & Sons in 1981, first as a laborer and then as a plasterer apprentice starting 1993. He got involved in his union early on, and served as Local 82 president for 15 years. After Calvin McKinnis retired in 2017, Sickles won election as business manager, and then ran unopposed for re-election in 2020 and 2023.
Sickles said when he first took office, the local’s future was uncertain. Wages weren’t competitive enough to keep members from jumping to other construction unions. After Sickles helped get contractors to raise wages significantly, membership stabilized and the union’s finances improved.
During his nine years in leadership, Sickles was a calm and steady presence. He took a special pride in promoting the skills of members who maintain and restore some of the region’s most beautiful architectural features.
In retirement, Sickle said he expects to be a homebody, enjoying with his wife a quiet five-acre property east of La Center.
