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Bargaining Digest Weekly |
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The AFL-CIO Collective Bargaining Department delivers daily, bargaining-related news and research resources to more than 800 subscribers. Union leaders can register for this service through our website, Bargaining@Work.
Agreement at Harley-Davidson: Some 2,800 Machinists (IAM) union members at the Harley-Davidson plant in York, Pa., approved a three-year deal Thursday that will end their strike. The contract provides for a 4 percent increase each year of the contract and stretches out some new hire progression rates. Harley and the IAM had reached a tentative accord Feb. 16. Shares of stock rose on news of the agreement with striking workers at its largest manufacturing plant in York.
Auto Industry: A top automotive economist says an auto strike is unlikely to occur in this contract year, despite the Center for Automotive Research declaring that in looming negotiations with the Big Three automakers, wage and benefit parity with their Asian competitors must be gained in order to survive.
Ford may seek help from the UAW, asking them to accept concessions in upcoming contract talks. Currently, Ford is awash in buyouts, prompting the automaker to begin saying “No” to some offers. UAW President Ron Gettelfinger told Detroit radio listeners that Ford is in great shape after recent downsizing moves amid suggestions that the company will ask the UAW for concessions in talks that start this summer.
Following the industry lead, Nissan is offering buyouts at two Tennessee factories. Nissan is believed to be the second foreign carmaker to offer buyouts and the first with a nonunion workforce to do so.
If General Motors Corp. takes over the Chrysler Group, the result is likely to hit the Detroit area very hard.
The UAW is strongly objecting to Dura Automotive Systems’ plan to pay nearly $7 million in bonuses to top executives as a reward for moving 2,000 manufacturing jobs to Mexico and Eastern Europe. Chrysler CEO Tom LaSorda spoke out urging workers and dealers to focus on their jobs instead of the restructuring or merger rumors.
Newsweek published an article comparing Korean automaker Hyundai with Japanese and U.S. automakers, saying its strident unions are to blame for it lagging behind Japanese rivals.
Mining: National guidelines for determining which mining deaths will be classified as work-related were unveiled by the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration but came instantly under fire for being “overly simplistic.”
Kentucky State AFL-CIO President Bill Londrigan told reporters after a rally that the major problem with pushing mine-safety legislation is the campaign contributions politicians and leaders are receiving from the coal industry.
Organizing and Bargaining: Some 3,300 members of the Amalgamated Transit Union will be voting on a Greyhound contract offer between now and April 15.
The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers union says that while Hershey maintains it will cut 1,500 jobs, the union was told Hershey may cut 3,000 workers.
The United Steelworkers (USW) have filed a National Labor Relations Board complaint against the EST Co. in Wisconsin for threatening to fire Latino workers at the plant it is trying to organize.
Steelworkers in Glens Falls, N.Y., have reached an agreement for the 425 Finch Pruyn paper workers that include wage increases, a signing bonus and calls for the end of the company’s defined-benefit plan in favor of a 401(k).
A ruling in a class-action lawsuit brought by meatpacking workers reinterprets an earlier U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit ruling in light of a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision. The ruling could entitle meatpackers to millions of dollars in back pay for time spent putting on and removing protective clothing and walking to and from workstations.
Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland is considering a policy of allowing locked-out workers access to state job search and training services after the lockout reaches 120 days.
If you are looking for full copies of contracts, the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics has added links to agreements with 1,000 workers or more to their contracts listings.
Public Sector: Following a report that ranked them at the national bottom for pay, West Virginia state employees rallied and lobbied their Legislature yesterday for permanent wage hikes and help with their health care costs. Gov. Manchin now also is advocating they receive permanent wage increases.
New Jersey assembly lawmakers from both parties battered a proposal to lease or sell the state’s toll roads. Fifteen hundred toll takers are represented by the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE).
New York’s highest court has ruled that public workers have no right to union aid when disciplined, unlike their private-sector counterparts.
The state of New Jersey and the Communications Workers of America, representing the state’s 35,000 workers, have reached a tentative agreement. The agreement offers a 13 percent wage increase over four years, requires employees to pay a portion of their health insurance premiums and raises the minimum retirement age to 60.
Gov. Jon Corzine’s administration is close to a tentative contract deal for New Jersey public employees that would raise the retirement age to 60 for new workers, force workers to contribute to their health care for the first time and increase the amount workers must pay toward their own pensions.
Executive Compensation: Legislation requiring shareholders to ratify executive pay packages could be introduced as early as next week, according to Rep. Barney Frank.
Fannie Mae has canceled its executive bonuses, potentially worth $44.4 million for the years when the company’s earnings were misstated.
The CEO of Northern Trust, William Osborn, decided to end his golden parachute agreement that would have paid him $7.5 million in the event of a takeover. No takeover is in sight, however. Osborn said he didn’t need the money because he has a substantial equity position in the company.
A circuit court in San Francisco has ruled that retirement funds can be tapped for restitution in criminal cases. This is a case of a worker having to turn over his pension from an uninvolved company to a multi-national corporation for stealing telephones.
The Laborers are challenging Toll Brothers excessive executive pay in a shareholder resolution. CEO Carl Marbach actually took a cut in pay last year but still raked in $29 million.
International News: The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) has reached a deal with North American producers that effectively ends a six-week strike, which affected 21,000 Canadian actors and actresses. The new agreement provides a 9 percent increase in pay over three years and establishes pay formulas for performances that are viewed over the Internet.
Thousands of miners went on strike for a day one year after the Mexican coal mine explosion that killed 65 workers.
On Monday, the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) ruled that the United Transportation Union (UTU) conductors strike was legal. However, the Canadian National Railway (CN) continues to insist that a return to the bargaining table is contingent upon an end to the strike and implementation of a 60-day cooling off period. At a Manitoba rally, the UTU has slammed CN’s proposed schedule change that would cut workers’ time at home by increasing their work schedules. The nearly two-week-old strike has shut down production at a Ford plant in Ontario since Feb. 13. Auto parts are not being delivered to the plant. The strike also has had a dramatic impact on Canada’s chemical industry. Delivery disruptions have caused Canadian Pacific Railway to declare Force Majeure in Vancouver’s North Shore. Force Majeure means that the rail line can’t be held responsible for stalled deliveries.
Canadian Labor Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn wants the CN strike resolved and will consider back-to-work legislation if the dispute isn’t settled. On Wednesday, representatives prepared to introduce back-to-work legislation despite the fact that the CIRB ruled the strike legal.
An open letter to from the UTU international president to the Canadian UTU locals explains the current situation. As for the strike, it is still on and the international has pledged its full support. Meanwhile, UTU and the Canadian National Railway have resumed talks and the effect is spreading to more and more shippers.
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