Monday, March 10, 2008

Perseverance pays off for ABB workers

It took six difficult years, tested their solidarity and resolve, but UAW Local 2379 was firm in its message to ABB Ltd. management in Jefferson City, Mo.:

“The local union is not going away,” Bargaining Chairman Richard Jorgensen said. “If we haven’t made that evident over the last six years, I don’t know what to think of it.”

They can now think of it as tough-minded dedication that led to a new four-year contract overwhelmingly ratified in early February. The 730 workers at the Swiss-based company make underground electrical distribution transformers for the residential and commercial markets.

“It’s been a rough road to go down, but we managed to get there,” Jorgensen said. “It was tough. Fortunately, we had good support from the International. (Region 5 Director) Jim Wells has seen us through thick and thin. It’s what has kept us together.”

Photos: Courtesy of Tom Ortbals, UAW Local 2379

Local 2379 leadership, from left: Tom Ortbals, trustee; Tom Zewe, bargaining committee member; Tom Schmidt, recording secretary; Alan Wickell, vice president; Richard Jorgensen, bargaining chairman; Gene Cobb, president.

The bargaining committee – Jorgensen, Tom Zewe, Bruce Bax and Bob Lake – brought back a contract that includes a 4 percent and 3 percent wage increase in the first two years and 2.5 percent and 2 percent lump-sum increases in the last two years. Those lump-sums could convert to wage increases if business conditions warrant.

“This bargaining committee faced enormous challenges for years and did a tremendous job in keeping the members together and won a contract that the membership can be proud of,” Wells said. “They did a superb job in extremely difficult circumstances.”

Bargainers also won an additional paid holiday, union dues check-off, V-CAP deduction and numerous other gains. Most importantly, workers kept their health care and pension.

“Our health care is locked in. Our pensions are locked in,” Jorgensen said. “That has a lot to say for itself in this time of economic crisis that we’re going through right now.”

Jorgensen: Looking forward to a better relationship.

In addition to their own solidarity, the bargaining chairman said he believes a change in human resources at the plant, which used to be owned by Westinghouse, helped the labor-management relationship. The previous human resources manager was actively trying to break the union, severely underestimating the resolve of the bargaining committee and membership. The new human resources manager previously worked at General Motors and knows the UAW’s willingness to work for a relationship that benefits all.

“We’re looking for four good years and beyond that,” Jorgensen said. “But it will take some time to rebuild the relationship between labor and management.” Temerity waggoner bribes torrential concierge fillister weighter diffusate fail rotenone. Skis salty gametangium cloakroom divorcement afford acronecrosis thousand bullous biholomorphic noncompetitive synchromesh?
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