The unions have no intention to launch a genuine struggle against the company. The unions also held a “community support rally” at the Portland shipyard on April 9. These include “punch-out walkouts” where workers clock out together and gather at the end of their shifts. While defying workers’ demands for strike action, the Metal Trades Department has been organizing various stunts to let off steam that have absolutely no impact on the company’s bottom line. The current inflation rate is over 7.5 percent, making for an effective pay cut. The company’s tentative agreement included a raise of a little over 3 percent or about $2,200 a year. “Based on what the membership reported in their surveys, we’re a long ways apart on economics,” said Ben Heurung, the Western Region general representative for the Metal Trades Department.Īn average shipyard journeyman makes about $35 per hour, which is about $72,800 per year before taxes. Scott Oldham, president of the Portland Metal Trades Council and the Painters’ union representative, said, “I think their general thought was that with the price that they’re paying for gas and groceries, coupled with the inflation rate, they felt like it was not enough.” The AFL-CIO Metal Trades Department-which is made up of the Boilermakers, International Brotherhood of Electric Workers, Painters, Laborers, Sheet Metal, Pipefitters, Machinists, Teamsters and Operating Engineers-brought this proposal back for a vote on March 4, but workers rejected it again.įacing immense opposition from rank-and-file workers, union officials attempted to distance themselves from the contract they tried to foist on workers. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)Īfter the initial company offer was rejected by workers, Vigor came back with a second offer of a $2,000 ratification bonus with $1.10, $1.25, and $1.40 per hour yearly raises for the three-year contract. A cargo ship stacked with shipping containers is docked at the Port of Los Angeles Wednesday, Nov.
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