Teamsters Ratify New Agreement with Sikorsky Aircraft
According to an article published by Bloomberg BNA, employees represented by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) at Sikorsky Aircraft ratified a new four-year agreement earlier this month.
The agreement took effect Dec. 16, 2013 and will expire Feb. 18, 2018. The contract provides wage increases of 10 percent over the duration of the agreement, a $4,000 signing bonus and up to a 20 percent increase in employer pension contributions.
The agreement covers 4,500 employees, mostly in Connecticut, and was ratified by a vote of 2,098 to 66.
According to the Local’s Secretary-Treasurer, Rocco Calo, the government shut down and sequestration have presented the company with significant challenges because the federal government is Sikorsky’s largest customer.
In addition to general wage increases and a signing bonus, employees will continue to receive semiannual cost-of-living adjustments semiannually.
The company will also increase the maximum amount of 401(k) contributions it will match at 50 percent from $72 per week to $80 per week by the last year of the contract.
The contract also increases the multiplier for the defined benefit plan from $65 per month per year of service to $72 per month.
The company will continue to offer five medical plans to its employees, but starting in 2015, employees will see a increases in weekly premiums, annual deductibles and out-of-pocket maximums.
IAM Candidate Nominations to Take Place in January Under DOL Rules
At each of the union’s over 600 local lodges, International Association of Machinist (IAM) members will be able to nominate candidates for office on January 25, 2014. The proceeding was developed by the terms of a voluntarily compliance agreement between the IAM and the Department of Labor (DOL).
In August 2013, the DOL found that the IAM violated the law during its election earlier in the year. The DOL’s investigation was spurred by a complaint filed by IAM member, Karen Asuncion. According to an article in Bloomberg, Asuncion claimed that while she had been endorsed by more than the required 25 local lodges to earn a spot on the ballot, she was never listed as an eligible candidate.
Asuncion also claimed the union failed to provide members “reasonable notice” of the nomination and election process. In addition, Asuncion accused the union of violating its own constitution by endorsing a candidate who did not hold membership in an IAM Local Lodge.
In a short description of the compliance agreement on its website, the DOL stated “the IAM agreed to conduct new nominations and a new election, if necessary, for the offices of international president, general secretary-treasurer and eight general vice presidents under OLMS supervision prior to June 2014.” Additionally, the DOL’s statement regarding the investigation says the IAM “failed to provide notice of nomination to membership,” “local lodges did not provide notice of their nomination meetings to all members,” and that members were “denied a reasonable opportunity to nominate candidates.”
According to the Washington Post, at least two IAM members plan to run in the election. Karen Asuncion will run for one of the union’s nine vice president positions and Jay Cronk will run for President against incumbent Thomas Buffenbarger. Cronk announced his plan to run on his website IAMReform.org. Cronk claims he was terminated from his position as a staff representative at IAM headquarters one week after launching the site.
If two or more candidates receive nominations on January 25, members of those locals will vote to endorse only one candidate. To earn a spot on the final ballot requires endorsement by 25 different local lodges. If a challenger receives such endorsement, then a new election will be held, likely in April.
White House Hosts “Partnerships that Work” Labor-Management Summit
Union representatives and management representatives from various organizations and businesses came together at the White House on December 5 for a summit sponsored by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS).
According to a FMCS press release, the summit highlighted “recent collective bargaining successes demonstrating the value of labor-management cooperation and joint problem solving, benefiting both unions and employers.”
FMCS Director George H. Cohen moderated the summit along with Director of Labor, Thomas E. Perez, and Secretary of Commerce, Penny S. Pritzker.
Secretary Perez spoke about the “defining challenge of our time…to make sure that everybody has those ladders of opportunity so that they can realize the American dream.” Secretary Perez explained that he and the Secretary of Commerce have been traveling the country together talking about this challenge. He explained that it is important for commerce and labor to be seen together with this common goal.
Highlighted partnerships included the one between Disney and the Building Construction Trades Department (BCTD). Disney and its unions work together to maintain apprenticeship programs to cultivate a pool of skilled workers with targeted training and desirable specializations.
According to FMSC, other participating organizations included the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, Montgomery County (MD) Public Schools, The Walt Disney Company, the Building and Construction Trades Department, AFL-CIO, 1199SEIU, Montefiore Health Systems and 1199SEIU/League Training and Upgrading Fund, the Ford Motor Company, the United Auto Workers, International Paper, the United Steel Workers, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, ABC, Inc., the Communication Workers of America and the National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians.
For more information, a short video of the summit can be seen here.
Unite Here and HEI Hotels & Resorts Reach Agreement and Form Long-Term Partnership for Improved Labor Relations
On Dec. 10, UNITE HERE announced the formation of a partnership with HEI Hotels & Resorts “focused on generating mutual growth and improving industry-wide labor relations through communication.”
UNITE HERE did not release any details of the agreement but said it would immediately end its campaign and activities against HEI.
Chief Executive Officer of HEI Hotels & Resorts, Anthony Rutledge, said the day marked a “milestone for the hotel industry and organized labor. “
President of UNITE HERE, D. Taylor said the organization is “excited about a more collaborative relationship with HEI Hotels that will benefit both the company and hotel workers nationwide” and that “working together, we can ensure that open dialogue on such important issues will have long standing benefits for all constituents."