UE Approach
Shakes Up Talks
At Quad Cities
MOLINE, Ill.
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The Local 1174 negotiators included Pres. Keith Scribner,
Vice Pres. Bob Segura and Sec. Bill Peterson.
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Quad City Die Casting workers shook up their employer to gain the
first significant benefit improvements in more than a decade — by mobilizing for
their first contract as members of UE Local 1174.
Quad City workers, who affiliated their independent union with UE last
year, were eager to learn their new union’s rank-and-file approach to negotiations.
Local 1174 members distributed negotiations bulletins, wore stickers and
held shift rallies in the parking lot and attended special membership meetings in
tremendous displays of participation. Most importantly, union members told Quad City
bosses what they required in their contract.
Clearly shaken by these activities, company officials responsible for
negotiations began to wonder how to settle down a membership in motion.
Membership activity paid off in the last two days of negotiations, when
the company dropped its attack on overtime after 8 hours and agreed to an additional paid
holiday and a dental plan in addition to improvements in wages. These are the first real
benefit improvements in 13 years.
The three-year contract will raise wages from a shop average of $11.15 to
$12.25, with increases of 3.5 percent the first year, 3 percent in second and 3 percent
again in the final year. Metal tenders won an additional 30-cent inequity increase in each
year. Light duty pay is increased from 85 to 90 percent of the regular rate.
The new dental plan provides up to $1,000 in coverage per year and the
company pays 100 percent of the cost for employees. Workers have the option of picking up
the cost of adding their families. Weekly disability pay goes from $175 to $185 a week;
the union negotiated a new cap on employee contributions to the major medical plan.
Effective in the second year, employees will be entitled to an additional floating
holiday.
Other negotiated improvements include new limits on the use of temporary
employees, limits to company requirements that workers use vacation time for FMLA leave,
automatic progression from Die Caster III to Die Caster II, a second step meeting in the
grievance procedure and improvements in the absenteeism policy.
The UE negotiating committee consisted of Local Pres. Keith Scribner, Vice
Pres. Bob Segura and Sec. Bill Peterson. They were assisted by UE Intl. Rep. Tim Curtin.
