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The mood was subdued at union headquarters outside the Momentive chemical plant in Waterford after striking workers voted Tuesday to accept a new contract and end a 105-day strike.
“I know some of the guys were hoping that we would get a super-duper contract,” said IUE/CWA Local 81359 President Dominick Patrignani. “But we did make gains, in that we didn’t lose some of the things that the company initially wanted to take from us.”
His local members voted 317-211 in favor of the three-year deal, which includes cuts in health insurance for current workers, the end of health insurance for retired workers and loss of vacation time.
Members of Local 81380, which represents lab workers at the plant, voted 61-0 for the pact, which was spearheaded by closed-door negotiations between the administration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo and officials of Momentive Performance Materials, which is owned by several hedge funds that include some of the richest men in the U.S.
Patrignani said that health insurance and retirement benefits are “not where we wanted them to be,” but that a 401(k) annual payment was salvaged that will benefit hundreds of workers.
“One of the most hurtful parts of this contract is that the company keeps some of our hostages for now. Let’s declare victory in this once we get them all exonerated.”
At the union headquarters, after the vote results were announced, it was mainly silent, with workers showing stony faces amid one weak voice calling out “boo.” Outside, a handful of workers stood quietly around their burn barrels at the plant entrances.
“We didn’t win anything,” said one union member, who said he voted no, but asked that his name not be used out of concern for “ruffling feathers.” He was against health insurance cuts.
He was among several members concerned that the agreement does not immediately bring back 27 workers fired during the strike for alleged misconduct on the picket line or alleged sabotage inside the plant before the strike.
About 700 unionized members work at the plant on Routes 4 and 32, where industrial adhesives and solvents are made. The strike started Nov. 2 after workers rejected a company offer that called for cuts in health care, 401(k) and other benefits.
“We went out together, we should go in together,” said the unidentified worker, admitting he was one of the terminated workers accused of sabotage, which he denied.
Patrignani said the terminated worker provision was “the most upsetting part of the deal for me.” Under the agreement, workers accused of picket line misconduct will have their cases heard by an independent arbitrator, who will decide whether they get their jobs back.
The 15 workers accused of sabotage will face an independent investigator to be appointed by Gov. Cuomo who will recommend potential rehiring, which the company could reject.
That would open those cases for the union to take to arbitration, which could take weeks or longer to resolve.
“One of the most hurtful parts of this contract is that the company keeps some of our hostages for now,” said Patrignani. “Let’s declare victory in this once we get them all exonerated.”
Dennis Trainor, the CWA District 1 vice president who helped negotiate the pact with Cuomo officials, issued a statement that included: “It is understandable that some members felt that they didn’t achieve everything they wanted or deserved, but this agreement represents a substantial improvement over the company’s ‘take it or leave it’ offer that sparked the strike last November. The Momentive workers and their families can be proud of the battle they waged, and we are all grateful for the amazing support they received from the labor movement, the community, and from elected officials.”
The first unionized workers are due to report back to the plant at 3 p.m. Friday, when replacement workers hired by the company during the strike may or may not be there. “We don’t know yet about the replacement workers,” Patrignani said.
On Wednesday and Thursday, before anyone returns to work, union members are being required to attend training classes on the company “code of conduct” and “difficult conversations” at the Hilton Garden Inn in Troy.
Several union members who spoke to a reporter from the Times Union scoffed at that. “At least they are holding it at a place that has a bar in it, so I can drink after having to listen to their bull …” said one worker, who asked that his name not be used.
The pact also includes a $2,000, one-time signing payment (down from a $3,500 bonus offered in a contract rejected by the workers after the strike started), and would maintain wages unchanged through June, when there would be a 2 percent raise. There would be another 2 percent raise in June 2018.
Momentive also is seeking to cut staff at the plant, and is offering retirement buyouts for up to 100 workers, starting in January 2018 and repeating in 2019.
Under the pact, up to 50 workers who voluntarily retire starting in January 2018 would get a $40,000 payment. Another 50 workers could take the same buyout in 2019.
Since the strike started, the company has been running the plant with managers and newly hired, nonunion replacement workers, who daily are bused into the plant to the ire of shouting strikers.
Because of the alleged vandalism, the company can have union-covered work done at Building 71 by supervisors or “contractors/temporary employees” for up to one year. The company also could assign any work to any workers of its choosing, union or not, elsewhere in the plant for up to 90 days under a “transition period.”
bnearing@timesunion.com • 518-454-5094 • @Bnearing10
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