Tentative Pact Reached in Lengthy Hormel Strike
Union meatpackers reached a tentative agreement Wednesday night with negotiators from Hormel that could end the yearlong labor dispute waged by members of an Austin, Minn., local, a union negotiator said.
Details of the settlement were not released. It still must be ratified by members of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.
The agreement would eventually restore wages to levels above cuts implemented by Geo. A. Hormel & Co. in 1984, said union negotiator Joe Hansen. He said only that it is patterned after an agreement reached over the weekend at Oscar Mayer & Co. that will pay $10.70 an hour by the end a three-year pact.
“I think we’ve achieved our goals for Austin,” Hansen said, adding that all of the union negotiators are prepared to recommend approval.
Hormel Aide Unavailable
Hormel negotiator David Larson could not be reached Wednesday night for comment. An operator at his hotel said he had checked out. Senior Vice President Chuck Nyberg was sleeping and would not be disturbed, a woman at his home said.
Talks have been going on since Aug. 20 between Hormel and the union, which was installed as trustee of Austin Local P-9 after a judge upheld the ouster of the elected leaders of the local. P-9 was placed in trusteeship for ignoring an order from its parent union to end a strike and boycott against Hormel, the first at the Austin plant in 50 years.
Hormel workers were paid base wages of $10.69 an hour until a cut to $9 an hour in October, 1984. Most have been restored to $10 an hour.
Ratification voting is expected in Austin next week at the earliest, Hansen said. Union negotiators for the other six Midwestern and Southern plants covered by the agreement will review it with members this weekend, he said.
Pacts Expire Sept. 1
Contracts at the six other plants expire Sept. 1, he said.
Hansen would not say whether the agreement resolves key issues for the union in Austin. One of those was the dismantling of a two-tier wage system established by Hormel under which new employees are paid $1 an hour less than experienced workers.
Hansen also said company and union negotiators have yet to determine how many Local P-9 members will be recalled to work in the plant.
“Recall was the toughest issue,” he said. “They can’t just create jobs.” He said the tentative settlement clears the way for Hormel to discuss the issue.
The strike against Hormel’s flagship plant in Austin began Aug. 17, 1985, when 1,500 meatpackers walked out. Hormel reopened the plant Jan. 13 and hired about 600 non-union replacement workers. After that, about 500 union members crossed their own picket lines and returned to work.
The dispute was marked by several outbreaks of violence and left the town seriously divided.
