Nassco Slashes Pay of Workers; Union Vows to Fight Move

At quitting time Thursday, workers at the National Steel and Shipbuilding Co. were handed company leaflets notifying them that wages for about 1,600 non-salaried employees will be cut sharply, effective today.

As the workers walked out the shipyard gates, they were also given union leaflets, telling them that their labor representatives will be filing charges today with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging that the company is not bargaining in good faith.

“We’ll be filing charges,” said Peter Zschiesche, business representative for the International Assn. of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. “We hope to get a decision within 30 days and we hope that answer will include all back pay with interest.”

Experienced journeymen, which represent about 70% of the yard workers, will see their pay cut to $10.80 an hour, a reduction of $2. In other classifications, union leaders said, the cuts range from 40% to 50%.

The cuts were included in a contract offer from the company that the union just last weekend overwhelmingly rejected.

Company officials said they are imposing the wage cuts now because they feel the labor dispute has reached an impasse.

“We sincerely believe we have been bargainning in good faith,” said Fred Hallet, Nassco’s vice president of finance and corporate relations. “We’ve been negotiating for two months. But the contract expired eight days ago and we’ve had no meetings in eight days. We believe we’ve done as much as we can. We believe we’re in a deadlock.”

Deeper Meaning

But Zschiesche and Manuel Ruiz, who represent the shipyard workers, said the company has turned down their requests for negotiating sessions this week.

“We’ve talked about setting up meetings,” Zschiesche said. “And in our legal judgment, we weren’t in an impasse.”

The union leaders also said the company had a deeper meaning for following through with the wage cuts--hoping it will prompt a strike or for individual workers to quit and seek work elsewhere, thus saving the company money by reducing the payroll.

“That’s why they’ve thrown down this gauntlet at us,” Zschiesche said. “They’re daring us to walk. But we can make our point heard if we stay in.”

Ruiz, surrounded by a crowd of workers, urged them not to become discouraged. “Stay strong,” he said. “Keep going back in the yard. We’ll get our wages back. We’ll show the company we’re strong. We’ll show them we’re united.”

But many of the workers, headed home Thursday, worried about what they would tell their families and how long they could hold on with a smaller paycheck.

“I say it stinks,” said Manuel Gomez of Chula Vista. “I can hold on for maybe three or four months. But then I’ll have to get another job.”

Hugo Dailey of San Diego said: “This is nonsense. The company has made so much money in the past and yet they say they can’t afford to pay us. We have house payments and mortgages and we’re always struggling. A $2 cut will make a lot of us go under.”

Earlier Cuts

Hallet sharply disputed the union assertion that Nassco was trying to cause a strike or employee resignations. “No, that’s not true,” he said. “We have work and we’ll be open in the morning.”

It is the amount of future work available at the shipyard that has been hanging over the contract negotiations, which began in August. Early last year, the company’s salaried employees began taking 10% cuts in wages and 7% cuts in fringe benefits, Hallet said.

The reason, according to Hallet and company President R.H. Vortmann: The company has lost over $3 billion in new construction work to East and Gulf Coast shipyards with significantly lower wage and benefit costs. Stiff competition has also come from non-union repair yards that have lower costs.

Nassco, once the largest shipyard on the West Coast, has failed to win four major contracts in recent years. To make do, the company has slowly dwindled its work force from more than 5,000 employees in 1985 to a current level of about 2,000.

“It’s been very difficult for us,” Hallet said. “We need to be more competitive if we’re going to last in San Diego.”

He said that now the company can hope it will persevere with the NLRB, should the union turn there for satisfaction. “We can only hope they’ll rule on our side,” he said.

Zschiesche said that if the NLRB rules against the union, strike talk will become a real possibility. He said members of the seven unions at the shipyard have already authorized their representatives to call a strike vote, if the leaders think such an action is necessary.

“It’s all a game of cards we’ve just begun to play,” he said. “Right now, these guys know that every Friday they get paid by Nassco. That’s something to look forward to. But I wouldn’t rule out a strike either. We could go out tomorrow if we wanted to.”

As the workers walked toward their cars, their greatest response came when Ruiz announced that striking players with the San Diego Chargers planned to assemble Tuesday morning at the shipyard gates to show their support for the shipbuilders.

“We’ve got solidarity,” Ruiz said, triggering a round of cheers and applause.