Talks Will Resume Today in Walkout at Nassco : Union Official Wants Offer From Company, Is Optimistic for Settlement Soon
Negotiations will resume today in the 3-week-old strike at the National Steel & Shipbuilding Co., and one union leader is optimistic that an agreement will be reached soon.
Six unions, representing about 1,200 workers, struck the shipyard Aug. 10. A seventh union, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 569, accepted the company’s last proposal the day before the strike, which evolved from a wage dispute.
The company and the striking unions have not met since Aug. 9. Today’s meeting was called by a federal mediator and is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. Both sides expect it to last most of the day and perhaps into the evening.
“I’m hoping that we will get another offer,” said Peter Zschiesche, business agent for the International Assn. of Machinists, Lodge 389. “In my judgment, I think both sides will like to see a settlement if we can get something we can live with.”
Holding Out for $12 an Hour
The six unions have been holding out for a minimum wage of $12 an hour for journeymen, while Nassco officials have refused to budge from their offer of $11.25 an hour. The contract signed by the IBEW is essentially the same contract that the other unions have rejected, Nassco spokesman Fred Hallett said.
Until they struck earlier this month, union members had worked without a contract since October. A few days after the contract expired Sept. 30, Nassco unilaterally cut union wages from 17% to more than 50%. Journeymen’s wages were reduced to $10.80 an hour, from $12.80. Unskilled workers suffered a bigger cut, going from $12.05 an hour to $5.55 an hour.
Nassco officials said the cuts were necessary to keep the shipyard competitive with yards on the Gulf and East coasts. The six unions that struck the shipyard had rejected three Nassco proposals.
Zschiesche said he is optimistic that an agreement may be reached soon because of the strike’s success so far. Only a handful of the striking workers have crossed the picket line, he said. Union leaders have acknowledged that about 50% of the roughly 200 electrical workers have crossed the line. But on Monday, Zschiesche said that fewer electricians are crossing each day.
“Electricians have crossed the line in large numbers because of their agreement with the company,” he said. “But, in recent days, we’ve seen fewer of them being bused from the parking lot to the shipyard. Aside from that, the strike has been very successful. I think the company is surprised that we’ve held out as long as we have.
“Another thing that surprised the company was the absolute lack of response to the letter that they sent out a couple of weeks ago, telling our people that they could resign from the union and go back to work. That ploy didn’t work because our people are real concerned about job security.”
Officials from the Ironworkers Union, Local 627, the largest union at Nassco, said 80% of its roughly 500 members have found jobs at other shipyards. Robert Godinez, Local 627 president, said striking workers are earning $1 to $3 more an hour at the other shipyards on the San Diego waterfront.
Union officials have warned that Nassco will lose many skilled workers, who will be difficult to replace, if a settlement is not reached soon.
Looking Forward to Talks
Hallett declined to comment about today’s meeting except to say that the company “is looking forward to see what the mediator and unions have to say.” He said that Nassco has no reason to believe the strike may end soon.
Zschiesche noted that Nassco has not gone to court to seek an injunction to limit the number of pickets outside the shipyard.
“I take that as a sign of good will on the part of the company and a sign of discipline on our part. . . . That’s reason for being optimistic,” he said.
The strike is the third one in seven years at the shipyard. In 1981, union workers were out for almost three weeks, and in 1984 they struck for a little more than two weeks.
