Vans Workers Reject Union by Large Margin : Labor: Central dispute involved company-sponsored health benefits. Though defeated, Teamsters officials remain upbeat.

Employees at Vans Inc. Friday rejected a bid by the Teamsters to represent the 1,400-person work force at the shoe-making factory, according to union officials.

With almost all the workers voting, the tally was 718 to 473, according to Raul Lopez, secretary of Teamsters Local Union 396.

“It was a good voter turnout. This is just the start for union activity in Orange County,” Lopez said. “We are not disappointed. And this will never end.”

Union organizers had spent more than three months trying to persuade the factory workers, mostly Spanish speaking, to join the Teamsters with talk of increased benefits and higher wages.

Union leaders in Southern California were watching the election as a test of their ability to organize the growing group of immigrant factory workers, who have traditionally resisted unionization.

Vans, the popular canvas shoemaker based in Orange, fought the unionization effort, saying the company could not pay substantially increased wages and benefits at a time when shoes sales have stalled and profits have eroded.

Craig E. Gosselin, Van’s general counsel, said Friday, “We won the election by approximately 250 votes, which has been certified by the National Labor Relations Board. We consider that to be a decisive win. We’re very gratified for the support of our employees and we look forward to moving ahead and returning to profitability.”

Company officials said they would release a formal statement to shareholders on Monday.

“Profit margins are still down at many companies. It’s a difficult time for management to realize increases in benefits and compensation for its workers,” said Todd Nicholson, president of the Industrial League of Orange County, a trade group based in Irvine. “We’re beginning to see some signs of economic recovery here in Orange County. And that is going to require everyone--management and labor--to pull together to make sure the vitality of industry here continues.”

The central dispute in the Vans election was over workers’ ability to afford company-sponsored health benefits. The average Vans worker, according to the union, makes about $5.75 an hour, and finds it too expensive to make co-payments for the company-sponsored health plan.

Earlier in the week, Gosselin said that the union was using misleading statements to influence its workers and that the company, consequently, was spending money to fight the unionization attempt. He would not say how much.

Last week, Lopez said, the union filed unfair labor charges with the National Labor Relations Board, charging that supervisors had told workers the unionization was “a sin,” that God was on the side of the company, and that the plant would close if the union succeeded.

About 50 workers gathered in the Vans parking lot in the night air Friday night, many with children, waiting for the vote.

Luis Gonzales, a 30-year-old machine operator, who has worked for the company for nine years, said he was a little disappointed. He said he would go back to work on Monday.

“We are still a family here. Everyone wants to go back to work.”

The voting included 180 ballots that the union is challenging and 13 that are void. They were not included in the final tally and thus won’t change the outcome.

In recent years, Vans has struggled to retain market share in the highly competitive casual shoe market. For years, it rarely changed the style of its basic sneakers, a staple for many Southern California teen-age males. Last year, the company added new shoe designs and style, prompting domestic sales to increase 19% in the third quarter.

Before the vote Friday night, Eric Appell director of research for Torrey Pines in San Diego, a stock brokerage that follows the company’s operations, said, “Naturally, we hope the union loses, because we prefer to have the flexibility that unions don’t provide. Still, we think if (Vans officials) have to increase benefits and wages, that shouldn’t have a significant impact on earnings, because they may bargain with the union to have production levels go up.”

Appell said he remains upbeat about the company’s long-term prospects, predicting Vans would become a stronger force in the casual shoe market.

“Going forward, we see this company as accelerating their profitability,” he said. “They are going to be the next big national shoe brand.” Although the ballots were not counted until after the market closed, Vans shares rose 12.5 cents Friday, closing at $6.125 per share in Nasdaq trading.