Friday, July 8, 2005
Union workers decry BIW hiring proposal
By MARK PETERS, Portland Press Herald Writer
Copyright © 2005 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.
BATH — Bath Iron Works' plan to replace 24 union workers with a private contractor drew hundreds of shipyard employees, labor leaders and Gov. John Baldacci to a rally Thursday in the shadow of the ship builder's cranes. The rally came as the company and its largest labor union agreed to open discussions on the outsourcing plan.
A bulletin from BIW President Dugan Shipway that circulated companywide this week said he will put off for three months plans to lay off the maintenance and janitorial workers and have a private contractor do their work.
Instead, BIW officials and union leaders will spend the coming weeks discussing how to find an estimated $700,000 in cost savings without having to use outside workers.
"Dugan (Shipway), choose. Are we going to build ships, or are we going to fight?" said Mike Keenan, president of 3,850-member local S6 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.
The rally and the attention of both labor and elected leaders show the issue is about more than 24 jobs. It involves the potential for more outsourcing at the shipyard, the overall future of one of the state's largest employers and ongoing relations between labor and management at BIW.
Union leaders fear that if BIW management can contract with Massachusetts-based UNICCO for maintenance work, then the shipyard could go further and hire other companies to do welding or painting. Speakers at the rally described this kind of outsourcing as a major threat to well-paying union jobs.
"Everyone realizes we are the stepping stone," said Rodney Wright, a maintenance worker at BIW who would be laid off if the company goes with a private contractor.
Wright has a son on his way to college and a daughter in high school. The prospect of being out of work after 24 years at BIW is daunting. The question his family asks most days when he gets home is whether there was any news at work.
But as union officials look to preserve jobs that pay an average of $19.07 an hour plus benefits, BIW management is scouring its operations in search of greater efficiency.
The Navy is considering major changes that could put BIW in an all-or-nothing competition with Mississippi-based Ingalls Shipyard to build the next generation of ships. If approved, efficiency could be a critical factor in the awarding of bids.
Workers say they want the shipyard to be competitive, but eliminating the maintenance and janitorial jobs will not result in greater efficiency. Keenan said the union will present Shipway with a list of $700,000 in proposed savings as alternatives to outsourcing.
After the rally, Baldacci said that he attended it to make sure both sides continue to work toward an agreement. The governor told the crowd that BIW's decision to wait three months is a first step.
"It is important that we don't allow . . . circumstances to continue to unravel," Baldacci said. "It is my responsibility to keep the parties talking together and working together. They're going to be resolving it amongst themselves."
The union has blamed the dispute on Shipway, who took over leadership of the shipyard two years ago. He was singled out on signs reading "Who's Next - Dugan??," and in speeches and calls from the crowd of workers.
House Speaker John Richardson, a Brunswick Democrat, said BIW leaders should not allow a relatively small amount of jobs and money to break down several years of good relationships between labor and management.
The issue in the coming days is expected to shift from the street in front of BIW to a negotiating table. BIW officials declined to comment Thursday on negotiations over the outsourcing issue, but Keenan said he was optimistic the matter could be dealt with in a week.
The union plans to assert that outsourcing is off the table and that the company needs to look elsewhere to find savings, Keenan said. If not, workers plan to picket the shipyard later this month when a destroyer is christened.
Staff Writer Mark Peters can be contacted at 791-6325 or at:
mpeters@pressherald.com
Methinks the unions ought to read the writing on the wall. Either get competitive or you go away. It's your choice.