CONTACT: Tony Montana, (412) 562-2592, tmontana@usw.org
The United Steelworkers (USW) today said that contract negotiations with Arconic (NYSE: ARNC) have stalled, hours before the existing labor agreements are set to expire and with management demanding economic and non-economic concessions that the union has dismissed as excessive and unnecessary.
The union and company have agreed that USW members at Arconic will continue working under the terms and conditions of their existing agreements while bargaining continues.
USW International Vice President Tom Conway, who chairs the negotiations, said that the proposals currently on the table from Arconic contain concessions both too broad and too deep for USW members and their families to absorb.
“Arconic should understand by now that we are determined to negotiate fair agreements and nothing less,” Conway said. “Our members throughout the aluminum industry—especially at these facilities—create tremendous value and have earned and deserve a contract that recognizes that their contributions to the company's success.”
Representatives of the USW negotiating committee will return to their local unions in the coming days to provide detailed updates from the table and discuss the union's next steps.
The USW represents 850,000 men and women employed in manufacturing, metals, mining, pulp and paper, rubber, chemicals, glass, auto supply and the energy-producing industries, along with a growing number of workers in public sector and service occupations.