About 800 members of Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers (AWPPW) Local 153 went on strike Aug. 27, shutting down the Kapstone paper mill and box plant in Longview, Washington. The strike comes after Kapstone declared an impasse in bargaining and imposed its own contract terms Aug. 10 over the objection of union members.
AWPPW is part of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters. This was its first time bargaining with Chicago-headquartered Kapstone Paper and Packaging Corporation, which bought Longview Fibre in 2013. AWPPW members had made big concessions in their most recent contract with Longview Fibre, including giving up their pension and retiree health coverage. But Kapstone’s offers, which workers three times voted to reject, included further significant cuts to health insurance benefits and other takeaways.
U.S. labor law allows employers to permanently replace strikers in “economic” strikes, but not in strikes that are called in protest of labor law violations, known as “unfair labor practices.” AWPPW is calling its walkout an unfair labor practice strike, and has filed charges alleging violations.
Kapstone announced that it’s using the shutdown to perform maintenance, and that it plans to restart its largest paper machine on Sept. 2 (after this issue went to press) using replacement workers.
Strikers are maintaining a 24-hour picket line. AWPPW Vice President Greg Pallesen says no members have crossed the picket line, but managers and hired strikebreakers are crossing the line. And some are driving fast through the line, putting strikers at risk.
“It’s an extremely dangerous situation,” Pallesen said.
At 7 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 30, a replacement worker leaving the mill in his car struck picketer Steve Blanchard. The impact lifted him onto the hood. Pallesen witnessed the assault, which was caught on video, and said the driver accelerated after the impact, throwing Blanchard into somersaults. He was taken to St. John Medical Center, but was not injured.
Pallesen said strikebreakers are driving vehicles with license plates from Alabama, Arkansas, and Georgia, some flying Confederate flags.
Kapstone managers also interfered with workers’ right to strike, Pallesen said — ordering workers to remain on site after the strike had commenced, and refusing to allow mechanics to take their tools with them when they left the plant.
As of press time, the two sides had no plans to meet.
