Ironworkers in Oregon and Washington will vote on a third employer offer after previously voting down a second employer offer in mail ballots counted July 31.
In June, members voted down an offer that would have increased total compensation $7.50 an hour over three years. The second offer would have increased total compensation $15 an hour over four years. Now, members will vote on a third offer totaling $16 over four years.
It’s important to note that those dollar amounts cover not just wages but all benefits, including retirement, health, vacation, and training. Currently, journeyman ironworkers in the Portland area make $43.82 an hour plus $33.98 an hour in benefits, for a total package of $77.80 an hour. Thus a $15 increase over four years would have amounted to a 19% increase in the total package, or less than 5% a year coming after several years of higher-than-usual inflation. The previous three-year contract increased the total package $9 an hour, which amounted to a 13% increase, but overall inflation went up 15.6% during that time.
The regional master agreement between the Northwest Ironworkers Employers Association and the Iron Workers District Council of the Pacific Northwest covers members of three locals. Local 29, based in Portland, has 1,648 members in a territory that covers Oregon and Southwest Washington; Local 86, based in Tukwila, Washington, has 2,958 members in western Washington; and Local 14, based in Spokane Valley, Washington, has 739 members in a jurisdiction that includes Washington east of Wenatchee plus northern Idaho and western Montana.
Voting on the second offer, Local 29 had the highest turnout of the three and rejected it by the highest margin: 635 members voted, and 88% voted to reject the offer. Members of Local 86 rejected it by 56%, with 516 ballots counted. And members of Local 14 narrowly approved the agreement.
The previous collective bargaining agreement expired June 30.
Bargaining resumed after the second offer was rejected, but without the threat of a strike. Members earlier voted to authorize a strike, but after the contractors’ second offer, the General Executive Board of the Ironworkers national union rescinded that strike authorization. Despite that, employers added $1 to the offer that members will vote on starting next week.
Just to be clear local 29 never called for a strike by the membership, they had approval from the international to call for a strike, but failed to do so leaving the bargaining team with no leverage.