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KANSAS CITY, April 16, 2026 —IAM International President Brian Bryant and Midwest Territory General Vice President Sam Cicinelli joined striking members of IAM Local 778 on Thursday for a roundtable discussion at the IAM Local 778 Union Hall in Kansas City, Mo., demanding that Olin Winchester return to the bargaining table and reach a fair contract with the approximately 1,350 workers who have been on strike since Saturday, April 4.
Listen to the full audio of the Roundtable Discussion
The roundtable came one day after IAM Local 778 representatives met with Olin Winchester negotiators. IAM Local 778 members at Olin Winchester’s Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in Independence, Mo., the single largest producer of small-arms ammunition for the U.S. armed forces, walked off the job after their contract expired at midnight on April 4 over wages, mandatory overtime, zero paid sick leave, and unsustainable working conditions.
“The full weight and resources of the IAM are deployed right here, right now, in Missouri,” said Bryant. “IAM Local 778 members did not walk off that job because they wanted to. They walked off because Olin Winchester gave them no choice, no fair wage, no paid sick leave, no relief from forced overtime, and no respect. As long as they are standing strong on that picket line, the IAM is standing with them.”
Olin Winchester has received more than $53 million in state and local subsidies since 2001, plus an additional $81 million in loans and guarantees. The IAM said that public investment makes swift resolution of the strike a matter of accountability to Missouri taxpayers and to the members of the U.S. military who depend on Lake City for ammunition supply. The Independence facility manufactures 5.56 mm, 7.62 mm and .50-caliber rifle ammunition for the U.S. military.
“For the approximately 1,350 workers at this plant, mandatory overtime isn’t the exception, it’s a way of life,” said Cicinelli. “These workers manufacture the rounds used by the Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, and critical ammunition for NATO allies. They deserve a contract that reflects the value and the sacrifice of that work. Olin Winchester has the resources to do right by them. It is time for them to use those resources at the bargaining table.”
During the roundtable, striking members provided first-person testimony detailing the impact of forced overtime, zero paid sick leave, and wage stagnation on their families and their lives outside the plant.
“It’s been a 24-hour picket line, and we have had a great response and support from the community,” said IAM Union Local 778 Directing Business Representative Scott Brown. “There has been no offer to take back to our group. Our members are ready to get back to work, but it takes a fair agreement that reflects their value and the critical role they play.”
Olin Winchester employees and Local 778 members Vaughn Cochran and Travis Bradford both described the human cost of Olin Winchester’s mandatory overtime policy.
“I have missed vacations and other family events because I had no choice but to stay,” said Bradford. “There is no sick leave. There is no flexibility. We make the ammunition that protects this country, and we can’t even take a day off when we’re sick or need to see a doctor. That is why we are on strike.”
“My son is a Marine, and I work hard to ensure the ammunition we make will allow my son to make it home, “ said Cochran. “When Olin Winchester refuses to bargain fairly with its workers, it is not just hurting 1,350 families; it is putting this nation’s military readiness at risk. Come to the table. Bargain in good faith. Do right by me and my coworkers who make this country safer.”
IAM Local 778 members are seeking a contract that provides fair wages, paid sick leave, and relief from a mandatory overtime policy that workers say is unsustainable. IAM Local 778 remains committed to reaching a negotiated settlement and calls on Olin Winchester to resume good-faith bargaining immediately.
The IAM Union (International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers) is one of North America’s largest and most diverse industrial trade unions, representing approximately 600,000 active and retired members in the aerospace, defense, airlines, shipbuilding, railroad, transit, healthcare, automotive, and other industries across the United States and Canada.
