New Contract Ends Iowa City Strike Members of Local 1426 in Sioux City, IA, ratified a new contract with Smurfit-Stone Container plant, ending a 10-week long strike over pensions, wages, forced overtime and 12-hour days in what were described as sweatshop conditions. The new agreement contains a 7 percent general wage increase over 4.5 years,
Read moreCBTU Holds 36th Annual Convention More than 1,000 IAM members and trade unionists are gathering in Chicago, IL, this week for the 36th International Convention of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU). “Lessons Learned, New Vision for the Future,” is the theme of the week-long convention. “Since 1972, CBTU has been a voice for
Read moreMachinists Approve New Contract at Hamilton Sundstrand IAM members of Local 743 at Hamilton Sundstrand in Connecticut overwhelmingly approved a new three-year contract with annual pay raises of 3.5 percent, an $8 increase to members’ monthly pension benefit and a $3,000 signing bonus that can be matched by 50 percent if the money is placed
Read more‘Day of Action’ Signals Grassroots Revival The thousands of Machinists who came to Washington, DC last week for the 2007 Legislative Conference and the Transportation Department’s “Day of Action” returned home after witnessing firsthand the impact that grassroots political involvement can have. From an impassioned speech by John Edwards at the Legislative Conference, who repeatedly
Read moreMachinists Prevail in NWA Bankruptcy Case The Machinists Union scored a major bankruptcy court victory this week when Judge Allan Gropper ruled that IAM members at Northwest Airlines (NWA) are entitled to Series C claims against the bankrupt carrier worth $212 million. The ruling confirms an earlier state court judgment over the carrier’s refusal to
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