Dear Members,
Negotiations this week began with a continuation of our last pass to the company. The company’s counter fell short of what our committee believed would be an industry leading contract. The committee adamantly pressed their position through more passes, meetings and deliberations. Finally the committee was presented with the company’s “Closeout Proposal”
What this meant was that there would be no more counter proposals received and anymore negotiating with the company would be futile, thereby regarding this as the company’s “last best and final offer”.
After lengthy discussion the negotiation committee decided that a 24.8% Date of Signing increase in base wages and the overall valuation obligated the committee to take the proposal to the membership so the full membership could evaluate all the details and make an informed decision as to what the advantages are and what areas fall short of expectations.
After discussion, sometimes heated, our committee decided to put a Neutral recommendation on the company proposal. A Neutral opinion from the committee allows the membership to contemplate the terms of United’s closeout proposal in an unbiased fashion and decide what is best for each member’s individual needs. It is our hope that all members take a proactive position to learn the details of this proposal, ask questions and vote when the time comes.
Meetings will follow shortly regarding the company’s offer.
In Solidarity,
Bob Luciano
Local 210, Business Agent