Thursday April 20, 2006
For Immediate Release
Mississauga, ON – Members of IAM Local Lodge 2243 are prepared to remain on strike for as long as it takes until management at R-Theta Thermal Solutions removes numerous concession demands from the bargaining table.
“The last offer from the company contained more than half a million dollars in concession demands, that’s double the amount contained in previous offers,” said IAM District 78 Directing Business Representative Gary Hynes. “Our members rejected this offer because they consider it an insult and now when the company says it has nothing to come back to the table with, it only strengthens the resolve on the picket line. The longer the company drags this out, the worse it’s going to get.”
The Machinists are seeking wage increases of 2.7 per cent in each year of a three-year agreement and are steadfastly opposed to any changes to their pension plan. The company wants to freeze wages for the first 18 months of the agreement, freeze pension plan contributions for a year and, extend the workweek to 40 hours with the removal of a half hour paid lunch. Other hotly contested issues include the company demand to allow maintenance supervisors to perform bargaining unit work and the right to hire temporary workers at a lower rate of pay and keep them out of the bargaining unit.
The 63 members, who manufacture aluminum heat sinks and other thermal products for the electrical industry, have been on strike since April 7th.
The IAMAW is among the largest industrial trade unions in North America. It represents more than 700,000 active and retired members, and administers more than 5,000 contracts in transportation, woodworking, aerospace, manufacturing and defense related industries.
