About 2,500 workers represented by the Marine Draftsmen’s Association (MDA) UAW Local 571 union might go on strike if the union and shipbuilder General Dynamics Electric Boat [GD] do not reach a new agreement.
On Monday union leaders announced more than two-thirds of the local members voted to allow a potential strike. The last five-year contract for Local 571 expired on April 4.
The union represents draftsmen, designers, and various technical and office workers.
The Electric Boat Connecticut shipyard builds Virginia-class attack submarines and Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines for the Navy, alongside HII‘s Newport News Shipbuilding [HII] in Virginia.
Union leaders have made frequent video updates to members on Facebook and the union’s website.
On April 4, after being presented with what the company said was its final best offer, Local 571 president Bill Lewis said, “being pissed off is saying the least, I’ll be honest. We’re not happy with the process, where we are at this moment with what they’ve presented.”
While the company has offered a 5.4 percent wage increase in the first year and four percent each for the following four years, the union said the company refused to consider discussing other union complaints about cost of living adjustments given increased housing costs, profit sharing, and pensions for all employees.
Starting in 2010 after a previous round of negotiations during a downturn, new employees lost the chance for pensions, so 1,850 current members do not have them.
Lewis previously said Electric Boat started bargaining by offering wage increases of 4%, 3%, 3%, 2% and 2% over the next five years each.
Lewis argued one percent of the company’s profits would cover all of the union’s demands.
Previously, in 2023 Electric Boat and the Metal Trades Council (MTC) union, an AFL-CIO union, agreed to a five-year contract with 21.4 percent wage increases over the total five-year contract term, alongside other benefits increases (Defense Daily, Oct. 10, 2023).
MTC represents 3,400 skilled trades employees at the yard, which covers welders, electricians, machinists, pipefitters, laborers, painters, transportation services and administration support.
Beyond MDA and MTC there are two other unions at EB: the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America Local 1302 and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1186.
While the membership approved of a potential strike, union leadership underscored the employees were directed to work as normal until such a decision is made.
During an April 14 meeting of union members, UAW President Shawn Fain backed their negotiations and threat to strike, arguing the company can go back to negotiations and get serious about demands or they can “keep messing around. The choice is theirs, and the clock is ticking.”