Kansas City workers keep family health plan without contributions increase

Local 13-07 members of the United Steelworkers (USW) at Milbank Manufacturing Co., jubilantly returned to work today after standing up against an unlawful week-long employer lockout, ratifying a new three-year contract that rejected a management proposal to force big employee increases in contributions to their healthcare plan.

In addition to maintaining the healthcare plan for families with no increase in premiums being paid, the union employees won a wage increases package of $1.10 per hour plus pay for three days of lost wages during the lockout. In exchange, the USW has agreed to request the federal National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) consider withdrawal of three labor charges filed against the company that cited the unlawful lockout.

Janet Kirk, USW Local 13 President and an employee at Milbank said: “The union membership solidarity against the employer lockout said enough is enough. We were not going to accept another increase of our contributions for a family healthcare plan. So we won our position and we even got paid for most of our wages lost due to the lockout ... more