At the end of March, the International sent “Fair Contract Now” stickers and leaflets explaining the action to the Solvay Council.
The newly-organized Solvay group at the Pasadena, Texas, plant was having a difficult time bargaining a first contract. Management was dragging negotiations and proposing concessions and draconian language.
Some of the Solvay locals experienced such management behavior when negotiating their current agreements two years ago. Solidarity helped then, so the locals handed out the leaflets to their members and wore Fair Contract Now stickers.
Local 12517-05 members at the Solvay Baltimore, Md., plant wore the Fair Contract Now stickers on their work helmets to show the company that all of its workers stand as one.
“We will always have each other’s backs,” said Unit President Troy S. Fulwiler III. “We send prayers for a great contract.”
District 13 Staff Representative Marcos Velez, who is helping to negotiate the agreement, said he saw an immediate change in management soon after Local 12517-05 members expressed their solidarity.
“The company sent in an additional corporate human resources manager, and the existing management team started working with us,” he said. “We were able to achieve more in the two bargaining sessions after the action than we were in the rest of our sessions combined.”