Shipbuilders picket outside an entrance to Bath Iron Works, Monday, June 22, 2020, in Bath, Maine. Thousands of workers went on strike against one of the Navy’s largest shipbuilders Monday after rejecting a three-year contract.
More than 4,000 workers went on strike against one of the Navy’s largest shipbuilders Monday after rejecting a three-year contract. It was the first strike by production workers at Bath Iron Works in 20 years.
Pickets formed at midnight when the old contract expired in a dispute that focused on subcontracting, work rules and seniority over wages and benefits.
Bath Iron Works already had fallen six months behind on ship construction, partly due to the coronavirus pandemic, and the strike threatened to further delay production of destroyers for the U.S. Navy, the company said.
The three-year contract proposal would have given production workers a 3% raise each year. But the shipbuilders’ union objected to more than a dozen changes that it considered to be concessions — including hiring subcontractors.
Machinists Union Local S6, which represents 4,300 workers, voted 87% in favor of a strike. The tally was announced on Sunday.
“This should send a crystal clear message to BIW management: Respect your workers, go back to the bargaining table and negotiate a fair contract,” Maine AFL-CIO President Cynthia Phinney said in a statement.
Maine
Frustration had been building among workers since the last contract in which the Machinists union accepted concessions that were deemed necessary to win a U.S. Coast Guard contract — and save shipbuilding jobs.
Bath Iron Works lost that contract to another shipyard in 2016. It also lost a competition for Navy frigates in late April.
Shipbuilders contend the problems have been caused by mismanagement. The company contends the shipyard must be more efficient and get back on schedule to successfully compete for work.
Competition is becoming fierce. Bath Iron Works, a subsidiary of General Dynamics, competes against Mississippi’s Ingalls Shipbuilding for construction of technologically sophisticated destroyers. But smaller shipyards in Alabama and Wisconsin are also competing for work on smaller warships.
The issue at Bath Iron Works is how much the shipyard can absorb and remain competitive, said Loren Thompson, an analyst at the Lexington Institute.
“Management is afraid that they’re going to price themselves out of the market,” he said.
The shipyard on the Kennebec River is one of the Navy’s five largest shipbuilders and a major employer in Maine, with 6,800 workers.
