USW Local 4370 Authorize Strike

Members of USW Local 4370 Authorize Strike against Alcoa

Point Comfort, TX – The members of United Steelworkers (USW) Local 4370 today voted unanimously to grant their negotiating committee the authority to implement a strike against Alcoa if necessary.

About 25 members of USW Local 4370 had continued to work under the terms and conditions of a contract that was set to expire on May 15, 2019, when the USW and Alcoa agreed to extend it while negotiations proceed, subject to termination with notice by either party.

With the company demanding major economic and non‐economic concessions that the union considers excessive and unnecessary, USW International Vice President Tom Conway, who chairs the negotiations, urged Alcoa management to recognize workers’ contributions to their success.

“USW members have dedicated years of hard work and personal sacrifice to keep these facilities operating efficiently and profitably,” Conway said. “Corporate executives and shareholders are reaping the benefits while Alcoa continues to demand concessions too broad and too deep for our members and their families to absorb.”

USW Local 4370 President Mike Cabrera said that although the union would prefer to resolve the outstanding issues without a work stoppage, the membership has delivered a clear message through its overwhelming support for strike authorization.

“We are organized and mobilized and will not allow Alcoa to bully us into accepting anything less than the fair contracts we have earned and deserve,” Cabrera said. “These are jobs worth
fighting for, and we intend to keep it that way.”

The USW represents 850,000 men and women employed in metals, mining, pulp and paper, rubber, chemicals, glass, auto supply, and the energy‐producing industries, along with a growing number of workers in public sector and service occupations.