August 7, 2007
Bargaining Update: 08.07.07
We held our latest contract bargaining session with the company on Tuesday August 7, 2007— and it was over almost before it began.
In effect, the company negotiators refused to talk to us at the bargaining meeting on the 7th, and they finally got up and walked out.
We had been holding off-the-record talks until two weeks ago, when progress suddenly screeched to a halt and the talks ended. The company then canceled the next bargaining meeting.
When it became clear at the start of Tuesday's meeting that neither side had a new, formal proposal to offer, the company negotiators said they were unwilling to talk. We said we had prepared some general ideas we wanted to share, and they said they weren't interested in hearing them, although they said they were willing to read them. (You can see those comments right here.
Where do we go now? The only thing the company was willing to do on the 7th was to schedule the next meeting, which we will do.
There are many issues that remain on the table to be discussed and we hope that we will begin discussing them again, on or off the record. In the meantime, we intend to stand by our basic goal: a fair raise for everyone, even after the effects of higher health premiums and inflation.
As always, we welcome your comments and suggestions.
Steve Yount
President
Jim Browning
Bargaining Committee Chair
IAPE CWA 1096