Tony Ashcraft has worked at McWane Ductile Pipe in Coshocton, Ohio, for more than 23 years.
It's his third job, and the third time he's been a union member.
"Every job I have had, there has always been some type of union," he said. "I don't know if I could work in a non-union facility."
Ashcraft, president of Local 7014, learned a long time ago the difference that the union makes for the workers at his plant and at other USW-represented facilities, fighting for better wages and benefits, secure retirements, safer workplaces and other protections.
American Jobs Plan
The Biden administration’s infrastructure proposal, known as the American Jobs Plan, includes billions of dollars to rebuild highways and bridges and upgrade airports, seaports and transit systems.
The plan also would modernize the nation’s water systems, revamp electrical grids and ensure high-speed internet access for all Americans, among many other initiatives.
The water and power system upgrades are the parts of the plan that would most directly benefit Ashcraft, his USW co-workers, and their neighbors.
Financial Ripple Effect
The McWane factory employs about 500 workers, including 320 USW members, but that number doesn’t begin to illustrate its importance to the people of Coshocton, a small town in eastern Ohio about halfway between the state capital of Columbus and the Pennsylvania border.
“These are good jobs,” Ashcraft said. “And in this town, there aren’t too many factories like this left.”
Chris Balo, who at 43 years of service is one of the plant’s most senior workers, said the strong union contract at McWane delivers the kind of wages and benefits that allow members to support their families, while also creating an economic ripple effect that provides a base for other businesses in town to thrive.
“At McWane, they do their best to keep us working even through the slow times,” said Balo, the local vice president. “That helps us all out around this little town of ours.”
'We Supply America'
Now, besides securing those important contractual benefits, the USW has launched a plan of action – known as "We Supply America" – to enact a massive, nationwide federal infrastructure program that will provide a foundation of tens of thousands more good union jobs for decades to come. It's another USW member-led fight of which Ashcraft is proud to be a part.
"To me, it's very important because it will keep us working," Ashcraft said of the "We Supply America" effort. "It keeps American products and American companies here."
Local 7014 members
make some of those vital products at their factory in Coshocton. The McWane facility produces ductile iron pipe used in water infrastructure, as well as utility poles used to provide electrical power to communities throughout the United States.
From the beginning, when raw, mostly recycled, materials are melted down, through the casting machines and annealing oven, to the finishing area where pipes are put through tests, painted and prepared for shipping, USW members play a central role throughout the pipe-making process.
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