United Steelworkers Press Releases Feed

  • USW Atomic Workers on Course for a Prosperous Future
    The following article was published in the Fall 2024 issue of USW@Work. Anita Bevins is part of five generations of family who have worked at the Portsmouth nuclear site in southern Ohio. For nearly 35 years, Bevins has worked at the site operating cranes and has trained hundreds of workers on crane operation. She works alongside two of her children, two grandchildren and two sons-in-law who are also employed at the plant. As she looks forward to retirement, Bevins credits the facility with helping to protect U.S. national security, to ensure energy independence, and to build a strong, secure future for herself, her loved ones and her community. “It has helped me raise my children,” said Bevins, one of about 900 members of Local 689 who are part of six units spread across the sprawling 3,777-acre site in Piketon, about 70 miles south of Columbus. Local 689 is one of seven local unions that are part of the USW’s Atomic Energy Workers Council (AEWC), which represents a total of about 3,000 members. Barry Sexton is one of the longest-tenured USW members at the Portsmouth site. After a stint in the U.S. Army, he joined a work-study program and now has been at the site for more than 45 years. “Talk about luck,” he said. Herman Potter, president of Local 689, himself a second-generation atomic worker, noted that the site is among the largest employers in the region and, thanks to the USW-negotiated wages and benefits, also one of the best places to work. Focus on the Future That is unlikely to change any time soon, especially now that the site is home to a project that represents the future of U.S. nuclear energy. A year ago, Centrus Energy, one of a half-dozen contractors that employs USW members at the federally owned Portsmouth site, launched the first new U.S.-owned and operated uranium enrichment production in 70 years. Inside one of the two identical, massive buildings designed to house the project are a series of tall white cylindrical towers, each containing centrifuges that produce the enriched uranium that will power the next generation of nuclear reactors. Today, there are 16 towers, but hundreds more are expected to fill the space over the next two years. “We are looking years down the road to make sure we remain here,” said Potter. “We are going to need more people, and we’re going to need to train them.” Because that training and the necessary security clearances take roughly 18 months to complete, and the company expects to hire as many as 500 people by 2027, Potter said, the search for new workers is already getting underway, and the union is exploring the possibility of establishing a regional training center at the local hall. Potter credits the local union’s strength in part to its relationship with political leaders, including U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown and former Sen. Rob Portman, who invited Potter to be a guest at the State of the Union address in 2016. The Ohio legislators, he said, helped ensure the site would have a strong future. The expansion in Portsmouth comes with increases in federal funding and the strong support of the Biden-Harris administration, which has earmarked $2.7 billion in funding to establish a reliable domestic supply of fuel for the nuclear power industry, part of the White House’s stated goal of achieving energy independence and generating 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2035. In July, USW Atomic Energy Workers Council President Jim Key, who also serves as an appointee to the U.S. Department of Labor Advisory Board on Toxic Substances and Worker’s Health, witnessed President Joe Biden sign into law theAccelerating Deployment of Versatile, Advanced Nuclear for Clean Energy (A.D.V.A.N.C.E.) Act. The bipartisan bill sets forth provisions to incentivize the development and deployment of domestically produced advanced nuclear fuel technologies and to clean up hazardous land. Key expects the new law will help bring scores of valuable new union jobs to the atomic sector, including the Portsmouth site. USW District 1 Director Donnie Blatt, who oversees the union’s work throughout Ohio, said the proud USW members at Portsmouth are eager to grow their local as more jobs come to the area. "Portsmouth has been vital to our nation’s atomic energy, and our USW members are key to its future,” said Blatt. “With the new uranium enrichment project, we're not just creating jobs – we're ensuring energy independence and economic growth for our community. Our members' dedication and skill will continue to drive this critical work forward." For America, By Americans The promise of a strong future for the atomic industry is good news for USW members and others in the region, who rely on the ripple effect of the good jobs at Portsmouth to fuel the local economy. “It’s promising,” said Delbert Reisinger, who has worked at the site for 16 years. “It feels good to know we’re using American technology to make a product for Americans.” Reisinger said he’s noticed an uptick in small business activity and other economic growth in the area since the new uranium enrichment work began, and that he expects the growth to continue as the site expands. “We’re ready,” he said. “We’ve proven it time and time again.” Aaron Howard, a chemical operator at the site and daytime union steward, said that the future of the plant will be critical for sustaining the community long-term. Piketon’s population hovers at around just 2,000, and while many who work at the plant commute in from surrounding towns, it is by far the largest employer in the area. “We’re talking about a large economic influx of thousands of jobs,” said Howard. “It means a lot for the people here.” Matt Snider, manager of the new centrifuge plant, said he was thankful for the company’s strong working relationship with the USW. “Centrus is proud to be leading the effort to restore American leadership in uranium enrichment, and grateful for the USW members in our Piketon plant who are making it happen,” Snider said. Health and Safety Essential The new uranium enrichment project at Portsmouth is, in a way, a throwback to the past for a work site that for 45 years was home to a gaseous diffusion plant that enriched uranium – first for use in the nation’s nuclear weapons program and, later, for commercial nuclear reactors. Those operations ended in 2001, and for the past three decades, USW members have performed complex decontamination and decommissioning work there. Fluor-BWXT, the contractor that oversees the decommissioning, custodial, plant protection and other work at the site, is the largest employer of USW members in Portsmouth, with about 650 on its payroll.  Greg Wilkett, site manager for the company, said the most important aspect of his work with the union is ensuring that everyone goes home safe at the end of their shift. “You don’t get that unless you have a great partnership,” Wilkett said. “We have a common interest.” Sam Carver said wages and benefits are a small part of what USW membership provides to the workers in Portsmouth. Having a strong voice on the job, particularly on issues of health and safety, is essential, he said. “It’s about knowing that they have your back,” Carver said. “We know that when we bring something up, they’re not going to take it lightly.” Phil Budnik, a unit president and safety representative, said the membership works closely with management at the site on a number of issues, including safety and ensuring adequate funding from the federal government. “We are good at protecting our work force,” said Budnik, who served in a management role at a previous job. “It has given me perspective.” USW members in Portsmouth also have found opportunities to change direction in their careers. Paige Cisco, a second-generation atomic worker, began working at the Portsmouth site during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic as a janitor, and for the past three years has worked in process operations.  Cisco quickly became a leader within her local, stepping up to become unit president, a full-time safety representative, a sergeant-at-arms and a worker-trainer who now travels around the country providing Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) trainings for fellow USW members. Cisco’s mother, who also worked as a process operator at the site, now works with the Worker Health Protection Program through New York’s Queens College, which partners with the USW, the Department of Energy and other agencies to offer free health evaluations to atomic workers for conditions related to radiation, asbestos, beryllium, noise, solvents, and other potential exposures. Cisco attended the USW’s Health, Safety and Environment conference held in August, where she and other USW members in the nuclear sector had the chance to discuss their health and safety concerns in a special session for atomic workers.  “I care about our health and safety at Portsmouth because it’s personal for me,” said Cisco, whose father suffered from three different cancers while employed at the site in Piketon. “The people I work with aren’t just my coworkers – they are my family.” Trent Smith has worked at the Portsmouth site for 31 years doing a variety of jobs. For Smith, the strong connection he feels with co-workers and the members of his community make it a special place to work and live. “There’s a brotherhood. There’s no denying that,” he said of his USW siblings. “They are the community in my eyes.” Legacy of Innovation As the Portsmouth site evolves, it stays grounded in its rich legacy while embracing a promising future.  “The new uranium enrichment project marks a pivotal step forward, ensuring that Portsmouth remains at the forefront of America’s nuclear energy future,” said International Vice President Roxanne Brown, who oversees bargaining in the USW’s atomic sector. “This enduring partnership between USW members, industry, and community honors our history while building a brighter future for the nation.” — Oct 21
  • Biomedical Technicians at Georgia American Red Cross Vote to Join USW
    Orlando Rawls had experienced the benefits of union membership firsthand in his previous position and was eager to share his experience with his new coworkers. Rawls, a biomedical technician at the American Red Cross in Douglasville, Ga., had previously been a member of USW Local 254 when he worked in the facility’s storage and distribution center but lost that representation when he moved to the biomedical equipment department. Rawls said bringing his coworkers on board didn’t happen overnight. It took many serious conversations about their shared priorities and the best way to achieve them. On top of this, working conditions were changing, and morale started to dip as departments shrunk due to outsourcing. “We wanted to stay where we were,” said Rawls. “The individuals I work with have families, and we want to advance in our careers. But we can’t do that if we aren’t part of the union.” After months of organizing, the biomedical technicians voted unanimously to join the USW at the end of September. Rawls and his colleagues look forward to negotiating fair wages and benefits in their first contract and are excited to have a voice on the job.“The union was the backing we were looking for,” said Rawls. “We wanted a seat at the table to have our voices heard.” The six biomedical technicians join approximately 220 other organized workers of Local 254 in the American Red Cross’ manufacturing, storage, and distribution departments.  — Oct 21
  • Dow, DuPont, Corteva, IFF and Trinseo Workers Unite in Pittsburgh
    Contact: Kent Holsing, 989-615-3901, [email protected] (Pittsburgh) – Union leaders representing thousands of workers at Dow, DuPont, Corteva, IFF, and Trinseo locations from the United States and around the globe met last week in Pittsburgh to discuss common issues, devise strategies and pledge their unity. “As workers continue to experience challenges, both locally and globally, union members around the world and in the U.S. will be working together to ensure our best interests are represented,” said Kent Holsing, chairperson of the Dow DuPont North American Labor Council and president of USW Local 12075 in Midland, Mich. “The chemical industry is critically important and its workers are a vital part of that,” Holsing added. “Faced with economic uncertainty, the push for sustainability, digitalization and consumer confidence, we know all too well that corporations don’t stop making decisions and acting in the best interest of their shareholders.” “We must protect workers, not only those in our unions but also non-union employees who don’t have that voice.” The union leaders, over a three-day period, shared collective bargaining data, identified mutual obstacles and determined potential solutions to concerns like short staffing, excessive overtime and increased workplace fatigue, lack of proper training, and workplace and community safety. The council also discussed Dow’s flawed decision and the ramifications to abruptly close the Puerto General San Martin, Argentina location, the future of company-union relations, and the financial strength of each company. The labor leaders strengthened their unions’ international connections, and their interactions boosted mutual respect and understanding across the six companies’ unionized worksites in the U.S. and globally. Representatives from these unions participated in the annual meeting: The United Steelworkers (USW); the International Union of Operating Engineers; Texas City Metal Trades; the International Chemical Workers Union Council/United Food & Commercial Workers; National Conference of Firemen & Oilers; the Ampthill Rayon Workers Incorporated (ARWI); the Dow Chemical European Employee Forum; the Dow Chemical-Stade Works Council (Germany); UNITE the Union (United Kingdom); the Global Union Federation IndustriALL (Geneva, Switzerland); the Union of Workers and Employees Petrochemicals States-SOEPU (Argentina) and the Petroleum Chemical and Rubber Industry Workers’ Union of Turkey-Lastik-İş (Turkey). The USW represents 850,000 workers 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 health care, public sector, higher education, tech and service occupations. ###   — Oct 21
  • Mindful Bargaining: Unions Can Play Major Role in Addressing Mental Health
    The following article was featured in the Fall 2024 issue of USW@Work. Union contracts can be a powerful tool in addressing mental health among members and their families, and USW bargaining committees must push for progress on that issue just as they would any other health care language. That was the central message of a daylong educational program for rank-and-file USW leaders this summer at the union’s education center at Linden Hall in Pennsylvania. Health and Safety For Mayson Fulk of Local 2699-09 in London, Ontario, efforts to improve workers’ mental health are a natural part of the work that USW local leaders do on behalf of all of their members. “We are a health and safety union,” Fulk said, “and that includes our mental health and safety.” Aside from simply providing affordable and accessible mental health care, unions can fight for language on numerous topics that can address members’ mental health needs, including limiting excessive overtime, providing adequate vacation time and paid sick leave, and ensuring safer workplaces free from danger. Dangers in the workplace, Fulk noted, can include both physical hazards and psychological hazards such as bullying and harassment. The threat of both can lead to mental health challenges, but bargaining for affordable health care coverage that takes mental health needs into account is the first step to addressing the issue, Fulk said. “We can tell our members and our employees all we want that mental health matters, but if we aren’t bargaining for access to mental health care that our members can afford, it does no good,” said Fulk, who serves as unit chair as well as local president, co-chair of the District 6 Human Rights Committee, District 6 Trans Liaison and as a member of the international’s 2SLGBTQIA+ Advisory Committee. Common Problem During the Linden Hall program, which was packed with several dozen USW members from across North America, facilitator Waleed Sami, a professor of psychology at the City College of New York, asked participants to raise their hands if they had dealt with a mental health-related issue in their workplace. Every member’s hand went up. “Many of the elements that contribute to better mental health are things that a union can improve,” said Sami, who wrote his 115-page doctoral dissertation on the relationship between union membership and mental health. “Income inequality and poverty exert a profound health and mental health cost on the citizens of the United States,” Sami wrote. But the strong wages and benefits that union membership provides can help to combat those factors, not just for workers but entire communities. Besides good pay, unions, in general, provide workers with increased job security, greater work-life balance, more opportunity for advancement, more flexible scheduling and safer environments than non-union workplaces. All of those factors can be improved through contract bargaining, Sami said. Voice on the Job In addition, unions provide workers with an avenue to address concerns about their working conditions in a way that non-union workers don’t have, which also can lead to improved mental health, said Tom Woodgate of Local 2-585 in Mount Pleasant, Mich. “The contract gives our members a concrete way of managing their lives, working conditions, wages, benefits. Negotiating a contract can be stressful, but not having any contract is more stressful,” Woodgate said. “Having the union gives us the strength to stand up.” In addition to providing a voice for workers, union contracts offer a degree of certainty about the future, Woodgate said, which gives workers feelings of comfort and safety. “There are rules, and the mechanisms of the contract give people stability, and a clear process on how things work,” he said. “This gives people a sense of agency in their workplace, that even in small ways, or not-so-small ways, they can make informed decisions about their lives and livelihoods.” Paid Time Off Specific contract provisions also can contribute to the mental well-being of workers, said Sederick Wilson, vice president of Local 9558 at Howmet Aerospace in Hampton, Va. One of those provisions is adequate bereavement leave so that workers have time to process their grief after the loss of a close loved one, Wilson said. “You really don’t know the impact until you go through it,” he said. Another helpful provision is paid family leave that allows workers flexibility when they are sick or caring for a sick or terminally ill family member. The COVID-19 pandemic brought into stark relief the need for such policies across all workplaces. Still, union contracts are the best way to ensure those benefits, Woodgate said. Employee Assistance Providing workers who are dealing with post-traumatic stress, depression or substance abuse, or who are facing violent domestic situations or other threats, with the support, time off and flexibility they need to change their lives can be among the most important provisions in a union contract, Woodgate said. Many USW locals bargain contract language for employee-assistance programs (EAPs) that offer benefits such as counseling, legal aid, education and training opportunities, child care, financial assistance, housing placement and other help to workers struggling with a host of issues that can negatively affect their mental health. “These types of issues can require a lot of patience and guidance,” Wilson said. In recent years, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has recognized issues of mental health and stress as workplace hazards and begun to provide resources and tools for workers and managers to address those problems. For more information, members can visit osha.gov. Raising the Bar The idea of addressing issues of domestic violence and other forms of abuse through the union’s collective bargaining process led to the creation of the recently updated “Action Guide for Raising the Bar on Women’s Health and Safety,” a handbook to give union leaders tools, including model contract language, to better address members’ needs through bargaining and union activism. In addition to violence and abuse, the guide provides members with help in addressing other issues, including harassment, gender identity, ergonomics, work-life balance, restrooms and change rooms, uniforms, personal protective equipment, and reproductive health. Members can find the guide at: usw.to/raisingthebar. “The job of any union is to recognize the needs of workers and their families and do everything we can to help them meet those needs,” International President David McCall said. “Ensuring the health, safety and security of workers and families is something we should be fighting for every day, in our workplaces and in our communities.” Besides the benefits that their contract language or an EAP may offer, Sami said, unions provide workers with other, less tangible benefits that positively affect mental health, including feelings of friendship and community that may be less prevalent in non-union workplaces. Sense of Belonging Holding union-led events such as picnics, holiday parties, charity drives and other social gatherings, Sami said, can give members a feeling of purpose and a sense of belonging that they may not get elsewhere. “Being a part of our union can give you something to get involved in, a chance to help others around you and in your community, a network of folks across North America that genuinely care about your well-being,” Fulk said. All of those factors can contribute positively not only to workers’ mental health, but that of their families, Woodgate said. “Just having a union,” he said, “gives you hope that things will improve.” — Oct 18
  • 3M Council Strategizes Around Potential Pension Freeze, Health and Safety Improvements
    Members of the USW 3M Council, who met in Niagara Falls, N.Y., on Oct. 8-9, continued strategizing around 3M’s announcement last January that it would freeze U.S. pension plans for nonunion employees at the end of 2028. USW Collective Bargaining, Research and Benefits Director Chad Apaliski expects 3M will try to make changes to members’ pensions, shifting to a 401K structure instead. “Luckily, we have time,” Apaliski told the council, urging them to start planning ways to organize as a united front against the potential push. “This pension issue is unique in that it involves every one of our shops in one way or another.” USW International Secretary-Treasurer John Shinn, who oversees bargaining in the chemical sector, urged the locals within the council to utilize USW resources to educate, communicate and build solidarity amongst their membership around the pension issue. “We need to walk out of here understanding that we need to be united, and we need to engage our members,” said Shinn. “There is never a better time to utilize our strategies and resources at HQ in Pittsburgh to be proactive.” Health and Safety Issues Key Secretary-Treasurer Shinn began the conversation on health and safety by presenting statistics from the USW’s Health, Safety and Environment Department, noting that seven fatalities and 82 injuries have occurred to USW members in the chemical sector over the last 10 years. Of the injuries reported to the USW, more than half were due to exposure to toxic chemicals. Shinn said some sites in the chemical sector lack any substantial health and safety language. “Management says they want to talk about safety, but when it comes down to spending money, they won’t do it,” said Jay Zyduck, a council representative from USW Local 2-0666 in Wausau, Wisc. Members of the council cited accidents like fires, loss of fingers and chemical splashes that could have been prevented with better health and safety training and stricter safety practices. “The company is always going to blame the worker when an accident happens, and we need to hold them accountable,” said Heath Ver Bockel, USW staff in District 7 who services the 3M workers in Wausau. Representatives from the various 3M locals shared ways their unions have improved practices around chemical safety at their sites. Each local union represented in the council had regular health and safety meetings that met quarterly or even monthly. A major point of discussion was how members at the sites have advocated for “stop work authority” so workers are empowered to stop work when conditions are unsafe. “Your industry is dangerous,” said Shinn. “Stop work authority is important to not only us, but to the community.” Shinn to Step Down Shinn informed the council he’d be stepping down as secretary-treasurer at the end of this year, but will continue to work into next year as a special assistant to the president until he wraps up ongoing projects – including chairing the chemical sector – and helps train the next generation of the union’s leadership. “I’m impressed with the council and what we’ve been able to accomplish,” said Shinn. “I take a lot of pride in the work we’ve been doing.” The 3M Council plans to meet again under new leadership in Spring 2025. Stay tuned for announcements regarding a date and location. — Oct 17