Some employees of Newington, New Hampshire's Westinghouse Electric Company location will be locked out of their work facility starting at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday.
There are 172 people who are affected by the lockout - they are all members of the International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Shipbuilders, Blacksmiths, Forgers, and Helpers (the Boilermakers).
This action on behalf of Westinghouse comes as a result of stalled negotiations between the electric company and the Boilermakers in relation to a contract that expired on April 30, 2017.
Work will continue at the Newington location by employees who are not part of the union.
A statement issued by Westinghouse stated that:
“'Westinghouse put forth its best and final offer given the current very serious business conditions. As the Boilermakers were not willing to accept the offer, the company made the difficult decision to invoke a lockout,' said Michele DeWitt, interim senior vice president, Nuclear Fuel & Components Manufacturing.'We are disappointed the union was unwilling to accept the fair offer presented to them but remain hopeful we will reach an agreement that is in the best interest of all parties.'”
The Boilermakers also released a statement, in which Tyler Brown, the Executive Director of Industrial Sector Operations, said this:
Local
"It's a tragedy that Westinghouse would lock out these loyal workers and, unnecessarily, place the workers, their families and the company’s customers in this uncertain and difficult situation. The company and the union have only had five negotiation sessions and one meeting with a mediator, which the company walked out on.
The last collective bargaining agreement expired on April 30, 2017. The parties agreed to a 30-day contract extension, which the company terminated 9 days early so they could lock our members out. Our members were and remain willing to work day to day while the contract negotiations continue so any product guaranteed to Westinghouse’s customers does not have to be jeopardized; however, the company has rejected such proposals by the union and chose the harmful and drastic course of locking out their dedicated employees instead.
Clearly, Westinghouse has not bargained in good faith, and we will be exploring all available recourses against the company, including filing unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board."
