By LEONARD GRAY / L’Observateur / January 18, 1999

GRAMERCY – Kaiser strikers were handed an “our way or the highway” response Thursday, following a formal offer by the union to go back to the plants under the terms of the old contract while negotiations on a new contract continue.

Kaiser said it was imposing the continued lockout to back up its bargaining position. Union response was to declare its disappointment.”We feel the company is not being sincere in their negotiations,” Sam Thomas of the Gramercy union local said.

“We regret having to take this step,” Ray Milchovich, president of Kaiser, said. “However, we believe the union leadership has given us no choice inlight of the lack of progress during recent labor negotiations and the huge gap between the two sides.”Reaction to the lockout from union officials was harsh.

“Kaiser’s lockout has torn the mask off the company’s repeated assertions that it is worried about the welfare of its work force,” David Foster, chairman of the union negotiating team, commented.

Foster added the union will plan major demonstrations at the company shareholder meetings, a customer awareness campaign and a union- sponsored environmental and safety audit.

He continued that the lockout will expose Kaiser to potential back pay liability if the union’s unfair labor practices charges are upheld.

The union’s offer to return to work was made Wednesday in a letter from Foster to Kaiser’s new chief negotiator, Jeremy Sherman. The responsewas a 3 p.m. lockout Thursday.Initial reports of the new talks in the Kaiser Aluminum labor dispute had been encouraging, according to press releases from both sides.

But with the refusal to let the strikers return to the plants, Milchovich said he hopes it will “result in an early contract settlement between the parties so that bargaining unit members can return to work.”Milchovich continued, “Given the gap, we believe that the lockout is necessary to persuade the union to embrace the legitimate proposals Kaiser has made during bargaining. By taking this step, we hope that itwill result in an early contract settlement between the parties so that bargaining unit members can return to work.”Milchovich added, “We look forward to continued negotiations with the union in hopes of reaching agreement on a new labor contract.”One day earlier, on Wednesday, United Steelworkers of America said the union and Kaiser concluded three days of “generally productive” contract talks. Kaiser termed the talks, held Monday through Wednesday, “business-like.””We were encouraged to see that the tone of the meeting was business- like and we continue to seek a negotiated settlement,” Milchovich observed at that time. “However, the gap between the two sides remainsvery large.”The Kaiser press release termed the series of talks, “a frank exchange of views.” Kaiser representatives and the union negotiators agreed as well todiscuss more talks in the near future.

The strike has 350 union employees walking the picket lines at the Gramercy plant.

Thomas, spokesman of Local 5702 United Steel Workers of America, commented, “It shows they’re not interested in the welfare of the workers. It’s the hard-heartedness of the company showing through.”At the Dec. 17 meeting between union and company representatives, Kaiseroffered a new package by way of the federal mediator. Union negotiators,however, had already walked out of the meeting.

Kaiser’s latest offer includes a $1,000 ratification bonus, an average hourly wage increase of $3.13, the elimination of antiquated work rulesand a contract dated to Sept. 30, 2003.A major hangup is the planned elimination of 700 jobs throughout Kaiser’s five plants through contracting-out many present in-house functions.

Approximately 3,000 Kaiser union employees walked out Sept. 30 aftercontract negotiations broke down and the previous contract expired.

“Our objective remains to reach a labor agreement that improves the standard of living for bargaining unit employees and that improves the productivity of each of these five plants,” Milchovich concluded.

Foster concluded, “We are just as determined today as we were on Sept.

30 to bargain a new agreement that protects our members’ jobs and compensates them fairly.”

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