Umatilla depot workers vote to unionize

This story was published Wed, May 1, 2002

By Karen Zacharias
Herald Oregon bureau

HERMISTON -- Umatilla Chemical Depot workers have voted to unionize.

Employees working on the chemical weapons incinerator voted in early April on whether to join the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 701, but the ballots were not officially counted until Tuesday. The result was 85 yes to 72 no.

This is the first group of incineration employees of Washington Demilitarization Co. to unionize, said Rick Kelley, company spokesman. The company has an Army contract to build and operate the Umatilla facility.

There are no unions at the Army's other incineration sites. Those sites are at Johnston Atoll, Pine Bluff, Ark., Toole, Utah, and Anniston, Ala. Warehouse employees at the Umatilla site already were unionized, Kelley said.

Company officials are conferring on whether to file an objection to the vote, Kelley said. They have seven days to make that decision.

Safety and benefits, not wages, were the key reasons employees voted to unionize, said Jim O'Connor, attorney for the union.

"Some employees were paying $180 a month out of their own pockets for medical coverage. That's ridiculous," O'Connor said.

Moreover, being part of the union should put a stop to unfair labor practices, O'Connor said. He noted two employees recently were fired because they failed to produce copies of their high school diplomas.

"I don't know where my law degree is, but I remember going to law school," he said.

Employees supported the union because "They wanted a voice in what was happening to them," O'Connor said.

But Kelley maintained incinerator workers always have had a say in the operation.

"We have encouraged our employees to be part of a team. And everybody here is involved in safety. If people question safety, they can stop a job immediately without fear of reprisal. Our commitment to safety has always been very strong," Kelley said.

On average, a person who makes $20 an hour would pay $50 a month in union dues. A no-strike clause will be included in the employees' contracts, but O'Connor said that shouldn't hamper their negotiating ability.

 

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