UAW members struck Terex Crane, located in Waverly near here, December 6. Most of the strikers are assembly workers and build "man lift" cranes that are used for construction and maintenance work. The strikers are fighting for better wages, health care, and pension benefits.

"I think we'll turn down by a sizable majority the most recent offer by the company," said Mike Dunbar, a 32-year veteran of the plant. The strikers had stepped outside for a smoke and fresh air while the votes were being counted.

"The only thing they have offered in the most recent negotiations is a retirement plan allowing workers to retire at age 55 if they have 30 years of service," said Dunbar. "There is no offer of a higher wage and the cost of the health care package to the members actually adds up to a wage cut."

Dunbar explained that the union recently negotiated with the company after the bosses threatened to seek a court injunction limiting the number of strikers at the plant gate. "We thought the court would likely go along with the company for only three strikers at the gate and we got the company to agree to six," he said.

Almost all the strikers had big smiles and slapped each other on the back after hearing the results of the vote. "They offered us nothing, " said Randy Henson who has worked for the company for five years. "We showed the company what we think of their latest offer. The vote is how the members feel; the insurance package they offered is horrible," he said. "The vote was 196 against the contract and 6 for," Henson said.

Mike Ahrenholz, who looked to be in his early twenties and worked for Terex for about a year before being laid off shortly before the strike, said he thought the "vote was right. It shows we are serious and together."  
 

'Shows how strong we are'

Gary Freerks, a 35-year veteran of the plant, said there were 60 laid-off workers, mostly young, before the strike began. "They have the right to vote on the contract but can't receive strike assistance pay. Many of them have part-time or other jobs since being laid off.

"What the result of this vote showed is how strong we are together," said Freerks. "The company had offered us earlier in the contract negotiations a $500 bonus if we accepted their offer. They said the laid-off workers would get an additional $500 when they are called back."

"You know what Terex thinks of us," said Terry Duckworth, a 27-year veteran of the plant, referring to the "low boys," 40-foot flatbed semi-trailers, they have in the plant right now. The company was loading up cranes while union members were voting on their latest offer.

"They knew we were voting this morning," he said. "That is why I think the vote was even a wider margin today then before we walked out." Duckworth went on to explain that the vote before the strike was about 87 percent against the contract and "this morning it was 97 percent against."

On the road to Waverly we spotted three "low boys" with cranes on trailers. Visiting the picket line and the union hall, workers explained that there have been "gobs of cops" when the company had hauled out the cranes, "but that was when we had pickets up," according to Duckworth who works in the union hall kitchen.

In a strike in 1995, "we were out one week. The contract vote carried by four votes and we only got a 25-cent an hour wage increase per year," said Dick Haziltt, who has worked at the plant for 34 years. "Things are different now. We are more solid and serious about the contract issues," explained Haziltt.

"Solidarity has come from workers and unionists from simply visiting the picket line to one worker from Waterloo, Iowa, who said he was a member of UAW Local 838 which organizes the John Deere plant," said Local 411 member Jim Carlsen at the union hall. "He donated $2,100 to buy 238 turkeys for every member of the local. He did not leave his name. He just wanted to offer his support for the strike."

When asked what he thought about the outcome of the vote, Carlsen said, "I loved it. I think the worker who donated the money for the turkeys would love it to."  
 

"The latest offer was rejected by 88 percent," said striker Charles Murray. "The company offered only a small wage increase. The union members want a $1 an hour wage increase for each year of the contract," Murray said in a phone interview. "The company offered 50 cents for welders and 65 cents for assembly workers and a four year contract." Currently the average wage is $12.31. On December 28 the company offered 30 cents per hour each year over four years, according to Murray.

A central issue remains the cost of health insurance to union members. Murray said the company does not want to put a cap on any future increase in cost. "In other words, we would be taking a wage cut any time health insurance goes up." he said.

"The company wants the right to give your job away if you happen to call in sick, even if only for a day," Murray said. "If some supervisor doesn't like you, for example, the company can give your job to anybody that holds the same job classification. It would be like throwing away your seniority rights.

"The vote means that the negotiating committee goes back to the table," the UAW member said. "This is the best support we have ever had from the Waverly townspeople and from other unionists."

Joe Swanson is a member of UAW Local 1672 in Des Moines. Jennifer Ponce, a member of UAW 1672, contributed to this article.  
 
 
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