Vol. 75/No. 37      October 17, 2011

This reporter spoke with two leading participants in the hard-fought 10-month struggle against grain processor Roquette America’s lockout here, which ended in July. They were eager to answer American Crystal’s falsification of their fight for the benefit of their union brothers and sisters in struggle.

An unsigned statement titled “Was It Worth It? American Crystal Does Not Want Another Keokuk Situation” was posted in September on the company’s website. “American Crystal’s hope is that we’re able to reach an agreement more quickly than the one reached in Keokuk,” it said. “After a 10-month work stoppage, those union employees agreed to a contract that included a 4-year wage freeze for current employees, a $2/hour wage cut for new employees, as well as the health care plan offered by the company. The employees in Keokuk must be questioning whether losing almost a year of their wages and benefits was worth these results.”

It quotes a statement by BCTGM Local 48G President Steve Underwood printed in Gate City, Keokuk’s newspaper. “I’m not real pleased with the contract,” it said, “but it’s been 10 months with 237 families not receiving an income. We’ll just have to live with it.”

“I can’t wait to contact my brothers and sisters in Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota to tell them it was well worth it that we stayed out for 10 months,” Buddy Howard, a leader of the Keokuk unionists and president of the Lee County Labor Council, told the Militant. “It showed us who we are; it galvanized us as a union.”

Howard traveled to visit picket lines against American Crystal in Moorhead, Minn., and Hillsboro, N.D., in August to show solidarity and share experiences from the fight against Roquette.

“We did fight for the new hires,” Howard said. “We pushed back the company’s initial contract offer paying new hires $4 an hour less, and reduced it to $2. We prevented 50 people from losing their jobs. We forced the company to drop the clause that says the company has the inherent right to replace union workers at any time.”

Howard said the bonds of solidarity forged by round-the-clock picketing strengthened the individual members and their organization. “When we go in the plant as a team on a shift, many of us wear union T-shirts and stickers on our hard hats. And we stand together when someone’s in trouble. We fight back when the company writes us up for using the word ‘scab.’”

“I thought it was unfortunate that American Crystal would take my statement out of context and use it in an effort to put further pressure on their locked-out employees,” said Underwood. “We would dispute their charge” that there was no reason to vote against Roquette’s contract offer in September 2010, he said. “The original contract offer made significant attacks on seniority and work rules.” The unionists didn’t want a lockout, Underwood said, “but all indications are that Roquette had been planning for it for a long time.”

Underwood agreed with Howard that fighting the lockout made the union stronger. “We had a very good showing of solidarity—we organized two rallies and several marches and expanded picket lines.”

Members of unions and other workers from Keokuk and beyond came to reinforce the picket lines, attend solidarity fund-raisers and contribute to the hardship fund established by the union. Members of Local 48G made links with Steelworkers in Metropolis, Ill., who stood up to Honeywell’s lockout for 14 months.

The positive and proud assessment among those who stood up to Roquette is presented in an article in the August 8 issue of the Militant titled “Iowa Lockout Ends: Union Fought, Came Out Stronger.”  
 
 
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