GE union rallies Friday

Union workers are organizing solidarity rallies on Friday at General Electric in West Lynn and plants across the country, just three days before contract negotiations are scheduled to open with the company.”They told us we have to cut costs; they call it ?the path to competitiveness,'” said Ric Casilli, who is the business agent for Local 201 of the International Union of Electrical Workers and the Communications Workers of America (IUE-CWA).The union local represents nearly 1,500 workers at the GE Lynn River Works plant. Casilli will be heading to New York City to help negotiate a new contract as member of the National Union Negotiating Committee. Talks begin June 1.”Our philosophy for years is a union worker is a productive, conscientious worker,” he said.The union workers’ current four-year contract is set to expire June 21, giving the union and company representatives about three weeks to work out a deal for a new contract.Casilli said union officials expect the main issues will concern medical plans for both active employees and retirees older than 65, pensions, and job security.Concerning medical plans, GE announced in September 2012 that it would end Medicare supplement plans and eliminate life insurance for salaried, non-union management employees beginning Jan. 1 of this year. This meant that employees had to be over 65 and retired by that point to keep their existing coverage.Last September, GE cut the same benefits for those non-union, salaried management employees already over 65 years old. It also replaced the supplemental coverage with a $1,000 annual payment per employee and spouse to be used toward a supplemental health care plan on a private health care exchange.In total, about 65,000 people countrywide were affected.Two GE retirees – a retired chief union negotiator and former corporate benefits officer – subsequently sued the company, alleging that the cuts violated the employee handbook and federal law. The suit is ongoing.Meanwhile, GE recorded nearly $16 billion profits in 2014, giving its top five executives an average one-year pension increase of $10.9 million and providing them an average compensation of $11,510 per hour, according to a union press release.Casilli said in a previous interview that the unions may be the next groups that may have to face the cuts. As a result, the union is organizing solidarity rallies during meal times of each of the three shifts on Friday. The rallies will be held in a parking lot at the GE campus at 3 a.m., 11:42 a.m. and 7 p.m. Friday.”With GE making an average annual profit of $49,500 off each GE employee worldwide, the unions will be in no mood for any more increased cost-sharing or benefit cuts and are looking for big improvements in the medical, pension, and job-security areas,” the union said in a press release.Gorham said the company is committed to working with the unions. He said he expected contentious issues to include health care, wages, retirement and job and income security, issues that are “complex and for which there are no easy solutions.””GE is committed to working with its unions to reach a fair contract that continues to provide employees with good pay and benefits, while allowing its businesses to operate, compete, and win,” Gorham said in an email statement. “GE will seek to reach agreement on a fair wage structure, continue to ensure it can manage costs in a reasonable way, make additional progress on updating its benefit plans to ensure they are attractive and cost-effective, as well as enhancing employee retirement readiness.”