© 2024 Maine Public | Registered 501(c)(3) EIN: 22-3171529
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Scroll down to see all available streams.

Union Sends Letter Asking Congress To Weigh In On BIW Strike

Robert F. Bukaty
/
AP Images
A striking shipbuilder walks outside Bath Iron Works, Monday, June 22, 2020, in Bath, Maine.

Members of Navy shipbuilder Bath Iron Works’ biggest union continue to strike, and on Tuesday the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, or IAM, sent a letterto Congress urging politicians to support striking workers.

In the letter, IAM International President Robert Martinez Jr. asked that members of Congress to “send a strong message to the company that they should promptly return to the bargaining table with new ideas and proposals in order to seek a fair and equitable settlement to this disagreement.”

About 4,300 Local S6 workers went on strike June 22 after voting to reject a three-year contract proposal from the company. Two major issues that employees say triggered the strike were BIW’s use of increased subcontract labor and changes that workers say would threaten seniority practices.

Caitlin Troutman is the Digital News and Content Producer for Maine Public. Caitlin worked as a writer and editor for various publications before discovering her love for public media at KCUR in Kansas City. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Literature and Critical Theory from the Oxbridge Honors Program at William Jewell College and the University of Oxford. She joined Maine Public in 2018.