[Originally published in the OTHER paper, Eugene, Oregon September, 1995.]
If we really care about jobs ...At least when Tom Wildish, owner of Wildish Sand & Gravel, testified in favor of filling in the wetlands for the Hyundai project, he had the smarts not to talk about opportunities for labor. Wildish employees were outside picketing with a large "Stop the Greed" banner because he refuses to negotiate with them.
Members of the Teamsters Local 57 have been trying to negotiate an acceptable contract with Wildish and Mike Alltucker's Eugene Sand and Gravel since April 1. The dispute is not about money, but about worker rights. "Sand and gravel owners have a history of demanding contract language concessions that give less and less protection to the workers," stated Greg Sherry of Eugene Sand & Gravel. "Now they are going for the throat."
They are demanding an 'open shop'
allowing the hire of non-union labor. They want more sub-contracting -- another means of avoiding union labor -- and asked for new classifications exempt from the labor agreement. They want to gut the grievance process and seek concessions on seniority. Eugene Sand & Gravel refuses to allow a retirement health insurance program even if the workers are willing to pay for it out of their wage package.Workers were paid to attend mandatory informational sessions on the adequacy of their pensions conducted by Alltucker, who refuses to negotiate the issue. Workers cite a 1991 U.S. News & World Report article reporting that retirement funds must grow by 76% to keep pace with inflation.
All Wildish employees rejected the company's proposed contract, as did 87% of the workers at Eugene Sand & Gravel.
Employees are seeking support from the community and other workers in posting the "Stop the Greed" signs. Labor, here as everywhere, has been losing rights and bargaining power -- at Sacred Heart, Valley River Inn, Peterson Arne, Pony Express. Who's next? Loss of rights, protections, wages and benefits by any laborer increases the likelihood of similar losses for others.
The 11 Wildish companies and Eugene Sand and Gravel are the area's largest suppliers of concrete and asphalt. They benefit from public tax money (the renovation of Hwy. 99) and stand to gain from the proposed Hyundai development. If the business interests who spoke up for jobs at the Hyundai hearing really care about the average worker, why are they not speaking up for decent wages, health insurance and retirement benefits, worker safety and fair employment practices?
Hyundai Files©Wanda Ballentine, 1995