Strike at Independence ammo plant ends after union gets wage hike, some OT relief
.jpeg "Union workers at Olin Winchester’s Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in Independence had been on strike since April 4.")
After more than a month on the picket line, members of a local machinists union will soon be back on the job.
Workers with IAM — International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers — Local 778 voted Wednesday to ratify a new collective bargaining agreement. It includes “front-loaded wage increases over the course of the four-year agreement and some relief from forced overtime,” an emailed news release from the union said.
That puts an end to the strike at Olin Winchester’s Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in Independence that began April 4 at midnight. IAM Local 778 members return to work starting Thursday on the day shift.
“This ratified agreement met the needs of our membership, and they are ready to get back to work under these new terms,” IAM Local 778 Directing Business Representative Scott Brown said in the release. “Our members stood together for a contract that includes improvements to pay and relief to mandatory overtime scheduling.”
The 1,350 union workers at the Independence plant were fighting for higher wages, more benefits and a better work-life balance where they’re not required to work mandatory overtime in some areas of the plant. Entry-level wages range from $20.60 an hour to $21.75, and some workers have had to work 60 hours a week, they say.
The facility in Independence produces ammunition for military and personal rifles, according to online descriptions of the plant. Union leaders have said that the Lake City plant supplies the majority of rounds used by the Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, as well as ammunition for NATO allies and partner nations.
Union leaders said that workers stood in solidarity and fought for a fair contract.
“I am proud of these members for their courage and sacrifice,” IAM International President Brian Bryant said in the emailed release. “The members of IAM Local 778 took the necessary action to make their workplace better and make each other’s lives better.”
