The Stores Negotiations Committee resumed Mediation in Hurst, Texas from January 10th through the 14th. Federal Mediators, Jack Kane and Walter Darr were present for these sessions.
Following up on the request of Federal Mediator, Jack Kane, the Stores Committee came prepared to pass Article 12 (Promotions and Transfers). By the end of the week, the parties were able to reach a Tentative Agreement on this Article. The Tentative Agreement addressed the concerns of our membership that had been a source of heartburn in the previous T.A. The effort to T.A. this Article took a lot of movement from both parties, but we believe we have constructed an Article 12 our Membership can live with.
The other Article our Committee presented to the Company this week was Article 39, (Fitness for Duty). On Tuesday, Jan. 11th , the ATD Benefits Committee comprised of D’Ann Johnson (Local 514), Mark Johnson (Local 513), and Greg Mackey (Local567) presented recommendations to the Stores Committee on drafting new language for proposed changes to this Article. After the discussion, the Committee drafted a proposal and later that day, presented it to the Company. The Company responded with a Counterproposal on Thursday, Jan. 13th. Mark Johnson and Greg Mackey were present for the Company’s response. Although the two parties’ could not reach an Agreement on this Article, some progress has been made.
At the request of the NMB, both parties have agreed to meet again in Hurst, TX during the week of Feb. 7th through the 11th to continue our efforts to reach an Agreement on all the Articles for a new Contract.
As always, the Stores Negotiations Committee appreciates our Member’s continued Support and Patience. The Stores Committee would also like to thank some of the Local Presidents who sat in on our meetings with the Company. We appreciate the dedication and hard work that Sam Cirri (Local 514), Bob Owens (Local 562), J.R. Ruiz (Local 564), and Larry Pike (Local 567) bring to our Negotiations team. The Stores Committee also would like to thank the members of the ATD Benefits Committee for their help with the Language of Article 39. D’Ann, Mark, and Greg, are truly valuable assets to our Membership. Thank you again.
Please keep informed of the ongoing Negotiations by logging onto www.TWU.org and following the links to the AA Negotiations Update.