United Steelworkers union workers at the Aluminerie de Becancour aluminum smelter in Quebec are voting Tuesday night and Wednesday morning on whether to accept a new collective labor agreement or to issue a strike mandate to enable them to strike at midnight Wednesday, a union official said Tuesday.
The existing five-year labor agreement expires Wednesday and covers 1,030 workers belonging to United Steelworkers union Local 9700. The ABI smelter, co-owned 75% by Alcoa and 25% by Rio Tinto Alcan, is the second largest in North America, with production of 450,000 mt/year off three potlines and 720 pots.
Company negotiators presented the proposed new contract to the USW negotiators on November 16. Union and company negotiators began talks on a new contract in early September, after the union sent a required negotiation letter 89 days ago. At the 90-day mark from that notice, the union is able to strike or the company is able to lock out workers, the union official said.
The official indicated that the negotiators do not think the new proposal will be accepted, and ABI has seen minor slowdowns in recent days and weeks. On Monday morning, about 60-70 retired ABI workers blocked the entrance to the plant and delayed shift workers from starting for about an hour. The union official did not think that production had been affected and Tuesday morning saw workers enter the plant normally.
As of 2 pm EST Tuesday, however, billet casting was halted until some health and safety issues are corrected, the union official said. He thought that might delay around four or five billet casts or around 200-300 mt of billet, expecting that the issues may be resolved by late Tuesday evening.
The union issued a statement on November 7 objecting to ABI's proposal for a new two-tiered pension plan and some provisions related to worker mobility between jobs. Also that week, management circulated some memos to workers about anodes not being changed frequently enough in the pots.
Alcoa spokesman Jim Beck said Tuesday that the company "submitted an offer that includes significant wage increases for ABI's employees with modest work rule changes. We believe the offer, which includes a competitive benefit package, will position the facility to compete across all market cycles."
Alcoa has not commented on the worker activities or production, but the spokesman added, "As the expiration of the contract approaches, we have taken steps to ensure safe and efficient operations, and our customers have the support of Alcoa's global network of casthouses."
