Outlook not good at Briggs;

Strattec contracts still not available

by Greg Gorecki, President

Briggs

We still have about 400 people on layoff. Many of those people have very high seniority. At the present time, we are having some disagreements with the Company about our senior members bumping out some less senior members because of their classification.

The Bargaining Committee met with the Company a few weeks ago and at that time, the Company stated that they would not bump less senior members out of jobs such as Labor Grade 18 Machine Attendant in Die Cast and Labor Grade 18 Warehouse Attendant at Menomonee Falls. We will be meeting with the Company on December 17th to try and work through some of these issues.

The Bargaining Committee and Joe Chambers did meet with some high-ranking Company officials to discuss the future of the Milwaukee operations. The meeting did not draw a real clear picture, except to say that the two million square feet of space that Briggs’ occupies at the Burleigh Plant is far more than they will ever need. The relevant points that I came away with are as follows:

	17/19 and the twin engines will be phased out by the end of this fiscal year (June 30, 2002).
	It was too early to make any determination on the Menomonee Falls Plant, if it would move to Burleigh or elsewhere.
	Die Cast has been struggling financially and they have been given a directive to turn the business around in the next two years.
	The Company would like to merge its’ operations at the Burleigh Plant to maximize its’ efficiency as far as floor space goes.
	This could include selling or leasing parts of the Burleigh Plant facility, ie. C.O.B. or the old Penney’s building.
	The Company says they feel that the Burleigh Plant is a necessity to their operation, but preferably at a smaller size.
	The target date for getting the Micro Engine Line up and running is about February 1, 2002.
	The Company intends to introduce another new product here, an outboard engine, to begin in March of 2002.

The Company has two salesmen out trying to find new work for the Milwaukee operations, mainly Die Cast, but also work on component parts similar to operations we already perform here.

In a nutshell, it does not appear that new work coming in is in any way going to keep up with the work that is being downsized.

Strattec

A number of members have questioned me about the availability of the new Contract books. The reason that things are taking so long is that we have uncovered several things that needed to be corrected. After going back and forth with the Company on these corrections, we have narrowed it down to three discrepancies. The language that the Company is asking the Union to sign is not what was actually negotiated and until we get through that, the Union representatives will not sign the Contract. As soon as we can put the correct verbiage that was negotiated into writing, the Company will send the books out to be printed. When we get those copies, we will see that they are distributed to our members as promptly as possible.

We have three cases that are being pursued to arbitration. The first case, the attorney’s briefs were to be submitted to the arbitrator by December 10th. In the second case, an arbitrator has been selected and we are waiting for a list of dates. In the third case, we have just submitted for a panel of arbitrators and have not yet received them.

The Labor Cabinet of the United Way has repeatedly complimented our members at Strattec for their participation in the United Way Campaign. For so long the campaign at Strattec has lay dormant. After Karl Schneider’s persistence in getting the Company to use hourly solicitors, the campaign was off and running again. I would like to publicly thank Karl and the other solicitors who helped make this campaign a success. The community we live in will be a better place because of the generosity of those who gave.

Little Help on UC so far

The Union continues to pursue the extension of unemployment benefits through whatever means possible. We have been in contact on a weekly basis with the Congressman’s office. As of the writing of this article, nothing has been finalized for the unemployment extension.

That is why the House is still in session. They are split on party lines. We have asked the four Congressmen in our area to push for some relief for working people and to try and escalate the decision on our Union’s petition for Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) funding.

Union Office staff reduced

As of January 2, 2002, our office secretary will be retired. The new secretary will be part time, approximately 15-18 hours per week. Therefore, when you call and get the voice mail, which will probably be more frequently, please leave a message and we will try to return your call as promptly as possible.

The reduction in hours is mainly being done to try and make our office run more efficient economically. Your cooperation will be greatly appreciated.

Just as a reminder, there will be no membership meeting in December. Our next membership meeting will take place on January 24th. At that meeting, there will be nominations for the Strattec Bargaining Committee and the whole Executive Board, with the exception of the Trustee-at-Large.