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Tired of seeing their benefits whittled away, 126 production and maintenance workers at Chemtura Corp. in Morgantown, W.Va., won a recent National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) election for Steelworkers representation.

Workers became disgruntled when Chemtura announced it froze the worker’s pensions and would no longer contribute to the plan. Fearful of deeper cuts, workers knew the only way to protect their pensions and benefits were to get them locked into a Steelworkers contract. 

The group nearly organized with PACE in 2003 but company officials promised employees their benefits were secure. When management begged for one more chance workers rejected the union. Within a matter of months the company began chipping away at benefits.

Workers were able to endure changes to vacation time, health care and seniority; but when the pension was frozen they decided it was time to take action.   “This all boils down to broken promises,” said Fred Parenti, a member of the in-shop organizing committee. “We were promised that our benefits were protected -- that our pension was safe. It was not safe. Everything that has happened in the last three years here has been a loss for us.”

“We knew if we didn’t put on the brakes, that this train would just keep going and going,” Parenti said.

USW Organizer Waymon Free said it got to the point where workers decided enough was enough.

“There is always a certain level of fear in every organizing drive, fear is the only tool that companies have,” Free said. “I believe the only thing that will overcome fear is anger. The fear will go away if you are angry enough. That’s what happened here.”

“This was a perfectly coordinated effort between the in-plant organizing committee and the International union,” Free added. “Everybody worked together and did their part and the final result was a victory for the workers.”

Since winning the election, workers have met to nominate and elect representatives for a negotiating committee, which will soon go about the business of bargaining a first contract.

Chemtura employees make a line of specialty chemical products for the plastics and tire industries. They become members of USW District 8 where Billy Thompson is director.

For more information, contact the USW at 1-877-511-8792
For an Organizing Contact Request Form, click HERE