LOCAL
Weyco strikers rally at company’s Seattle HQ
UPDATE (Sept. 30, 2022) — Striking Weyerhaeuser workers and their supporters rallied Thursday outside the company’s Seattle headquarters to call for a fair contract from the nation’s largest forest products company. The IAMAW District W24 bargaining team is scheduled to meet with the company today to resume bargaining.
Here is some news coverage from Thursday’s rally:
► From KIRO — Weyerhaeuser employees picket outside company headquarters (video)
► From KOMO — Weyerhaeuser employees on strike rally outside Seattle HQ, demand better wages — More than 1,100 employees who work for the timber company in Washington and Oregon have been on strike since Sept. 13. Striking Weyerhaeuser employee and IAMAW member Jason Williams said:
“The company has been making record profit. We went through a pandemic. We’ve been there strong with them and working with the company. Coming to this contract here, we thought, had high hopes that we’d at least get caught up with inflation and their proposal to us doesn’t even come close to it.”
Solidarity with @MachinistsUnion woodworkers on strike! Weyco had more than 10 BILLION in revenue in 2021 but wants to cut healthcare benefits for the workers whose labor made that money. @Weyerhaeuser must do better for timber families! #DoBetterDevin #UnionStrong pic.twitter.com/V558EQlmu4
— Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO (@WAAFLCIO) September 29, 2022
Solidarity rally Thursday to demand Weyerhaeuser agree to a fair contract
SEATTLE — More than 1,100 Weyerhaeuser employees represented by IAMAW District W24 have been on strike since Sept. 13. The nation’s largest forest products company, which is experiencing record profits, has been in no hurry to negotiate a fair contract since then. The company has agreed to meet just twice during that period and has refused to budge from its last contract offer that was overwhelmingly rejected.
Enough is enough. As the IAMAW prepares for its next negotiating session with Weyerhaeuser, it’s time for the labor movement to step up and show our solidarity with the strikers.
TAKE A STAND — The Washington State Labor Council AFL-CIO and the Oregon AFL-CIO urge all union members and community supporters to attend a Solidarity Rally with Weyerhaeuser Strikers at 11 a.m. on Thursday, Sept. 29 outside the company’s headquarters in Seattle, 220 Occidental Ave. South.
The IAMAW is scheduled to meet with company negotiators the following day. Let’s show Weyerhaeuser that Washington’s labor movement has the striking workers’ backs, and we demand that they reach a fair contract with the workers who make the company profitable.
BACKGROUND — Company and union negotiators met Thursday, Sept. 22 for only the second time since the strike began. The union bargaining team reported that Weyerhaeuser refused to improve upon the offer overwhelmingly voted down by IAMAW members on Sept. 2.
That offer, from a company that reported its “2021 financial performance was the strongest on record,” was rejected because general wage increases were too low, vacation time was cut, employees were asked to pay for healthcare premiums for the first time since the 1990s, and retirement benefits weren’t improved.
After the Sept. 22 session, District W24 President Brandon Bryant reported:
The IAMAW District W24 bargaining team, representing over 1,100 workers currently on strike, met with Weyerhaeuser today to continue bargaining. We are incredibly disappointed that Weyerhaeuser was unwilling to provide a different offer to our members, than the one our members have already overwhelmingly rejected. There seems to continue to be delays, ineffectiveness, and lack of urgency from this multi-billion-dollar company. The company’s next availability is next Friday (Sept. 30), and we hope that Weyerhaeuser will do the right thing. Until then, our members will continue to be on strike, continue to stand up for themselves, continue the fight against corporate greed, and continue to not settle for less.
In addition to attending the Rally in Seattle on Sept. 29, here’s how you — and your union — can show solidarity with the IAMAW strikers:
1) Contribute to this GoFundMe fundraiser to support families of striking Weyerhaeuser workers who are experiencing hardship.
2) Please sign this petition to tell Weyerhaeuser: Timber workers and their families deserve living wages, good health care, and a secure retirement!
3) Join picket lines at Weyerhaeuser facilities and donating food/supplies at the these locations. The union says “community support (on the strike lines) has been amazing” and “each location would appreciate you stopping by; hold a sign, talk with us, bring a treat or two, anything to show your support.”
For more information, visit the IAMAW District W24 website.