IAM members ratify Weyerhaeuser contract

46-day strike ends as union votes to accept improved 4-year deal

GLADSTONE, Ore. (Oct. 28, 2022) — More than 1,100 Weyerhaeuser employees represented by IAMAW District W24, on strike against the nation’s largest forest products company since Sept. 13, have voted to ratify a new four-year contract with the company and end the strike. Voting was held this week on the tentative agreement recommended by the union bargaining committee.

Weyerhaeuser strikers and their supporters rallied and picketed Sept. 29 (and multiple other days) outside the company’s corporate headquarters in Seattle.

Brandon Bryant, President / Directing Business Representative of IAMAW District W24, sent the following message late Thursday night:

The IAM Bargaining Committee has counted 1,014 ballots tonight, Oct. 27, 2022, on the latest tentative agreement from Weyerhaeuser. 85% of our members have voted. The tentative agreement has passed by 54.88%. After a strike of 46 days, we have a new 4-year Union Contract with:

• 14% wage increases.
• Locked in low healthcare premiums with no increases during the term of the CBA.
• Increased shift differential.
• Improved vacation.
• Improved payout for sick leave.
• $750 per year to an individual’s HSA or $3,000 lump sum bonus.

This has been a long journey and the end is not exactly everything the Union wanted, but it is better and improved from where we were 7 weeks ago. We look forward to returning to do the great work that we do, at our mills, our log yards, our mechanic shops, our logging roads, on the highways, and in your communities.

We want to thank the numerous people and businesses that have supported our members on the picket lines. Your boxes of donuts, pizzas, homemade cookies, firewood, handmade picket signs, donations, and gas cards inspired our members to hold the line.

We believe that we are better when we work and live in unity and the solidarity of our membership, our families, AND our communities is a bright spot and a great example to follow.

Larry Brown, President of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO, congratulated IAMAW District W24 and its members for taking a stand for a better contract.

“Going on strike against a giant corporation like Weyerhaeuser takes conviction, bravery, and most of all, real solidarity and shared sense of purpose from union members,” Brown said. “I congratulate the IAM members at Weyerhaeuser for standing up for what’s right in this 46-day strike. I know you didn’t get everything you wanted, but you stood strong, got an improved contract, and sent a clear message to this company: they cannot take for granted the people responsible for the company’s profits and success.”

PREVIOUSLY at The Stand:

Tentative agreement in Weyco strike; members vote next week (Oct. 21)
Striking Weyerhaeuser workers reject company’s latest offer (Oct. 7)
Weyerhaeuser strikers rally at company’s Seattle HQ (Sept. 30)
As strike drags on, support Weyerhaeuser workers (Sept. 23)
Weyerhaeuser strike continues; support the picket lines (Sept. 20)
IAMAW members on strike at Weyerhaeuser (Sept. 15)