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Letter to the Editor
2/9/09

I am writing in response to comments posted on the article “Help on the way for workers” I am a Full Time Union Representative of Local 5668 USW in Ravenswood. My first comment is I feel it is wrong for people to have a forum to spread misinformation without identifying them self, when people are making comments about the Union and saying they are a member or that the membership wanted to take a pay cut, how do we know they are truly Union, or are they management?

Next I want to address this alleged $51,000 average annual salary, where did this ridiculous figure come from, this is fiction not fact. An electrician (highest classification) working a rotating shift would make $48,516, working Monday through Friday that would be $46,116. If these are the highest paid hourly employees, how can you get an average of $51,000? Nothing else in these comments by these unknown individuals below is true, so I guess it shouldn’t surprise me that this figure is exaggerated.

“Commonsense 1” and “mytwocents” say that “the majority of the Union workers wanted to accept a pay cut”. The vote was yet to be taken, so how do they know that, they don’t. I know that the majority of the phone calls I got, said absolutely “I will not take a pay cut”. Then there were several that said I wouldn’t mind a pay cut to help get through this slump if the company agrees to pay us back when metal prices go back up. They also wanted assurances that they would have a job if they made the concessions. The company never agreed to either of these things. The other officers at the Union Hall were getting the same kinds of calls. This can easily be verified by calling the Union Hall.

Wildbill said “the Union bosses weren’t willing to give a penny back”
This is totally false, several International officers from President Gerard, District Director Thompson, sub district director Sampson and staff Representative Randall Moore and others out of Pittsburgh, were working to try to accommodate the companies needs while at the same time assure the members would be protected when the economy improved.

“Yogilu” says they have 100 % health care, the truth for a change, it was not given to the union, it was hard fought to get and keep. What’s the problem here? These men and women work in the extreme heat and cold to produce the product that made the millions of dollars for Century Aluminum right up to mid summer 2008. The millions of dollars that pays the huge salaries of the top management with their huge bonuses.

To “buffster1”, you say the one good thing Unions done; I was raised in the coal fields of Kanawha County by a coal miner who started working in the mines when he was 15 years old. He got food from the company store, a slab board shanty to live in, no health care, other then a company doctor, no paid vacation, 16 hour days with no overtime pay, no protection against a company that did not have a clue about a safe work place. One Thing, give me a break!

Over the years the Union got them time and ½ after 8 hours, paid vacation, the 8 hour work day and a decent standard of living, the best health care in any industry, bereavement pay, jury and witness pay, pensions so you can retire, the list goes on an on. These things did not come easy and were not gifts from the coal barons or any other industry, men women and children died attaining these rights, not only in the coal industry but also in the auto Industry, the steel Industry, and other Industries across our great land. And you are right we aren’t going to give them up easily, without justification. These same battles took place in the streets of Detroit, Cleveland, etc. and the copper and silver mines in the west.

In this case the Union was working with the company to reach agreement on the pay cut, and would have allowed the membership to vote on it but the company pulled the offer from the table and curtailed the operations at Ravenswood.

Last but not least to “Commonsense1” wakeup, the power company in Kentucky gave a multi Million dollar loan to Century to keep the Hawesville Plant open. The economy is in the worse shape it has been, in many many years, metal prices are down and the worldwide inventory of Aluminum is at the highest level it has ever been, these are the things that caused Century to curtail operations at Ravenswood, a decision made solely by corporate headquarters.

In 5 years of working at the Union hall and being on 4 negotiating committee’s I have never heard of a member that paid his/her own medical bills instead of turning them in for the company to pay, to save the company money. I have yet to hear someone say; hey that pay raise is too big. At contract time I’ve never seen a proposal from the work force saying we want a pay cut, or we want 80/20 insurance. I have saw many proposals wanting $5 and hour pay increases and many proposal saying we don’t want cuts in our health care.

To those of you who claim to be from the hourly workforce and are blaming the Union for the plant shutting down, surely you won’t use the 100 % health care that the Union negotiated for you, to last anywhere from 1 year to 2 years, (depending on years of service) while your laid off will you, or will You? And surely you won’t sign up for sub pay that guarantees any employee with more then 2 years service 28 hours pay for anywhere from 1 year to 2 years depending on years of service, or will you?

And one more question if the company by some chance refuses to pay you some of your benefits while you are laid off, surely you wouldn’t ask us to help you, or would you?
The answer is YES you will, and we will be more then happy to help you, because that is why you have a Union, and that is our job!


Eli Morris
Grievance Chairman
Local 5668 USW
Ravenswood WV 26164