Mobilization and contract proposals were the talk of the hour as local union representatives from the Coordinated Bargaining Committee of GE Unions held a conference board meeting last October.
The CBC union members met to strategize as the June 2007 contract expiration for the two national contracts at GE – held by the UE and IUE-CWA - draws nearer.
Job security remains the top focus as reflected in the results of the CBC contract survey. Out of six possible choices, 52 percent chose job security as No. 1.
"When we get to New York GE is going to know that we don't want anymore businesses closing or going overseas," said IUE-CWA Conference Board Chairman Bob Santamoor. "We have people who fought before us to get where we are. It's time we get off our butts and fight for manufacturing jobs in the United States."
Santamoor reiterated that he expects GE to focus on health care cost shifting and cuts in benefits for new hires.
Improving pensions and maintaining health benefits also were top goals. All but 13 percent of survey respondents said they would prefer for the economic package to be spent on benefits rather than wage increases.
"GE's got it, they just don't want to share it," observed UE President John Hovis. "This year we have to be organized, have a strategy and coordinate."
CBC members heard a detailed presentation from UE's Steve Tormey rebutting the "common wisdom" that workers should just resign themselves to paying significantly more in health care costs.
"GE tries to create a sense of inevitability regarding what they want," Tormey stated. "They are good at playing with the numbers."
Tormey noted that GE has been telling the media that its costs are $2.5 billion and growing when in reality health care costs account for just slightly over $1 billion. Recent medical cost growth has in fact slowed substantially, with group insurance costs as a percent of GE revenues remaining essentially unchanged.
Participants spent the afternoon in small groups strategizing on mobilization activities and then reporting back on their top tactics.
"You have good unity and good passion," observed IUE-CWA President and CBC Chairman Jim Clark. "That's what it takes to win."
