Posted:
January 18, 2012
Following months of research, communication and negotiation - as well as a brief strike in the summer of 2011 and subsequent extension of the prior collective bargaining agreement - American Maritime Officers has secured a successor contract with American Steamship Co. covering the company's fleet of 17 dry bulk carriers on the Great Lakes.
The new collective bargaining agreement meets the principal objectives AMO brought to the table in negotiations - protection of the economic interests of the AMO officers working in the ASC fleet, full participation for all AMO officers in all AMO Benefit Plans and the creation of a sound template for progressive change that will enhance AMO's competitive position in the increasingly aggressive Great Lakes dry bulk trades.
Prior to enactment of the contract with ASC - the union's largest contracted employer on the Great Lakes - AMO members working for the company ratified the then-tentative agreement by a vote of 65-63 in an all-mail secret-ballot referendum, which concluded Jan. 16.
"The ratification vote reflects an understanding held by the AMO officers faced with the real circumstances surrounding these negotiations - change can be daunting, change can be hard, change is absolutely necessary to survive and prosper in the competitive environment that has emerged on the Lakes," said AMO National President Tom Bethel.
"Our agreement is a responsible and promising first step forward - a move that protects AMO jobs, pay scales and benefits in the ASC fleet; a move that will secure steady employment for AMO members throughout the Great Lakes; a move that provides both our union and the operating company the competitive flexibility to adapt to a changed reality," Bethel said.
With the steady and sharp decline of the Midwest steel industry over many years and the dissolution of the "Steel Trust" fleets - and the loss of stability in supply and demand afforded by this once thriving industrial relationship - a more competitive market emerged on the Great Lakes.
Another factor was the development of the "thousand footer," which forced scores of smaller vessels out of service, and which now dominate the shipment of raw materials to steel mills, power plants and the Midwest construction industry. There are 13 of these vessels in the U.S. Great Lakes fleet. "The aggressive and ambitious approach of ASC's competitors to redefining the Great Lakes trades was a prominent factor in these negotiations," Bethel said. "Underlying all of our talks and all of our efforts was the recognition that the paradigm on the Lakes has shifted, and failure to adapt means failure to survive.
"Our agreement establishes that change can be achieved without sacrificing rewarding and secure employment for AMO members," Bethel said. "Our accomplishment required all of the professionalism and superior performance of every AMO officer in the ASC fleet, and every ounce of expertise, experience and innovation of the AMO administration.
"I will give all other AMO employers on the Great Lakes the opportunity to sign on to the provisions agreed to by AMO and American Steamship Co., both to sustain job and benefit security for all AMO members in all lakes fleets and to allow these companies to compete under equal economic terms.
"In time, the AMO-ASC agreement will prove a reliable chart on the course of re-claiming AMO's position as the only officers' union of significance on the Great Lakes."
AMO secures new contract with American Steamship Co.
Following months of research, communication and negotiation - as well as a brief strike in the summer of 2011 and subsequent extension of the prior collective bargaining agreement - American Maritime Officers has secured a successor contract with American Steamship Co. covering the company's fleet of 17 dry bulk carriers on the Great Lakes.
The new collective bargaining agreement meets the principal objectives AMO brought to the table in negotiations - protection of the economic interests of the AMO officers working in the ASC fleet, full participation for all AMO officers in all AMO Benefit Plans and the creation of a sound template for progressive change that will enhance AMO's competitive position in the increasingly aggressive Great Lakes dry bulk trades.
Prior to enactment of the contract with ASC - the union's largest contracted employer on the Great Lakes - AMO members working for the company ratified the then-tentative agreement by a vote of 65-63 in an all-mail secret-ballot referendum, which concluded Jan. 16.
"The ratification vote reflects an understanding held by the AMO officers faced with the real circumstances surrounding these negotiations - change can be daunting, change can be hard, change is absolutely necessary to survive and prosper in the competitive environment that has emerged on the Lakes," said AMO National President Tom Bethel.
"Our agreement is a responsible and promising first step forward - a move that protects AMO jobs, pay scales and benefits in the ASC fleet; a move that will secure steady employment for AMO members throughout the Great Lakes; a move that provides both our union and the operating company the competitive flexibility to adapt to a changed reality," Bethel said.
With the steady and sharp decline of the Midwest steel industry over many years and the dissolution of the "Steel Trust" fleets - and the loss of stability in supply and demand afforded by this once thriving industrial relationship - a more competitive market emerged on the Great Lakes.
Another factor was the development of the "thousand footer," which forced scores of smaller vessels out of service, and which now dominate the shipment of raw materials to steel mills, power plants and the Midwest construction industry. There are 13 of these vessels in the U.S. Great Lakes fleet. "The aggressive and ambitious approach of ASC's competitors to redefining the Great Lakes trades was a prominent factor in these negotiations," Bethel said. "Underlying all of our talks and all of our efforts was the recognition that the paradigm on the Lakes has shifted, and failure to adapt means failure to survive.
"Our agreement establishes that change can be achieved without sacrificing rewarding and secure employment for AMO members," Bethel said. "Our accomplishment required all of the professionalism and superior performance of every AMO officer in the ASC fleet, and every ounce of expertise, experience and innovation of the AMO administration.
"I will give all other AMO employers on the Great Lakes the opportunity to sign on to the provisions agreed to by AMO and American Steamship Co., both to sustain job and benefit security for all AMO members in all lakes fleets and to allow these companies to compete under equal economic terms.
"In time, the AMO-ASC agreement will prove a reliable chart on the course of re-claiming AMO's position as the only officers' union of significance on the Great Lakes."