Sprinkler fitters approve new contract

Members of Sprinkler Fitters Local 417 voted overwhelmingly to go on strike June 1, winning an improved contract offer which they voted to ratify June 8.

Local 417’s three-year contract with about 30 local contractors who are members of the National Fire Sprinkler Association expired May 31 at midnight.

Contract language and wages were key concerns for Local 417 members in voting to reject the first contract offer.

“They gave us their ‘last, final and best offer’ and the members voted it down quite substantially — 262 to reject, 2 to accept,” reported Jeff Motschenbacher, Local 417 business manager.

“We don’t work without a contract,” Motschenbacher said. “It’s a long tradition of Local 417… We just feel it’s not in the best interests of the local.”

The contractors’ original proposal would have created a new non-union job category of “residential helper,” paying a lower wage and not including Local 417’s benefit package. “The members felt… you’re just training them to work non-union,” Motschenbacher said.

The contractor’s revised proposal eliminated the helper job category and boosted the yearly wage increase offer from $2.00 each year to $2.50-$2.30-$2.05.

Members approved the new proposal by a vote of 207 to 51, Motschenbacher said.

Motschenbacher shared another reason for the settlement: “When we voted to go on strike, we had a significant amount of contractors that signed interim agreements with us so we could continue working. That put a lot of pressure on the association to settle.” Plus, he added, “it’s busy out there now.”

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