UAW Local 833 Workers At Kohler Fight Concessions As New Deadline For A Contract Vote Nears

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.laborradio.org/Channels/Story.aspx?ID=1322921

12/6/2010
By Doug Cunningham

: “These concessionary demands are unreasonable, unwarranted and overly severe.”

UAW Local 833 spokesman Dave Boucher on the cutthroat wage, pension and benefits demands rejected by the workers at the Kohler company plant in Wisconsin. The rejected concessions included five-year wage and pension freezes, substantial hikes in health and other benefits costs and a two-tier workforce of new hires and recalled long-term layoffs at 65 percent of current pay with no union representation for the second tier workers. Kohler and the UAW are trying to negotiate a new agreement that will be ratified by the 2000 workers Sunday.