- Strike at Eaton Aerospace ends as striking workers vote to accept latest proposal from the company.
- Strikers are set to return to work Monday.
- Company says it looks forward to their return.
- WATCH THE VIDEO for details of the deal, reactions from workers, and a statement from Eaton Aerospace.
The worker strike at Eaton Aerospace is over...and Jackson's George Wade park looks quite different from just a few hours ago.
Tents, chairs, heaters, and signs were all quickly removed as soon as word came around 3 p.m. that UAW Local 475 members had voted to accept the latest offer from Eaton Aerospace, ending an 8-week strike.
The company’s offer came in response to a union proposal after Eaton indicated it was done negotiating and focusing on hiring replacement workers.
The updated offer, according to the Company’s summary, includes a wage increase of 17% over the next four years, a shift premium increase from $0.75 to $1 an hour, an increased probationary wage from $15 to $16.50 per hour, and a signing bonus of $4500.
The reaction from workers I talked to after news of the strike ending was one of relief. And UAW Local 475 President Donnie Huffman echoed that feeling.
"Well, I think people are very happy to be going back to work," said Huffman.
David Miller says he is "relieved".
Kim Shanks: "Excited and ready to return to work. Can’t wait."
Virginia Lucas: "I’m grateful to be going back to work, glad it’s over, and just hope we can go back peacefully and no problems."
Miller said he "personally didn’t feel like we got all the things that we wanted, for sure. But I feel that most people are wanting to get back in there and go back to work."
"It’s the only way I can get my money," said Shanks. "Gotta do what you gotta do. Maybe later on, something will change.
Lucas noted strikers "didn’t get everything we wanted, but we got some stuff, so — give and take."
Huffman emphasized: "We never left here because we didn’t like our job. We just wanted to get a better contract and something that’s more fair for us."
What I heard talking to workers today was definitely tinged with a certain sadness, remembering that this strike saw one worker killed and four injured by a truck that collided with strikers on East Michigan Avenue.
Some of them also witnessed a big police chase recently that ended with a shoot-out just down the street.
The workers go back to work Monday, and the hope, they say, is that things can get back to normal fairly quickly.
A statement we received from Eaton Aerospace confirmed that a new four-year agreement between Eaton’s Jackson plant and UAW Local 475 was ratified Wednesday.
The statement reads, in part: “We look forward to having the employees who were on strike return to work to continue serving our customers and our community.”
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