Grain terminal cites sabotage, declares Longshoreman lockout
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A Pacific Northwest grain terminal owner imposed a lockout on longshoremen Wednesday after saying an "independent former FBI investigator" determined a union leader sabotaged company equipment at the height of contentious labor problems in December.
United Grain Corp., part of the Japanese conglomerate Mitsui & Co., said nonunion replacement workers will operate its Vancouver, Wash., export terminal for an "indefinite" period. The company said it fired the union leader, whom it described as a member of the bargaining team of Local 4 of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union but did not name.
"Deliberate attempts by an ILWU leader to damage equipment, disrupt operations and put co-workers at risk cannot be tolerated," United Grain CEO Gary Schuld said Wednesday.
The union called the company's allegations unfounded, and locked-out longshoremen immediately picketed outside the terminal.
"United Grain and its Japanese owners at Mitsui have failed to negotiate in good faith with the men and women of the ILWU for months, and instead chose to aggressively prepare for a lockout, spending enormous resources on an out-of-state security firm," ILWU spokeswoman Jennifer Sargent said in a statement. "Mitsui-United Grain has fabricated a story as an excuse to do what they've wanted to do all along, which is to lock workers out instead of reach a fair agreement with them."
Late last year, the company was among Northwest terminal owners who declared an impasse on labor negotiations and imposed a contract that included new, management-friendly workplace rules.
Columbia Grain said the sabotage occurred Dec. 22, days before the impasse was declared. In one case, someone shoved a 2-foot-long metal pipe into a conveyor, causing it to shut down, the company said. In another, a vandal damaged a gear box with a mixture of sand and water.
The company, in a letter sent to the union, said an "impartial and independent" former FBI investigator determined the union leader was the culprit following an investigation that included interviews, surveillance tapes and other evidence.
No charges have been filed, but Schuld said the investigator's report will be turned over to law enforcement
More than a quarter of all U.S. grain exports move through nine grain terminals on the Willamette River and Puget Sound. The contract dispute initially involved six of those terminals that operate under a single collective bargaining agreement with the ILWU: United Grain, based in Vancouver; Columbia Grain, based in Portland; Louis Dreyfus Commodities, which has grain elevators in Portland and Seattle; and Temco, which has elevators in Portland and Tacoma, Wash.
United Grain has the largest storage capacity of any West Coast grain export facility with more than 7 million bushels of storage, according to the company's website.
The U.S.-owned Temco broke away from the alliance in early December and negotiated separately with the union. They announced a five-year agreement Wednesday.
"It's no coincidence that Mitsui-United Grain has chosen to throw out unfounded charges by an unnamed 'investigator' just days after the union membership ratified an agreement with Mistui-United Grain's American competitors," Sargent said.
The pro-management terms implemented in December eliminate some employee perks and grievance procedures while giving employers more discretion in hiring and staffing decisions. Management, for example, can expand shifts to 12 hours, if needed, and use elevator employees to help load ships.
United Grain Corp., part of the Japanese conglomerate Mitsui & Co., said nonunion replacement workers will operate its Vancouver, Wash., export terminal for an "indefinite" period. The company said it fired the union leader, whom it described as a member of the bargaining team of Local 4 of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union but did not name.
"Deliberate attempts by an ILWU leader to damage equipment, disrupt operations and put co-workers at risk cannot be tolerated," United Grain CEO Gary Schuld said Wednesday.
The union called the company's allegations unfounded, and locked-out longshoremen immediately picketed outside the terminal.
"United Grain and its Japanese owners at Mitsui have failed to negotiate in good faith with the men and women of the ILWU for months, and instead chose to aggressively prepare for a lockout, spending enormous resources on an out-of-state security firm," ILWU spokeswoman Jennifer Sargent said in a statement. "Mitsui-United Grain has fabricated a story as an excuse to do what they've wanted to do all along, which is to lock workers out instead of reach a fair agreement with them."
Late last year, the company was among Northwest terminal owners who declared an impasse on labor negotiations and imposed a contract that included new, management-friendly workplace rules.
Columbia Grain said the sabotage occurred Dec. 22, days before the impasse was declared. In one case, someone shoved a 2-foot-long metal pipe into a conveyor, causing it to shut down, the company said. In another, a vandal damaged a gear box with a mixture of sand and water.
The company, in a letter sent to the union, said an "impartial and independent" former FBI investigator determined the union leader was the culprit following an investigation that included interviews, surveillance tapes and other evidence.
No charges have been filed, but Schuld said the investigator's report will be turned over to law enforcement
More than a quarter of all U.S. grain exports move through nine grain terminals on the Willamette River and Puget Sound. The contract dispute initially involved six of those terminals that operate under a single collective bargaining agreement with the ILWU: United Grain, based in Vancouver; Columbia Grain, based in Portland; Louis Dreyfus Commodities, which has grain elevators in Portland and Seattle; and Temco, which has elevators in Portland and Tacoma, Wash.
United Grain has the largest storage capacity of any West Coast grain export facility with more than 7 million bushels of storage, according to the company's website.
The U.S.-owned Temco broke away from the alliance in early December and negotiated separately with the union. They announced a five-year agreement Wednesday.
"It's no coincidence that Mitsui-United Grain has chosen to throw out unfounded charges by an unnamed 'investigator' just days after the union membership ratified an agreement with Mistui-United Grain's American competitors," Sargent said.
The pro-management terms implemented in December eliminate some employee perks and grievance procedures while giving employers more discretion in hiring and staffing decisions. Management, for example, can expand shifts to 12 hours, if needed, and use elevator employees to help load ships.
Hopefully the days of union bullying and extortion are starting to wind down.Unreasonable, wasteful, bloated union demands only serve to lose jobs, not retain them.The union bosses would rather see thousands of jobs go away rather than lose their control over the sheep.Unions which once were the salvation of working people, have degraded into mobsters with no concept of what it takes to compete in an international market.Get this straight, those jobs that go overseas, or to a more business friendly state, WILL NOT RETURN.Go ahead and send the grain to Vancouver BC.Who needs an international port in the US with one right across the border.
Why is someone in need of a job considered a 'scab'?
That's a pretty hate filled term in my opinion. Where's the outrage here?Â
Sorry... What was I thinking? Only union members have rights. And only those that deem themselves offended have rights.
The rest of us just get to suck it up and keep paying for the self endowed.
@bobalouie That is the whole point, to VILLIFY one opponents.  Why no outrage?  Personally, I believe it's very same reason people do not speak out against radical Islamists... you never know when they will get violent, and union guys do have a history of intimidation and anti-social behavior.
@bobalouie Because they don't walk the lines with the people who want to sit outside holding a sign. What I also like is management is also called scabs. You know the ones who are not part of the union & have no control over contract negoiations.
"Columbia Grain said the sabotage occurred Dec. 22, days before the impasse was declared."
Interesting that they wait for the union to ratify a contract containing draconian 12 hr day language and then pursue an alleged vandalism charge from last Dec. Were they simply hoping to induce a strike with the rotten language and failed so this is their next strategy?
Nice of them to lock them out though. They'll get paid for every hour scabs work and will be eligible for unemployment also.
@T_BONE_WALKERÂ Columbia Grain is a crooked company. There's a reason why companies end up being unionized. No decent company is unionized. I've worked for a couple of companies that were union and there was a very good reason the workers voted to unionize.
At least they don't have signs (according to the supplied photo) taped to baseball bats this time.  I can't make a judgement on this one since it's a he said-he said story.  I guess my only question is did the owners contact the local authorities to file a complaint and get an official investigation stated.  Vandalism of private property is a crime.  I find it odd that the AP story only talks about an investigation being conducted by outsiders.
Well if the charges are true. Fire them all!
I do not have much sympathy for those who decide to sabotage equipment to get their point across. However, walking out probably would be a better action to utilize in order to get the point across. This is when I question unions in the state. Also, I wish KOMO would lay out more information as to what amounted to the impasse in negotiations if that information is available. Otherwise, I see this as slanted toward against unions.Â
@MCDanceKnight Just because "someone" says there was vandalism doesn't mean there was. Very often, both sides of these disputes release incomplete information in order to inflame the media, much like arguments between Republican and Democratic beliefs.
If the union workers aren't happy about it, then they can go get another job.Â
Talk about entitlement issues! Â Whining jerks! Â I'd gladly be a Scab, take their job and tell them to shove it. Â I need the money! Â
slowdowns and strikes are cool, damaging equipment is not. Both cost the company money, but one can cause injury.
These children need to grow up.
@Powderhound Which one's need to grow upo? The foreign owners or the local employees?
@RTNavy @Powderhound All of them!
If the grain companies hadn't tried to cheat the union workers out of jobs that were contracted to them none of this would have happened. Union workers shouldn't destroy company equipment except in last ditch effort to get them to the bargaining table. They should just do work slowdowns. Make themselves more money from longer hours and cost the company money in the process. And maybe in the process of slowdowns the company will hire more workers. If companies don't play by the rules there's no reason employees should.
@Blindman "Union workers shouldn't destroy company equipment "
That's the only part of your statement that holds true. They didn't and have lost all credibility in their stance. There is absolutely NO excuse to do what they did.
@Blindman  so wrong on so many levels
@Blindman Wow, you are obviously a "blindman". It is never okay to destroy private property, it is never okay to work slower to be paid more, and employees should play by the rules of every company. If you break the rules, then find another job. I can't believe that someone would say numerous things that are so blatantly wrong... but then again, i guess i am never surprised anymore. I certainly hope that you simply had a weak moment, and do not mean what you just said.
@devilphish @Blindman Sure it is. If they destroy your livelyhood then its only fair to respond. I'm no big union fan, been union twice and didn't like it, but I understand why unions do and should exist. No decent company is unionized. Only the ones that are cheating employees. Even with Boeing. They use to be a terrible company before they got unionized.
So you're say that it's ok in some cases to destroy equipment?
This kind of behavior is what gives union employees like myself a bad rap.
The longshoreman's union has a big problem. They act like it's ok to work like 1920's mobsters when they don't get their way. Some things just don't change. Maybe it's time to bring in non-union labor.
@what? The foreign owners aren't acting much different either!
@RTNavy What about the owners isn't much different? Ever since this whole thing started the union has represented themselves to be the lawless thugs that they are.