Libbey Glass workers at the plant in Shreveport will vote this week on the company’s recent contract offer, which was negotiated between union representatives and the company last week.
Union workers at Shreveport’s Libbey Glass plant are set to vote on the latest contract offer from the company.
Union representatives met with company officials on Friday to negotiate.
Details of the latest offer have not been released, but Local USW 711T Vice President Keith Roeten says the company offered a “small amount more.”
Now the offer goes before the membership, and it remains to be seen whether it will be enough.
The current contract expired on 16 December 2014. The union has handily rejected two offers since, and the contract has been extended both times.
Insurance costs are rising nationally, and Roeten says workers understand that not much can be done about that. But as insurance costs rise, they cut into pay, and he says the company so far isn’t doing enough to bring it up to scale with the cost of living or to compete with other local employers.
Roeten says the company’s latest financial reports show record-breaking earnings, and the membership is well aware of the millions of dollars in salary, compensation and stock options company executives enjoy.
According to its latest earnings report, Libbey, Inc. says it had USD 216 million in sales for the third quarter, compared to USD 204.4 million for the third quarter of 2013, an increase of 5.7%. Libbey called it the “highest third quarter sales in company history,” and says it expects “similar top-line growth for the fourth quarter.”
Libbey Glass is one of the biggest glass manufacturers in the world.
With some 427 workers, it is one of the largest employers in Shreveport. Most, but not all, are union members.
Workers will vote on the contract Thursday at the plant, from 6 a.m. and 8 p.m.