Lockout and Scabs at Nuke Plant


Scabs Brought in To Run Nuclear Power Plant During Lockout in Mass. 

By Mike Elk

Thursday Jun 14,2012

http://www.inthesetimes.com/working/entry/13382/scabs_brought_in_to_run_nuclear_power_plant_during_lockout_in_mass/

On June 5, a number of replacement workers and outside
managers were brought in to operate Entergy's Plymouth
Station nuclear power plant in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
While the replacement workers have experience working
as technicians in other nuclear power plants in the
United States, the union claims that the technicians
lack the site-specific experience needed to operate a
plant as complex as Plymouth Station.  One replacement
worker who spoke to Working In These Times worries that
a mix of replacement workers and Entergy managers with
little experience operating the Plymouth Station could
cause a catastrophe.

The lockout of 250 workers began after Utility Workers
Union of America (UWUA) Local 369 and Entergy were
unable to agree to a contract. Entergy had pushed for
the elimination of disability insurance, of life
insurance for workers over age 55, and of seniority in
the plant, as well as for cuts to workers' retirement
and medical plans. The company also wanted to maintain
the right to make unilateral changes to workers'
retirement and medical plans whenever it wanted.

"What we want is protection down the road for our
family" says union member John Barilaro. "It's a risky
business and people do get sick. And they really don't
care. They are just concerned about the bottom line."

Entergy Spokesman Michael Bourne says Entergy decided
to lock the workers out because the "union would not
back away from their right to call a strike at any time
without prior notification" after the union contract
expired Tuesday night. But Dan Hurley, president of
UWUA Local 369, disputes this charge. Hurley says that
while the union would not give up their legal right to
strike after the contract expired, it was willing to
give the company advance notice of a strike, so as to
comply with federal laws.

One of the replacement workers at the plant claims that
Entergy has not engaged in good faith dealings with
them, either. The subcontractor that hired the
replacement workers, DZ Atlantic, never informed them
that they could be brought in to scab on union members
when they signed their contracts. After being told that
they would be brought in to scab, the replacement
workers were promised that they would only have to
cross the picket line once in a company-provided bus
and that there would be housing available on site for
them.

However, the replacement workers have had to spend
their own money to stay in nearby motels and have had
to drive across the picket line several times. One
replacement worker, who only agreed to speak if granted
anonymity, complained that a female replacement worker
had the hood of her car damaged when a locked out
worker on the picket line fell on it. Beyond the
dangers posed by having to cross the picket line, the
replacement worker worries that his colleagues'
inexperience in running the day-to-day operations of
the Pilgrim Station nuclear plant could cause a major
accident.

"Currently, in the plant, they are like, 'If it is not
broke, don't fix it,' "says the replacement worker.
"The people that I work with are very professional.
However, there are situations that could come up that
worry me. I am not going to say this or that could
happen because no one can predict that. However, I am
saying if there was a catastrophe on a scale like
Fukushima, management would not handle it the way they
should."

Union members are upset that the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission (NRC) has allowed replacement workers to
operate the plant. "The NRC stands on the sideline
about this. It's really disheartening that they take a
backseat to the company," says Barilaro.

But the NRC says it has been long aware of a possible
lockout and that it approved Entergy's contingency
operating plan. "We reviewed the plans and made sure
they were qualified to do what they were assigned to
do," says NRC spokeswoman Diane Screnci. "We reviewed
the qualifications and continue to have enhanced
oversight at the plant to make sure the plant is
operated safely".

That still hasn't assuaged the fears of local residents
and politicians. In a letter to the NRC, Reps. Ed
Markey (D-Mass.) and Bill Keating (D-Mass.) asked
whether the agency can "truly ensure that the residents
of Massachusetts living near the plant are as safe in
the event of an emergency today as they were when the
Union workers were operating the plant earlier this
week?"

In the meantime, UWUA Local 369 has filed NLRB charges
against Entergy. The union claims that Entergy failed
to provide necessary information about medical plans
during contract negotiations, made a series of
"coercive, threatening statements" against workers
prior to a contract vote last week, and videotaped
workers walking the picket line without their consent,
thus violating Massachusetts two-party consent law .

"Entergy's complete and utter disregard for the safety
and well-being of Massachusetts workers and communities
has been well documented, and this NLRB complaint
exemplifies how the company chooses to do business,"
says Hurley. "Rather than head back to the bargaining
table and negotiate in good faith, Entergy makes
coercive statements and attempts to intimidate the
workers who safely run Pilgrim Nuclear."



Union Hosting State House Rally Against Entergy

Plymouth Patch

By Casey Meserve

http://plymouth.patch.com/articles/union-hosting-state-house-rally-against-entergy

Labor supporters and legislators will attend a State
House rally next Tuesday, protesting the lockout at
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station.


Plymouth legislators, union members and labor experts
will attend a rally outside the State House next
Tuesday, June 19, to protest Entergy's ongoing lockout
of union workers at Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station,
according to a press release from UWUA Local 369.

Union members have been picketing outside Pilgrim since
June 5 when the union's contract expired without a new
one in place. With the union threatening to have its
workers walk off the job at any time, Entergy decided
to lock out union members.

The two sides have not attempted to go back to the
negotiating table despite entreaties from local, state
and federal officials.

The rally takes place Tuesday, June 19 at 1 p.m. Among
those expected to attend are Mass. AFL-CIO President
Steven Tolman, Senate President Therese Murray, State
Rep. Martin Walsh, State Treasurer Steven Grossman, and
representatives from other unions. The Massachusetts
AFL-CIO, the Greater Boston Labor Council, the
Plymouth-Bristol Central Labor Council will also be at
the rally.

"We want to send the message that Massachusetts will
not tolerate Entergy's excessive profits at the expense
of the safety of our workers and communities, and
that's why we've chosen this highly visible location
outside the State House for the rally," UWUA Local 369
President Dan Hurley said in the release. "We're
grateful for all the support we've received from our
elected officials and community and business leaders
and union brothers and sisters. We remain committed to
keeping our communities safe, and we hope Entergy will
do the right thing. They need to return to the
bargaining table and let our workers continue their
important jobs."

During the past week, elected officials from across the
Commonwealth have criticized Entergy's lockout of
nearly 250 members of UWUA Local 369, arguing that
preventing these workers from doing their jobs
needlessly places surrounding communities at risk. Many
of these workers have decades of experience running the
40-year-old nuclear power plant.

"Entergy is making more than a million dollars a day
just from Pilgrim alone, and it's deeply alarming to
know that the company places profits before worker
safety and the wellbeing of our local communities,"
AFL-CIO President Tolman said. "Entergy's unreasonable
and callous actions are putting our entire region at
risk, and they need to hear loud and clear that such
actions are not acceptable in Massachusetts."

Pilgrim and union officials spent nearly two months
negotiating a new contract. Key issues included health
care costs, safety and staffing issues. Earlier this
week the union filed a complaint against Entergy with
the National Labor Relations Board.

At the end of May, Pilgrim's operating license was
renewed for another 20 years, days before the original
40-year license was set to end.

Earlier this week, Congressman Bill Keating walked the
picket line outside of Pilgrim. Keating criticized
Entergy's lockout, saying in a statement that the union
workers "are the men and women we need operating this
plant. It is imperative they are reinstalled in their
jobs and I strongly urge Entergy to come back to the
table immediately."

A local attorney has also filed a complaint against
Entergy, alleging that the company's housing of
replacement workers onsite at the nuclear power plant
violates local Plymouth zoning laws.

Entergy operates or manages ten nuclear power plants
around the nation, including those in Michigan,
Vermont, Arkansas and Mississippi.

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