South Seattle intermodal workers win first ILWU contract through strategy, solidarity
Six months to the day after launching a fight to be union, chassis and container mechanics employed by P&B Intermodal at the BNSF South Seattle Intermodal Facility in Tukwila won a first collective bargaining agreement on December 2022. The first contract transformed wages and working conditions as new members of ILWU Local 19A, the Local’s allied division.
“We heard about the incredible gains made by fellow P&B mechanics in the Port of Tacoma when they went union through ILWU Local 23,” said Rob Orozco, one of the mechanics in Tukwila. “We urgently needed to change this workplace, and knew we could make it happen here as well.”
In 2021, mechanics struck P&B’s Port of Tacoma operation in the South Intermodal Yard with solidarity from Local 23. Workers won union recognition six hours after demanding it, and went on to secure a first contract in less than five months, which doubled wages from $18.50 to $37.50, locked down fully employer-paid health care, and launched a new pension plan where none had existed before, with starting accrual of $9.50 per hour.
“The company did everything they could to keep Tukwila and Tacoma employees separated so we wouldn’t find out,” said Orozco. “But we eventually made contact and started talking union.”
Heating up over hazards
In May, the group of about ten Tukwila mechanics said they had been pushed to a breaking point, dealing with health and safety issues on the job.
“Managers had me working unscheduled overtime day after day after day,” said Garrett Spindler. “I ended up getting a hernia on the job and then being told by management there was supposedly no light-duty work available, even though state law requires it.”
In June, workers conducted an informational picket at the yard, joined by Local 19 and Local 23 members, including Young Worker Committee members from Seattle and Tacoma, along with support from Teamsters Local 174 drivers who bring in chassis for repair and Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way rail workers. At the end of the picket, mechanics marched on the boss to demand immediate action from P&B to protect employees’ health and safety.
Management called the Tukwila Police, who showed up just as the picket and march on the boss were ending. As managers scrambled all morning to carry out damage control and avert an actual walkout, workers realized the simple picket had landed even more of an impact than planned. The next morning, mechanics demanded union recognition—and within two hours, managers formally recognized workers as ILWU Local 19A.
The new members joined Local 19 President Herald Ugles, Vice-President Matt Ventoza, and Labor Relations Committee members Justin Hirsch, Ron Manwell and Terry Jeffries in pushing P&B managers to reach a fair contract.
“They changed the schedule in discriminatory ways that would have forced several of us to leave,” said Ray Caldwell. “When I got hired on, I was told I would be working day shifts Monday through Friday—and then some of us were switched from day to graveyard shift and onto the swing, all because managers said they were short-staffed.” The bargaining committee pushed back right away, demanding P&B immediately rescind the schedule changes and hire additional mechanics instead. Managers soon complied and hired on two more employees.
Bringing it down
As bargaining continued over the next few months, so did management’s pressure tactics as they dug in their heels against raising economic standards in Tukwila.
“It was going from bad to worse on the job site, as they tried to test our resolve with delayed negotiations and obstructions at the table,” said President Herald Ugles. “Members said, ‘enough is enough—it’s time for action.’” After filing federal charges over multiple Unfair Labor Practices, mechanics went on a lightning strike at P&B before dawn on a Friday in October.
With dozens of Local 19 and Local 23 members joining the picket line, along with solidarity from Teamsters Local 174 truck drivers, Transportation Communications International Union lift operators, and Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employee rail workers, operations at the Tukwila yard were shut down.
After a massive round of cheers and chants of “we’ll be back!”, members ended the strike and returned to work. “We saw just how much power we could muster through union solidarity,” said Orozco. The bargaining committee forced managers over the finish line, winning a first collective bargaining agreement that members unanimously ratified in December.
‘Dream is now a reality’
Meeting base wage rates for Tacoma at $38.00 an hour, mechanics in Tukwila won an average wage increase of 29 percent and secured a new highest wage classification for OTR drivers at $43.50 an hour, elevating the top pay rate by 13 percent. For the first time, on-call workers are compensated at $100.00 for any 24-hour period. Members locked down a newly-affordable, top-tier medical plan with an 80/20 split with vision and dental care. While not 100 percent employer-paid, members chose to prioritize maximum wage increases this first contract. And for the first time, mechanics now have a fully employer-funded pension plan, with starting accrual of $10.00/hour. Jurisdiction over critical new work has been locked down, along with basic contract protections that hand workers tools to beat back employer violations and enforce member rights on the job — all within six months of launching the fight.
“When we started this, we had a dream, and now it’s a reality,” said Garrett Spindler. “Thank you to all our fellow members for being a part of us building something better for our families.”
“Staying together and united while striving for a better tomorrow works,” said Jawaad Reaves. “We learned we have strength in numbers.”
“I felt empowered by how quickly a mass of fellow members turned out to back us up on our picket lines,” said Orozco. “ILWU folks genuinely cared and welcomed us as brothers, and I proudly rock the hook pin on my sweater now.”
“This victory shows what can happen when workers are ready to put it all on the line to be ILWU,” said Herald Ugles. “When we use our strategic power to fight hard and smart, we win.”
“P&B workers’ actions and solidarity from ILWU members and other unions shows how we can work to uplift workers throughout the supply chain,” said ILWU International Vice-President (Mainland) Bobby Olvera, Jr. “An injury to one is an injury to all, along the shore and down the chain.”
-Jon Brier