Northern Indiana Public Service Company gave the USW Local Unions 12775 and 13796 a last, best and final offer amid contract negotiations Monday night, a day before the contracts are set to expire.
Negotiating teams for both unions, Local 12775 located in Porter and Local 13796 located in Wanatah, are reviewing the company’s proposal, according to a joint news release from the unions, but the offer likely won’t pass muster.
The offer, union officials said, fails to address their main concern about the increasing use of contractors. NIPSCO is not recognizing the unions’ position, removing transparency in the process, officials said.
“While the offer includes items our members appreciate, this agreement is about more than wages, and other economic matters,” according to the unions’ statement. “Our dedicated members are always on the job in times of need and strive to put in the hours to ensure service, emergency response and minimize outages.”
In a statement to the Post-Tribune, NIPSCO officials said the utility continues to negotiate in good faith, “and has shared a proposal to move negotiations to a resolution.”
The company’s proposal addresses safety, faster emergency response, long-term service reliability and customer affordability balanced with cost savings, customer responsiveness and operational efficiencies, “while providing NIPSCO union workers’ wage increase, additional jobs, safety enhancements … and enhanced benefits including more robust holiday flexibility and paid paternal leave,” according to the NIPSCO statement.
NIPSCO also provided a one-time ratification bonus “recognizing the importance of these changes to the future of NIPSCO,” according to the company’s statement.
“We respect the bargaining process and remain focused on safety and service while also supporting the affordability needs for the families and businesses that have relied on us for more than a century,” according to the company’s statement.
The unions are focused on addressing safety and training concerns “that make our extremely knowledgeable workforce stronger and protect the communities that we live and work in,” according to the statement.
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The unions’ goal during negotiations remains to bargain for a fair contract “that provides dignity for workers and protects and expands good jobs that provide value, reliability and safety in our communities across northern Indiana,” according to the unions’ statement.
The membership of USW Local 12775 voted over the weekend with more than 98% approval to give the committee authority to call a strike amid contract negotiations, according to a letter from the union.
For its part, Local 12775 doesn’t want to come to a strike, its vice president Vernon Beck said Monday afternoon. Having gone through a strike in the 1980s, that’s the last thing anyone wants, he said.
But when the clock strikes midnight March 31, union negotiators will either get a contract extension, agree to work without a contract while negotiating continues, get locked out by the company or go on strike, he said.
“We’re trying to come to a resolution by (Tuesday) but they’re moving very slowly,” Beck said. “We’re not even asking for any major changes.”
Particularly concerning to the union is NIPSCO’s insistence on having “flexibility” to hire more outside contractors, Beck said. Currently, there are more contractors working on several projects than there are NIPSCO employees, he said.
While NIPSCO hasn’t disclosed to the union how much it pays contractors, the union has calculated roughly that contractors receive between $100 to $125 per day for per diem and between $19 to $70 per hour, depending on the trucks they use and an hourly wage, Beck said.
“There’s no way that’s cheaper than having us do the work,” Beck said. “I’ve been with NIPSCO for 47 years, and every five to seven years, we get a new group of executives who want to change everything. They made record profits, then turn around and tell us they need us to make concessions.”
Certain storms or outages don’t meet the current contract rules for premium overtime pay, which translates to fewer incentives for crews to work, according to the company. When lineworkers don’t respond, the company brings in contractors to complete the work.
“Hoosiers feel the impact of these delays and operational challenges. The goal of negotiations is not to reduce pay. It’s to update work rules so we can get the job done faster and safer when customers need power restored,” according to the company.
The current contract has been updated over decades, “and some of its rules no longer reflect how a modern utility must operate to serve customers safely, reliably and responsibly,” according to the company.
“We recognize that many customers are feeling real pressure from their energy bills. Modernizing NIPSCO means improving how we operate with greater operational flexibility, while responsibly managing the costs we control so customers can count on safe, reliable service,” according to the company’s website.
NIPSCO employees’ work allows the company to service customers every day, according to the company, which said it remains “committed to recognizing that contribution and rewarding their work fairly.”
[email protected]; freelance reporter Michelle L. Quinn contributed.