Huntington Ingalls, employee union tentative five-year agreement vote fails

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (WAVY) — Members of United Steelworkers Local 8888 voted down the new tentative five-year collective bargaining agreement that was agreed to late Sunday evening.

According to a Facebook post, the vote received a total of 1,996 votes – 1,312 people voted no and 684 voted yes. The vote was conducted by secret ballot on Tuesday.

The agreement was expected to enhance wages, improve pensions, curb health care costs and bolster promotional opportunities in lower job categories. It was set to replace the agreement that expired Sunday night.

USW Local 8888 represents more than 10,000 workers at the Newport News shipyard. Officials say all members got a detailed report on the tentative agreement on Sunday afternoon at a members-only meeting.

The union’s bargaining committee was recommending that the agreement be ratified.

“The last two years have been like no others,” they said in a statement. “The Worldwide Pandemic has changed all of our lives and required all of us to make significant adjustments and to reimagine our lives, including the way that we work. Through it all, the world’s greatest shipbuilders have delivered.”