IUE-CWA to strike at GE

USA: The IMF-affiliated International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America (IUE-CWA) will launch a national strike against General Electric tomorrow (January 14) at 12:01 a.m., the first nationwide walkout at the U.S.-based transnational in over 30 years. The IUE-CWA says their two-day industrial action is in retaliation against GE's imposition on January 1, 2003, of inequitable and unjustifiable health care costs on both its active and retired members. The union argues that workers accepted lower wage increases in the last collective agreement in order to preserve their health benefits, but now GE is attempting to shift US$40 million in health care costs to its workers even though the company is making record profits. In 2001, GE's net profits amounted to $14.1 billion, and the projected net profit for 2002 is $16 billion. While the IUE-CWA, which with 14,000 active members is the largest union at the company, has the right to conduct national strikes in its collective agreement with GE, the other U.S. unions making up the 14-member Coordinated Bargaining Committee for General Electric -- including the IMF-affiliated Machinists (IAM), the United Autoworkers (UAW), the Steelworkers (USWA) and Sheetmetal Workers (SMW) -- will honour the picket lines. They will conduct simultaneous strikes over unresolved grievances and take part in other solidarity actions. In a letter of protest to GE chairman and CEO, Jeffrey Immelt, IMF general secretary Marcello Malentacchi said the IMF and its affiliated unions fully support the IUE-CWA stand, and "we intend to assist the IUE-CWA and the other American GE unions in this action to the fullest extent we can." As the U.S. is one of the few countries in the industrialised world lacking a national health care system, Malentacchi urged GE to "join with its domestic unions in seeking a rational legislative solution to the problem, rather than attempting to shift more and more of the burden onto its workers." The IMF has also asked its affiliates worldwide to send protest letters to GE. Bargaining for the IUE-CWA's next collective contract at GE will start in May 2003. The present three-year agreement expires on June 15.