United Steelworkers likely to ratify the tentative labour agreement with Alcoa

United Steelworkers officials said that they would recommend their members to ratify a tentative agreement with Alcoa, announced on Friday, a press release from steelworkers said.

“The proposed contract builds on decades of collective bargaining progress with hard-fought economic and non-economic improvements. Our members have earned and deserve fair wages, benefits and working conditions,” United Steelworkers District 7 Director Michael Millsap said in a statement.

He was the chief negotiator from United Steelworkers in processing the agreement with Alcoa.

The details of the tentative agreement will be released to the public only after the elected union representatives review it. Negotiating committee delegates would conduct membership meetings with their local unions to and arrange ratification votes. In Massena, informational meetings to review the details of the tentative agreement are scheduled on Friday.

“We came to the table months ago prepared to negotiate in good faith for a fair contract, but management made us fight for it every step of the way,” United Steelworkers International President Tom Conway said in a statement.

About 357 Alcoa employees and 132 Arconic employees in Massena continued working under the original contract that expired on May 15. Alcoa and Arconic agreed to extend the expired contracts while negotiations continued with the union.

The agreement covers about 1,700 active employees at five U.S. locations — Massena, Warrick Operations in Indiana, Gum Springs in Arkansas, Wenatchee Works in Washington and Point Comfort in Texas.