Coca Cola Workers Going Back To Work

Mobile Baldwin County A three week strike is over after workers come to an agreement over a contract dispute but not everyone is happy.

by Diana Lucio

Published: Fri, August 01, 2008 - 8:06 pm CST Last Updated: Fri, August 01, 2008 - 8:26 pm CST

After a three week strike workers for Coca Cola Consolidated are heading back to work. The strike was over a proposal to freeze contributions to workers pension plans, and instead, convert their pension to a 401(k). Union members negotiated a new proposal with the company,which was voted in tonight.
Union leaders with Local 991 say under the new pension savings plan, employees can roll their current pension over and make contributions, unlike the 401(k)plan Coca Cola Consolidated initally offered them. "After a lot of research and telephone calls back and forth to different pension plans we found one that the company would accept and will in the future start contributing to,"Said Union Leader Dan Krulewicz. "We didn't have a pension, but now we have it, that's what everybody asked for was a pension and he gave us one and it's better than the one we had so far," Said Carl Harper, a worker. But the union says a lot of older employees are still going to lose money, because their not going to have enough time to build their pensions back up."It's the same thing that we turned down basically except we did come up with a different pension, it's not a 401(k) and seems to be better, we're vested right from the start, so it is better than what they offered the first time,"Said Larry Evans, a worker who plans to retire in two years.
Union leaders tell us the contract was voted in 139 to 65. We're told some job descriptions have also changed as result of the new contract.
270 workers from Gautier, Mississippi, Baldwin County and Mobile participated in the strike.

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