Union workers left in the dark

MARGARETTA TWP. — It's been months since the labor contract between Ventra Sandusky and the United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 1216 expired, and union workers there aren't being told anything about the status of negotiations. "We're not hearing anything from anyone," one employee said. "A lot of us are asking, 'Where's Brett Whyde?'" Whyde, the union president, hasn't communicated with employees in months, the employee said. He also has not responded to inquiries from the Register since the contract expired in the summer. The employee said it had been at least two months since Whyde communicated with the workforce, and the union vice president, Bob Gorby, also hasn't provided any updates. Another employee at the plant said workers are not making any unreasonable demands. "Basically, all we're asking for is a cost-of-living raise," he said. There are about 2,000 to 2,200 employees at Ventra, the former Ford plant on Tiffin Avenue, and starting wages are about $18 to $19 per hour and higher depending upon job classifications, a far cry from what Ford workers were paid a decade or more ago. "We're basically still a Ford plant," the second, long-time employee said. "I have guys tell me all the time, 'Back in 2005, I was working next to a guy who was making $28 an hour, and I was making $13.'" It's unclear whether the union voted to authorize a strike, or if it can strike, but the worker who talked to the Register said he feared Ford was stockpiling the headlamps and rear light fixtures the factory builds so it could sustain a strike if one were to happen. The expired contract prohibited strikes "during the life of this agreement." Workers pay about $47 per month in union dues, which, for 2,000 employees, would be about $1.1 million collected annually. It's unknown if there is a strike fund for workers if they were to stage a walkout. One employee said a signing bonus and a holiday bonus — $1,500 and $500, respectively — were discussed with the company at one point, but that would amount to just 10 cents per hour over the life of the contract. The Ford Motor Co. broke ground at the facility in 1955 and it was fully operational in 1956, according to a UAW Local 1216 website. The plant has grown in size from 720,000 square feet to 1.2 million square feet and from 194 acres to 355 acres, over the years. It was "spun off" beginning in about 2000, rechristened Visteon and then as ACH, according to the website. It was purchased by Flex-N-Gate and became a part of its Ventra Plastics Division. * Note: This story has been changed to correct the staring wages for Ventra employees.