Another Tentative Power Plant Labor Agreement

The owners of the Pilgrim Nuclear power Station, Entergy, and the union of the employees who operate the plant have reached another tentative agreement to end a month-long strike and lock-out. Neither side released details of the tentative agreement Friday night.

“After this latest round of negotiations, we've agreed to bring Entergy's offer back to our membership for a vote,” Dan Hurley, president of the Utility Workers Union of America Local 369, said. “This has been a long process for our workers, as they have been locked out of Pilgrim Nuclear Power Plant for the past month and without medical coverage since the beginning of July. Entergy's ongoing lockout of experienced workers jeopardizes the safety of our communities, and we have set a vote for this Sunday, July 8th in an effort to give our members an opportunity to vote on this contract offer as quickly as possible. Ultimately our members will decide whether Entergy has made a sincere and reasonable offer that addresses their concerns about healthcare, safe staffing and equitable pay.”

The corporation side also had positive language.

“We are pleased with the positive outcome of this challenging negotiation process and appreciate the hard work and efforts put forth by both parties to get to this point,” Pilgrim’s Site Vice President Robert Smith said. “We believe this new union contract represents fair and equitable terms for both our employees and the company, which is what we have all been striving for throughout the negotiation process.”

Union members rejected the former tentative agreement.

“The Union will be scheduling a ratification vote and we look forward to a positive outcome and having our employees back to work,” Entergy spokesman Carol Wrightman said.