ASHWAUBENON (NBC 26) — As we enter severe weather season, the men and women that keep the power lines in working order across northeast Wisconsin are in a precarious situation.
850 Wisconsin Public Service (WPS) utility workers are working on an expired contract right now, as their union negotiations with WPS for higher wages.
The contract of the utility workers from the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 420 expired on April 16, according to union leaders.
"I'm not going to sugar coat it: Bargaining is not going well," said IUOE Local 420 business agent Jarrod Schlichter in an April 22 video update to members.
The union's business manager, Alex Tetzlaff, says talks have been going on since February without a new deal, writing this statement to NBC 26:
International Union of Operating Engineers Local 420 has been working without a successor agreement and without an extension of the current agreement since it expired on April 16. We represent approximately 850 members in electric generation, electric and gas distribution, and many other support functions for Wisconsin Public Service.
Local 420 and the Company have been negotiating every day since early February. We understand how important it is for our customers to continue to receive life sustaining electric and gas service so, currently, we have chosen to continue working without an extension while the parties continue to meet in the hopes of reaching an agreement. We will be meeting with a federal mediator this week to continue to push for wage increases that recognize market rates and continuing elevated prices brought on by the recent historic levels of inflation as well as to protect the work our skilled membership performs.
A WPS spokesperson also wrote to NBC 26 Monday night, with Matt Cullen of WEC Energy Group (WPS' parent company) writing:
We continue to have productive discussions with IUOE Local 420, and appreciate our employees’ dedication to serving our customers as these discussions continue. Our employees continue to work under the terms of the previous contract, which is not unusual as negotiations continue. We remain committed to working with Local 420 to reach an agreement that is fair to our employees and customers, and supports our focus on delivering affordable, reliable and clean energy to homes and businesses.
From the union's perspective, a week ago:
"We have seen this company continue to be profitable time after time," Schlichter said in the video message. "However, they are currently not willing to bring wages into market."
The union also said in its update last week that this is not a strike, and that it is not urging people to skip or disrupt work, despite its dissatisfaction with bargaining so far.
