The union representing over 1,200 National Grid employees working in Long Island’s natural gas and power plants is set to strike if they do not reach a tentative agreement by March 28.
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1049, the union representing the workers, held a press conference on Saturday in Eisenhower Park. Over a dozen Democratic and Republican elected officials and a handful of other local unions were in attendance. This was ahead of their last full week of bargaining before a potential strike.
“You are the hard-working men and women who contribute, each and every day, to making this a great island to live on,” said Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman to the hundreds of union members and their families who had gathered in the park. “We are standing with you today, and we are telling National Grid to get to the negotiation table. Give this group of outstanding Americans fair wages and good benefits so they can support their families.”
Other electeds, from Republican state Sen. Mario Mattera to Democratic U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi, echoed the sentiment. Multiple speakers referred to National Grid as National Greed and warned the company not to underestimate the power of labor solidarity on Long Island.
The union, whose previous contract expired on Feb. 13, has been bargaining with National Grid for months.
The two parties had previously come to a tentative agreement on Feb. 15, which union leadership did not endorse, and later announced that 71% of members had voted down on March 7. The union’s previous contract was extended to March 28 to allow both parties more time to negotiate after members voted it down.
Pat Guidice, the local’s business manager, said that despite bargaining nearly every day since March 7, no progress has been made in negotiations. Outstanding issues remain in salaries, healthcare, and pensions, he said, stating that employees had not received a significant increase in their pensions for over 20 years and needed higher pay to continue to afford to live on Long Island.
He added that the union was pushing for members to remain on their current Blue Cross Blue Shield healthcare plan instead of switching to Aetna, which National Grid is pushing for. He said remaining on the current healthcare plan would save National Grid $12.9 million over the course of the contract.
“The company refuses to hear our wants and needs, and it’s very frustrating to try and work while all this is going on,” Thomas Verastzo, a structural welder working for National Grid who attended Saturday’s press conference. “None of us want to strike, but if we have to, we will. Honestly, all we want is fair wages, an update in pension and retirement benefits and decent healthcare that’s not gonna eat up our entire check.”
“Our employees deserve a fair deal, and so do our customers who pay for it,” Wendy Frigeria, a spokesperson for National Grid, said in a statement. “Local 1049’s latest proposal is seven times more expensive than the tentative agreement they signed last month, and that’s not fair to customers,” she said, referring to proposals the union has brought to the bargaining table through the month of March and the Feb. 15 tentative agreement union leadership previously brought before members for a vote.
“We will continue to negotiate for a fair and affordable deal,” Frigeria added.
Ryan Stanton, president of the Long Island Federation of Labor, said that National Grid received approval to raise its rates by 40% earlier this year with the understanding that the company would use that money to reinvest in its critical infrastructure and skilled workforce.
“The fact that we are still in conflict demonstrates, to me, and should demonstrate to the general public that they’re not committed to the workforce,” he said, adding that he felt it was a breach of the public trust.
“There’s 3 million people on Long Island who get to take you for granted. You go to work each and every day making sure the gas infrastructure here on Long Island functions,” Stanton said to union members gathered on Saturday. “When people walk into their homes, they flip a switch, the lights go on; they turn the thermostat, their homes warm up, and they think nothing about that. They have you to thank for that.”
National Grid provides electricity to over 600,000 homes and businesses in Long Island.
Guidice and other speakers said the union did not want to strike, emphasizing the issues a strike could potentially cause for the security of Long Island’s power system.
However, they said the union would not hesitate to do so if a tentative agreement that meets workers’ needs is not reached by the 28th.
Guidice said the union will continue to bargain with National Grid through the week.
