Monday, August 1, 2011

Workers Stage Walkout at World Trade Center Site

A recent aerial view of the World Trade Center site.
By Joseph De Avila, Andrew Grossman and Eliot Brown

Hundreds of unionized concrete workers walked off the job at the World Trade Center on Monday, setting up for a possible strike in the coming days.

The contract covering the workers expired on July 1. Since then, the concrete workers have been operating without a new contract.

Officials with the Cement and Concrete Workers District Council representing the concrete workers declined to comment. Officials with the Cement League, a contractors’ association that represents management, couldn’t be reached for comment Monday. However, a source familiar with the matter said the two parties are currently negotiating.

Without concrete workers, work cannot proceed on part of the World Trade Center’s transit hub, according to a person familiar with the matter. Other construction tradesmen continued work at the site on Monday, but a prolonged work stoppage could affect their work if they need concrete to proceed, according to that same person.

Concrete workers also stopped working at Tower 1, but other construction there will be able to continue for about a week or so, according to another person familiar with the matter.

Monday’s work stoppage by the concrete workers union will have “no impact on construction of the 9/11 Memorial, which remains on track to open on the tenth anniversary [of the attacks], and minimal impacts on the site’s other projects,” said Steve Coleman, a spokesman with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

2 comments:

  1. DROP DEAD UNITY TEAM !

    ReplyDelete
  2. Funny how that all works out on the Schedule.

    Oh yeah, one does have to pour the Mud before other critical path trades become effected.

    Golly, ya may have to just have a wildcat strike all around now, huh. Hate when that happens.

    Oh well - until the final imapct is determined and you find out how many trades jump aboard, just won't be able to do that darn recovery schedule now will ya?

    Get the golf in now ladies, might have some late nights!

    ReplyDelete

I would ask that if you would like to leave a comment that you think of Local 157 Blogspot as your online meeting hall and that you wouldn’t say anything on this site that you wouldn’t, say at a union meeting. Constructive criticism is welcome, as we all benefit from such advice. Obnoxious comments are not welcome.