USA: City Brewery workers approve new three-year contract

Union employees at City Brewery in La Crosse overwhelmingly approved a new three-year contract August 06 that includes improved wages, health insurance and other benefits, La Crosse Tribune Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge informed August 07.

Wayne Schultz, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 695, which represents about 300 hourly City Brewery workers, said the base pay will be raised from $16.22 an hour to $16.77 an hour under the new contract.

"There were improvements in health care insurance and pensions as well," Schultz said. "I'm very happy about it. Both parties got a good agreement."

Schultz would not disclose the vote but said, "It is a mandate." He didn't give any other specifics of the agreement.

The membership of Local 695 rejected a proposed three-year contract by a 2-1 ratio in late July.

"It is my opinion the contract was rejected back then because they didn't know what a kind of deal union members in Latrobe were going to get," Schultz said.

Union members at Latrobe Brewing Co. brewery in Latrobe, Pa., approved a two-year contract with City Brewery, paving the way for a possible acquisition of the brewery.

Brewery workers in La Crosse continued to work under terms of a three-year contract that expired in May. "The contracts in La Crosse and Latrobe are very similar," Schultz said.

09 August, 2006