Many chemical sector workers face exposure to toxic chemicals and other hazards. As a result, we advocate for stringent enforcement of safety regulations.
The USW’s chemical sector represents more than 20,000 workers across 325 local unions in the United States and Canada, and many of these members work in small units averaging just 60 members.
With only a few large sites, the union focuses on strengthening communication and solidarity through company councils at employers such as BASF, 3M, Evonik, and Solvay. We also work through the DowDuPont North American Labor Council, which includes members from Dow, DuPont and various spinoffs.
The union prioritizes organizing the many non-union workplaces in this industry, expanding our reach and influence whenever possible.
Many chemical sector workers face exposure to toxic chemicals and other hazards. As a result, we advocate for stringent enforcement of safety regulations, a powerful Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB), and policies intended to reduce the risk of exposure, spills or other incidents.
Despite many challenges, USW chemical workers continue to build bargaining power and health and safety protections.
Below are the sector’s major contracts since the last convention.
“the union focuses on strengthening communication and solidarity through company councils at employers such as BASF, 3M, Evonik, and Solvay.”
3M
The USW’s 3M Council meets regularly to discuss bargaining and other issues at the seven USW-represented 3M sites across the United States. In all, the council represents about 1,500 USW members.
After rejecting the company’s first offer, Local 9-675 members in Guin, Ala., ratified a three-year agreement in October 2022 with the biggest wage increases they had ever seen.
The contract, covering about 250 production, warehouse and maintenance workers, also included up to three weeks of paid parental leave, increased shift premiums and provided much-needed updates to scheduling and overtime language.
Local 9-675 members manufacture reflective road signs and pavement marking materials. They also make fillers for paints and coatings, plus reflective products that are used for advertising on vehicles and for improving the visibility of emergency vehicles.
Other 3M units—Local 11-075 in Maplewood and St. Paul, Minn., and Local 2-00666 in Wausau, Wis.—also won wage increases and benefit enhancements in agreements they ratified in 2022.
DowDuPont North American Labor Council
The DowDuPont North American Labor Council covers 2,300 USW members at Dow Inc., Corteva Agriscience, and DuPont spread across 10 U.S. sites.
After a lockout in 2019, more than 200 members of Local 13-1 at Dow-Deer Park, Texas, went into bargaining more determined than ever to win fair treatment.
The workers agreed to early negotiations, only to vote down Dow’s last, best and final offer by a 2-to-1 margin.
They ultimately ratified a contract in December 2022 with annual wage increases, including a 7 percent hike in the first year, along with lump-sum bonuses, more bereavement days, improved seniority language and increased financial incentives for participation on the union’s Emergency Response Team.
Local 90’s 115 members in Knoxville, Tenn., also stood firm while rejecting a total of six last, best and final offers from Dow.
In May 2024, the solidarity paid off. The local ratified a five-year contract that increased vacation time for new hires, established a maintenance apprenticeship program and included yearly wage increases.
Negotiators beat back both the company’s call for a wage freeze and its proposal to impose mandatory call-ins on workers in the mechanical department.
Ingredion
The 250 members of Local 7-507 went into negotiations with Ingredion with one overarching priority—eliminating the tiered wage structure that paid some workers less than others for doing the same jobs.
Ingredion balked, but the workers in Bedford Park, Ill., stood their ground. After three months of talks, they achieved a contract in May 2024 eliminating the discriminatory pay system and leveling the playing field for all.
The contract included lump-sum bonuses and significant wage gains totaling at least 20 percent for all members. The deal also increased vacation time for new hires at the plant, where USW members produce food-grade and pharmaceutical starches.
Local 7-507’s new, four-year contract represented the latest in a string of union-wide victories against tiered wages. Locals across the U.S. have been eradicating these wage structures because they fuel turnover and undermine solidarity.
International Flavors and Fragrances
Members of Local 13028 in Newark, Del., presented an unflinching and united front when International Flavor and Fragrances tried to weaken the union’s security language and ram through other concessions.
The 57 chemical facility workers voted down the company’s first and second contract offers. Local 13028 President Bob Davis called these proposals a slap in the face, and his co-workers wholeheartedly agreed.
The members stayed connected and energized throughout bargaining via hard-hat sticker days and practice picketing.
In the end, the local’s solidarity led to a resounding victory—a three-year contract, ratified in October 2022, with some workers receiving wage increases as high as 16.5 percent. The local also won comprehensive health and safety language that prioritizes communication and workers’ involvement.
Solvay
The USW’s Solvay Council represents approximately 500 members in six U.S. states.
In August 2022, Local 4294-03 members at Solvay Fluorides in Alorton, Ill., built on their previous wins with a three-year contract that included 10 percent wage increases and improvements to shift differentials.
