USW Local 309 Membership Update 10/2/2025

Brothers and Sisters,

We’ve got the results back in from the contract survey and the results are as follows:

1. Wages
2. Health Care
3. Retirement
4. Vacation
5. Forced OT
6. Increase 401K match
7. Workplace Safety
8. Facility Improvements
9. Eliminate 2 Tier
10. Apprenticeship/CDP

We will be reporting these results next week to the other 3 locals and USW leadership in Lafayette. This will aid us in developing our bargaining strategy for next year’s negotiations. During this time, we will also be meeting with the company leadership from all four locations. I will report on this ASAP when I get back the following week.

Jennifer and Ronnie were at the bi-annual benefits meeting this week. I will add the contents of those meetings in with my report from the Top Table meetings, as well.

We’re still having an elevated amount of incidents in the plants. We must continue to prioritize Safety and Quality every single day. If something is broken — STOP. If the product doesn’t meet the quality standard you were trained on — STOP. If it doesn’t feel right or seems unsafe — STOP. Taking the time to ensure things are done correctly is far better than risking injury, equipment damage, or producing bad product. If you stop a job, please document everything: who was involved, the reason for stopping, and the outcome. Share this information with your Department Chair so it can be escalated to the Bargaining Committee.

If you are working and need to perform an LTV (Lock, Tag, Verify), please follow the full procedure. Ensure all paperwork is completed and verify that the Lock Out was done correctly. Taking 5–10 minutes to double-check could save your life. We’ve had several recent incidents where Lock Outs were done incorrectly, and the workers performing the tasks didn’t catch the errors. Fortunately, no one was injured — but we can’t count on luck. If you notice a problem during Lock Out verification or while performing the job, report it immediately. Reporting helps us correct issues and protect others. Not reporting is equivalent to failing to report a mobile equipment incident and may result in disciplinary action.

On September 22 the Union held our first expedited arbitration in many years. We got the answer back on the 24^th and we were successful. The employee will be made completely whole.

There are currently transfer postings up for the following departments, Machine Shop and Truck Shop. These will close on October 9 at 9 a.m. If you want to transfer and have passed all required testing for either of these departments, please have your preferences up to date in the transfer system.

NextGen and Women of Steel will be participating in the City of Maryville’s Trunk-or-Treat event on October 24, 2025. If you’d like to get involved, please contact:

• Devin Pratt: (865) 459-9126
• Kevin Kittrell: (865) 765-2256

Upcoming Events:

•                Union Meeting: October 9, at 12 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.

•                City of Maryville Trunk-or-Treat: October 24, 2025

•                NextGen Meeting: November 5, 2025, at 12:30 p.m

Here is a link for an updated seniority list and if you click on the USW logo in the upper left corner it will bring up a pie chart of the seniority breakdown of the facility. https://uswlocal309.net/Seniority/seniority_list.php

In Solidarity,

Nick McCarter, President, USW Local 309