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Master Agreement Negotiations Determine Our Pay & Benefits
Our 2019 Master Agreement with WestRock expires December 31, 2023. Although you are protected by the terms of the 2019 Master until your current Local Contract expiration, the 2023 negotiations will determine your wages and benefits in the years that follow your next Local contract.
The Master process unites all USW locals at WestRock mills and converters under a single Master Agreement. That agreement includes our wages, benefits, safety and other protections.
By bargaining the Master Agreement together, we have more power to fight for what we deserve!
How do Master Agreement negotiations work?
Delegates from each local union, led by USW International Vice President Luis Mendoza, District 9 Director Daniel Flippo and Paper Bargaining Chair Breahn Quigley Knackert, serve as the WestRock Master Bargaining Committee. The Bargaining Committee develops our agenda based on feedback from members and represents the voice of the membership in negotiations.
Our Bargaining Committee will draft and discuss proposals, make counter-proposals and fight for an agreement that’s beneficial to our membership and acceptable to the company.
How is the Master Agreement ratified?
Once a Tentative Agreement (TA) is reached, the Bargaining Committee will bring it to the membership. Union members in good standing may vote to accept or reject the TA.
When do we see the benefits of the Master Agreement?
The provisions of the new Master Agreement will take effect for your location upon ratification of your next local contract (see dates in the following table for when your local contract will expire).
Your local contract may not expire this year, but everything we negotiate in the 2023 Master Agreement will impact you when it does. In the meantime, your annual wage increases and benefits from the 2019 Master are guaranteed to you in your current local contract.
We all benefit from successful Master negotiations, so we must stand together as one to secure fair wages and benefits for ourselves and our families in the years to come.
GET MOBILE ALERTS ABOUT CONTRACT NEGOTIATIONS
Text WRK to the phone number 47486.
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