Today was the start of the bridge agreement negotiations for IAM members of IAM&AW Local Lodge 2003 and M1 Support Services. Some members have asked what a bridge agreement is and what does it mean for us? A bridge agreement is an agreement between two parties extending an existing contract to avoid a gap in service, and what it means for us is that currently the IAM has a contract with AFS/L-3 to perform the work on the maintenance contract a Fort Rucker Alabama, and with the bridge agreement in place, it will protect our current language in the collective bargaining unit which covers our wages, insurance, and benefits.
A lot of members have asked “Why enter into negotiations with a bridge agreement?” The answer to that question is simply due to the fact of the changes brought forth with the new Statement of Work between the Army and M1 Support Services. When there is changes to the Statement of Work, the Union and the Contractor has to set and negotiate on how those changes are to affect the membership.
The IAM negotiating team for these bridge agreement negotiations includes the current Grievance/Negotiating Committee (GNC) of the maintenance contract, chaired by GNC Terry Rasmussen, who are all being led by Business Rep Randy Garrett, along with the aide of Grand Lodge Rep Tony Wirth and District 75 Directing Business Rep Tony Bishop and District 75 Business Reps Brad Smith and Matt Griggs. The negotiations team met with M1 for the first time today, March 5, 2018, for the first time since their initial meeting in January. The major topics talked about today were:
- Vacation and Personal Leave- there is nothing final on this yet but the team is diligently working with M1 representatives on the issue
- Uniforms
- Insurances
- Work Rules
The negotiating team stated that there was progress made toward the end goal of a bridge agreement. The team and M1 both have research items to work on and will meet again tomorrow. The team which includes all GNCs, Business Reps, Directing Business Rep, and Grand Lodge Rep appreciates all the support from all the Brothers and Sisters of Local Lodge 2003.