Teamsters Strike Tool Maker Over Health Care

By Kevin Robinson in News on Aug 26, 2009 4:20PM

Workers at SK Hand Tools, which has a plant on Chicago's West side and another in suburban McCook, walked out Tuesday morning on a one day unfair labor practices strike. SK Tools withdrew coverage last May without notice, leaving employees there, who are members of Teamsters Local 743 to pay for health care out of pocket. "This has been devastating," Local President Richard Berg said. "It's like anybody else in society. If you don't need health insurance, you're fine, but when you need it, you really need it." Noting that one worker has been hit with $20,000 in medical expenses, he added, "People are threatened with losing their homes, with financial ruin." Like many U.S. manufacturers, SK Tools has been hit in the economic crisis and union officials acknowledge that the company has has been having some financial difficulties. They say that a concession proposal was put forth that would have cut wages by 20 percent, and reduced pay by $4 an hour for the first six months of the new contract.

The union says that the wage cut coupled with the loss of health coverage means that workers will be earning less than minimum wage. "We are willing to make concessions to save the company," said Teamsters Steward David Biedrzycki. "We can't lose out health insurance. They expect us to pay for our health coverage out of pocket when they're also asking for a 20% pay cut." The union's website says that the CEO of SK Tools makes over $200,000 annually.

The company contends that a third party eliminated the coverage. "The elimination of the coverage was not our choice; rather it was due to a third party's decision to remove coverage which was beyond our control. We intend on continuing negotiations with our union," SK Tools said in an e-mailed statement. The company and the union have been negotiating for months; the previous contract expired in February. SK Tools, which is owned by Stanley Tools, also makes hand tools for Sears under the Craftsman brand.