LEXINGTON SEALS Union OKs 4-year pact

Members voted to keep jobs in the Mahoning Valley, the union president said.
VIENNA -- The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers solidly approved a new four-year contract Sunday with Lexington Connector Seals, 1510 Ridge Road, which makes connector seals for the automotive industry.
A letter the company had sent the union and its members warning that the plant could be closed was "the main drive for passing it the way it did," said Nathan Offerdahl, president of Local 84727.
The local represents about 260 workers whose old contract expires Dec. 10. A tentative agreement had been put in place earlier.
Voting margin
Offerdahl said about 70 percent of the membership voted on the new four-year pact, approving it by a 3-to-1 margin.
"The margin it was passed by was a reflection of the guarantee of their job status," he said, explaining that 120 workers in Georgia will lose their jobs when Lexington Connector Seals consolidates the work here.
The company's letter had reported that Lexington Connector Seals wanted to consolidate work into either the local plant or its facility in Georgia.
Offerdahl declined to offer specific details but did say the membership will take a wage freeze in the first year, receive "minimal raises" thereafter and pay more toward health care.
"In some respects it was concessionary," he said of the new pact. "It's no different than anywhere else."
Delphi Corp. was the plant's largest customer. Net sales to Delphi of connector seals for automotive wire harnesses totaled $20,227,000, $21,147,000 and $22,295,000 during 2003, 2002 and 2001, respectively, according to the company. Substantially all of the connector seals were sold to Delphi under an agreement that expires Dec. 31.
Delphi has indicated that it plans to in-source, during 2005, about 30 connector seals currently manufactured by Lexington under the long-term agreement.
"We are developing plans to restructure the operations of our connector seals division to reduce expenses and mitigate the impact of any lost business," the company said. "Any such restructuring of our connector seals business could include, among other things, the closing of one of our existing manufacturing facilities."