Union workers on strike at Brentwood Originals


March 7, 2008 at 10:18a.m.

Union workers on strike at Brentwood Originals

YOUNGSTOWN —About 180 workers at Brentwood Originals walked off the job this morning in a dispute over pay and medical benefits.

United Steelworkers of America Local 1-598 called the strike at the North Meridian Road plant after granting a one-month extension to their last contract, which expired Feb. 6. Brentwood Originals, which is based in California, makes decorative pillows.

The company offered raises of 95 cents an hour over four years and unspecified improvements to health care, said Hattie Wilkins, local president. Workers want larger raises and a lower deductible for health insurance, she said. Workers earn between $9.15 and $10.57 an hour. The company pays all of their insurance premiums, but there is no family coverage.

For more on this story, see Saturday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com.