Sides harden stances
in concrete strike
Hawaiian Cement and the union for its 67 striking workers broke off negotiations after about seven hours last night, with no new talks scheduled and both sides reporting little progress.
"From my perspective, discussions were not as positive as I had hoped," said Hawaiian Cement Vice President Michael Coad, adding that "there were some new ideas passed across the table and discussed."
Teamsters Local 996 President Mel Kahele said that the union offered to end the strike last night by proposing a one-year extension of the current contract.
"For our committee, (we) made every attempt to try resolve this strike," Kahele said. "The attempts were made to try to please ... the contractors and the customers out there."
No new talks are scheduled, and federal mediator Ken Kawamoto said he did not plan to call any talks this weekend.
Negotiations with Hawaiian Cement began about 2:30 p.m., and union negotiators took their first break nearly four hours later.
Former union leader Tony Rutledge arrived at the Teamsters' headquarters in Kalihi about 7 p.m. to talk to concrete workers about Unity House's benefits for striking employees.
Teamsters attorney Sean Kim said Rutledge was also at the hall for "moral support."
Kahele said that Rutledge has offered to provide the concrete workers with strike benefits.
Meanwhile, 144 Ameron Hawaii concrete workers continue to picket, marking an eighth day on their strike lines this morning.
DEAN SENSUI / DSENSUI@STARBULLETIN.COM
Workers picketed the entrance to the Hawaiian Cement plant in Halawa Valley yesterday. They have been on strike since last Saturday, while workers at Ameron Hawaii have been on their picket line since Feb. 6.
Ameron management announced yesterday that it would lay off about half of the company's 50 nonunion employees until the strike is resolved.
"These are mostly clerical positions and middle management," said George West, Ameron's vice president and chief negotiator. "The reality is that it (the strike) could last beyond 30 days."
West also said that those who were laid off would return with the company's concrete workers. Ameron operates three sites on Oahu and will continue with a "core" staff until concrete orders can be filled, he said.
Ameron and Hawaiian Cement rank as the state's largest concrete providers. Officials with the island's four nonunion concrete companies have said they are struggling to meet demand from customers left without concrete because of the strikes.
No new contract talks are planned between the union, which represents all of the striking workers, and Ameron. The two sides broke off talks Feb. 6.
"We remain wanting to get dialogue going," West said, adding that Kawamoto has not contacted either party to set up negotiations.
Before yesterday's talks with the union, Coad said he was optimistic about the pace of the talks. Yesterday was the second consecutive day of talks between the two sides.
"Every day that you go back is the day that we could settle," Coad said.
Both companies have said they will not bring in replacement workers during the strikes, regardless of how long they last.
Coad also said yesterday that he had no plans to lay off any nonunion employees.
The strikes are slowing the state's multibillion-dollar construction industry, already halting a number of commercial and residential construction projects islandwide.
A number of contractors and home builders have said they will start massive layoffs late next week.
