SMART Local 441 members at Ingalls Shipbuilding — a shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi, currently building ships for the United States Navy — recently ratified a five-year agreement that will provide an 18% pay increase right away, 32% increases in the first four years and a variety of other benefits. The new contract demonstrates the importance of organizing rigorously in so-called “right-to-work” states — and the power of a union contract.
Ingalls Shipbuilding, founded in 1938, is one of the largest private employers in Mississippi. The workers there have been performing work for the U.S. Navy for generations, playing a critical role in maintaining our country’s fleet. Despite that fact, there had not been a fully negotiated collective bargaining agreement at the shipyard in over 20 years; past agreements were extensions that only improved wages and health insurance or barely kept up with the cost of living.
For that reason, Local 441’s leadership, headed by Business Manager Thomas Fisher II and Organizers Richard Jennings and John Lake, used the contract campaign to mobilize members, with shop stewards rallying members and encouraging workers that were previously not paying dues to join our union. Working together, the Local 441 team was able to sign 43 new members, 23 of which were signed on the day of the contract vote. These new members push Local 441’s totals in the bargaining unit to over 80% union.
Along with the stellar pay, the contract contains shift premiums of 10%, and specialty and combination workers will receive an additional 5% as well. Perhaps most importantly, SMART members at Ingalls are now in a better position for future rounds of bargaining, with new members helping grow the local’s strength at the shipyard.
This is why we organize!