Barge operators give union new offer
Advertiser Staff and News services
Hawai'i's interisland barge operators presented a new contract proposal to union employees yesterday in hopes of averting a strike threatened to begin Sunday.
Young Brothers Ltd. and Hawaiian Tug & Barge said it made a proposal yesterday afternoon to the Inland Boatmen's Union of the Pacific, which represents 59 cooks, seamen, deckhands, first and second mates, engineers, dispatchers and operators at both companies.
"We feel we offered a fair proposal given the business climate, and we remain optimistic and confident that we will arrive at a mutually agreeable settlement," Mark Cohen, vice president of Hawaiian Tug & Barge, said in a statement.
The workers' contract with Hawaiian Tug & Barge and Young Brothers Ltd. expires at midnight tomorrow. Workers authorized the strike in a vote Wednesday.
No details were released about possible sticking points in the new contract, or how close the sides may be to an agreement.
Union representatives discussed the proposal with members in the evening, but continued to remain silent about details of the offer.
"The union has no comment," said Jonathan Lono Kane, regional director for Inland Boatmen's Union of the Pacific. "We are in negotiations with the company, and we said we would not speak to the media. The union and the company are attempting to come to an agreement before the termination of the contract."
Meanwhile, businesses began considering the possibility of a strike.
Young Brothers is the only company licensed by the Public Utilities Commission to ship cargo from one island to another.
O'ahu, Maui, Kaua'i and the Big Island would still be able to receive goods from the Mainland via Matson Navigation Co. containers, but Lana'i and Moloka'i do not have that service.
Laurence Vogel, president and CEO of food wholesaler Y. Hata & Co., said businesses on Maui and the Big Island depend on regular shipments.
Vogel has no backup plan, although he said his warehouse in Hilo is well-stocked.
"There really is no contingency other than air shipment, and air becomes an extraordinarily costly thing," Vogel said.
