Lingle helps bring sides back to table
By Dan Nakaso
Advertiser Staff Writer
Striking concrete workers and representatives of Ameron Hawaii will resume their negotiations today after Gov. Linda Lingle stepped in yesterday for the first time in O'ahu's 26-day-old concrete strike.
Lingle's decision to hold separate meetings with all parties — and today's resumption of talks between striking Teamsters and Ameron Hawaii — represents the first significant step in nearly a week.
The strike involving the Hawaii Teamsters and Allied Workers Local 996 and Hawai'i's two largest concrete companies — Ameron Hawaii and Hawaiian Cement — has crippled O'ahu's construction industry and slowed many businesses that aren't even directly connected to construction.
"I'm glad to see that she's involved," said Ron Taketa, financial secretary and business representative for the Hawaii Carpenters Union, which has seen workers laid off every week since the strike began Feb. 6. "Hopefully this is something that will get talks started again. Anything that helps the parties continue their discussions brings us closer to a settlement."
Contract talks broke off Wednesday between Hawaiian Cement and the Teamsters. Today's talks will be the first between the Teamsters and Ameron Hawaii since Feb. 7.
The strike has stalled at least $341 million worth of construction projects, according to preliminary results of a survey conducted by the Building Industry Association-Hawai'i. The numbers are based on only 25 percent of the 450 companies on O'ahu that have returned responses so far, said Karen Nakamura, the association's CEO.
Nakamura said the companies responding so far have laid off just under 100 construction workers. About 200 union workers are participating in the strike.
Today's negotiations between Ameron and the Teamsters are scheduled for 4 p.m. at the union's Kalihi headquarters.
George West, Ameron's vice president of operations for O'ahu, met with Lingle for an hour yesterday, along with Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona, Lingle Chief of Staff Bob Awana, Lingle spokesman Lenny Klompus and state negotiator Ted Hong — who sat in on the last round of contract talks between the Teamsters and Hawaiian Cement.
Lingle "started by saying that she had just returned from a trip in which she had a couple of interviews regarding the business climate in Hawai'i," West said, "and she was doing her best to combat the reputation we have as an anti-business state."
The governor wanted Ameron officials to be aware of the "long-term effects of our interruptions" on Hawai'i's economy, West said.
Lingle listened intently to Ameron's briefing on the issues and "offered us encouragement," West said.
"She did not offer specific recommendations."
Hong and Awana "offered a couple of good ideas," said West, who declined to be specific.
Mike Coad, Hawaiian Cement's vice president, said his 90-minute meeting with the governor began with Lingle's concern about the effects the strike "was having on the construction industry and the state of Hawai'i.
"We, Hawaiian Cement, stated that we were equally concerned about the impact that this work stoppage was having on our employees, our customers, the construction industry and the general economy."
As in her meeting with Ameron officials, Coad said he and Lingle discussed the details of the issues dividing both sides, which Coad declined to outline.
Teamsters President Mel Kahele said his nearly two-hour meeting with Lingle followed similar lines.
"Mostly she was learning what it's all about," Kahele said. "Her concern was whether both parties want to go back to the table. ... I believe that the governor is really concerned about the impact it's having."
Bruce Coppa, president of Pacific Resource Partnership, an advocacy group for union contractors, said he's glad that Lingle, a Republican, is getting directly involved.
"She's a Republican and they're pretty much aligned with anti-union," Coppa said. "But this governor has always reached out for labor. She comes across as fair in that regard, I must say. ... Hopefully partisan politics doesn't play a part. I think she's looking out for the welfare of this industry and this state."
Marcus Gillespie, the owner and president of Sunrise Construction Inc., which builds house frames for Schuler Homes Hawaii Inc., Stanford Carr Development Corp. and Armstrong Builders Ltd., has laid off 60 of his 160 workers since the strike began.
By next week, Gillespie plans to be down to 70 to 80 employees.
Gillespie called Lingle's meetings yesterday "a step in the right direction."
"Not a whole lot of anything has happened," Gillespie said, "so it brings a level of optimism to it."
Reach Dan Nakaso at dnakaso@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8085.
