Community members rally with striking American Axle workers

by Samuel King (king@wsbt.com)

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Striking American Axle workers in Three Rivers were joined by more than 300 other workers and community members in a rally

Striking American Axle workers in Three Rivers were joined by more than 300 other workers and community members in a rally on Thursday, April 17, 2008. (WSBT photo)

By Beth Boehne

Story Created: Apr 17, 2008 at 3:45 PM EST

Story Updated: Apr 21, 2008 at 5:01 PM EST

THREE RIVERS — There are signs of progress, but still no agreement between the United Auto Workers and American Axle.

Workers have been on strike at all five of its plants, including the one in Three Rivers, for 52 days. The strike shut down production at the H2 plant in Mishawaka because of a parts shortage.

Workers in Three Rivers were joined by more than 300 other workers and community members in a rally Thursday.

They drove or marched down from the UAW hall to the American Axle plant.

“We're just trying to show we're still strong," said striking worker Mary Vargo. "We’ve got a lot of community support. These aren't all members of the local here; these are also members of the community.

For Lacheryl Shelton, the fight is a family affair. Her sister works at the plant, and her aunt is retired.

“They're trying to take things away from us, our benefits,” Shelton said. “We're hard workers, and we're here to support — we're family.

Conn-Selmer workers from Elkhart — on strike for two years now — came out to support the workers in Three Rivers.

“The difference between us and them is we didn't have much of the city behind us," said Conn-Selmer worker Stacy Curtis. "This is wonderful that they've got a lot of backing here.”

“It's about the whole community supporting these people," said Conn-Selmer worker Carl O'Haver. "Even the non-union people who work at the banks, the small businesses, all these people do business with them.”

American Axle says it needs to cut costs to stay competitive with other UAW-represented parts suppliers.

"Negotiations are ongoing," said Renee Rogers, American Axle spokesperson, in a statement. "We're making progress. We're hopeful we can reach an agreement, but any discussions of a tentative agreement are premature."

Local union leaders say all they can do is wait and hold on.

“I know our people are putting forth a great effort up there," said UAW Local Vice President Bill Yountz. "But management has to understand that we have to come to an agreement that's practical.”

The UAW canceled a rally in Detroit because of progress in the negotiations. But the workers in Three Rivers say they will be out on the picket line until they're told it's time to go back to work.

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