LONGVIEW, Wash. (AP) — Hundreds of union workers managed to block a mile-long train from delivering grain to the new EGT terminal at the Port of Longview, Wash. The terminal wants to use non-union labor.
The train was rerouted to Vancouver after the Thursday morning standoff. Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad spokesman Gus Melonas says the blockade has prompted BNSF to indefinitely suspend train traffic to the grain terminal.
It’s the third major protest this week in an increasingly volatile dispute between EGT and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 21. The Daily News says EGT executives say they can save $1 million by employing non-union labor and insist they have the right to do so when they open the new terminal later this summer. The union says it has a contract for all longshore work on Port of Longview property.
At stake are about 50 union jobs.
On Monday, about 100 union members were arrested after pulling down a fence.
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Information from: The Daily News, http://www.tdn.com
