CEDAR RAPIDS (AP) — An arbitrator says Rockwell Collins violated a union contract when it outsourced its Cedar Rapids custodial work.
Arbitrator Robert Grey on Wednesday upheld a grievance filed by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, ordering the aviation electronics company to make affected employees whole. He gave both sides 60 days to craft a remedy.
At issue was Rockwell’s December 2016 decision to eliminate 62 custodial positions at its Cedar Rapids plant and hire lower-paid contract workers in order to save $2.5 million annually.
About two dozen employees were laid off.
Union lawyer Nate Willems argued the company couldn’t unilaterally eliminate those jobs. He noted the union had previously agreed to concessions on wages and work conditions in exchange for job security.
Grey found that argument persuasive. He says Rockwell had a valid goal of cutting costs but isn’t “free to avoid or unilaterally dismantle its collectively bargained wage obligations.”