Last Friday the College and UAW workers ratified a new contract after weeks of negotiations. The new contract will last for three years. “I think both the management and unions can say we have a good contract,” Director of Human Resources Ruth Spencer said.

Workers Look Forward to Fair Play: After weeks of negotiation, the contract between the College and UAW workers has been signed. (photo by Hans Peterson)

OCOPE and the United Auto Workers are the two unions with Oberlin College employees. Spencer estimates that about 400 College employees belong to a union. Both of these bargaining units were negotiating new salaries over the past summer. Healthcare may have been the most significant change in the new UAW contract. The last contract had a plan that did not require premiums or co-payments. “All other employees, except bargaining unit employees, were already paying a premium and co-pays,” Spencer said.
UAW also proposed a new scheduling procedure, which was implemented. “We went with their recommendation. It’s just a different way of doing scheduling, it didn’t affect anyone’s seniority. And we are in concert with the union in how the schedule is to be implemented,” Spencer said.

Allison Trimble, a UAW member and DeCafé employee, did not mind the new health care plan. “It doesn’t really bother me, you get a better selection of doctors,” she said.
Both unions saw improvements in their contracts. “There were salary increases to 4 percent for both unions. There were increases in retirement for both unions. There was [an] increase in holiday for both unions,” Spencer said.
Trimble was appreciative of a revised maternity leave plan. “You get two months of leave instead of one,” she said. One UAW employee in food service was satisfied with the plan, and glad the negotiation process was over. Since the contract was ratified, nine vacant spots in food service have been announced, which will help ease an employee shortage problem.
Spencer, who has worked all summer on the contracts, was also relieved to have the time-consuming process complete. “It always takes longer than I’d like, but if you want a good contract you have to go through this process,” she said.