The Department of Energy’s landlord contractor at the Hanford Site in Washington state, said late Friday it plans to implement its Dec. 5 “best and final offer” after the Hanford Guards Union Local 21 voted down a contract proposal hours earlier.
Also Friday, U.S. District Judge Stanley Bastian in Eastern Washington refused the union’s request for an emergency temporary restraining order against DOE and Leidos-led Hanford Mission Integration Solutions (HMIS). The judge, in a three-page decision, refused an emergency order that would block suspension of DOE’s Human Reliability Program certifications for union guards during the ongoing “employer lockout.”
Such a restraining order is an “extraordinary remedy” and should only be issued when a plaintiff has high likelihood of success in proving the underlying issue and would suffer “irreparable harm” if such an emergency order is not issued, Bastian said. The company has said temporary suspension of site security clearance is not unusual during labor disputes and can easily be reversed once an agreement is reached.
As for the vote, HMIS “has been informed that the latest HGU [Hanford Guards Union] vote failed to pass,” the contractor in charge of roads, grounds and other site services including security said Friday Jan. 2. In its Friday statement to Exchange Monitor and other news outlets, HMIS reiterated its position talks have reached impasse and it will impose its final offer.
“We believe that our collective bargaining negotiations have reached an impasse, and we will implement the best and final offer we presented to the union on Dec. 5, 2024,” HMIS said. “We will notify employees by mail of the date and time they are expected to return to work under the terms of this best and final offer.”
The Hanford Guards Union did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment, although Local 21 President Chris Hall has said over the holidays that HMIS has deliberately tried to reach an impasse. The union has said it also filed unfair labor practice charges against HMIS with the National Labor Relations Board.
The current contract ended Nov. 1 and after some short-term extension, HMIS locked out the unionized guards Nov. 27.
