While the lockout of union security guards at the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site in Washington state might end this week with imposition of a new agreement by DOE’s Leidos-led landlord contractor, Hanford Guards Union representatives say many labor concerns remain unaddressed.
As of Monday, the contractor had not yet issued a date for union guards to report back to work and the parties were still communicating via Zoom with assistance from a federal mediator, the contractor said.
On Friday Leidos-led Hanford Mission Integration Solutions (HMIS) said Hanford Guards Union Local 21 again voted down, a new contract agreement at the former plutonium production site. In addition, a federal judge refused the union’s request for an emergency order blocking temporary suspension of security clearance for Local 21 members during the lockout.
Hanford’s union guards have been locked out by the company since just before Thanksgiving, and HMIS said it will impose its Dec. 5 final offer and tell the guards by letter when they should report to work. The union local, however, wants to continue contract negotiations, the Tri-City Herald reported Sunday. The union has said HMIS is the only side saying the parties are at an impasse.
A lengthy statement from Local 21 over the weekend said, among other things, the memory of the vaccination mandate during the COVID-19 pandemic still rankles Hanford’s union guards.
“We still seek our medical autonomy language because we cannot be expected to be subjected to any medical requirements outside of those required to become a security police officer,” according to the union statement.
The union “would not be seeking this if HMIS had not forced an unconstitutional vaccine mandate on its employees during COVID.” Many union guards signed onto an unsuccessful legal challenge of the Hanford vaccination mandate that made it to the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. HMIS says many of the non-wage issues pushed by the union are beyond the company’s control.
The union also said prior to expiration of the prior contract on Nov.1, Local 21 went to federal court to overcome HMIS foot-dragging on arbitration issues. The Hanford Guards Union also balks at the level of federal monitoring of their private lives under DOE’s Human Reliability Program.
