Thirty-one union workers at the Case IH distribution warehouse here are among 650 United Auto Workers locked out in a contract showdown in four states.

The workers have been locked out since Nov. 23, the day after CNH America declared an impasse in negotiations and implemented its final contract offer.

That proposal demands 49 concessions in benefits, pay and working conditions, according to workers walking a picket line outside the Eustis Ave. warehouse. Those concessions would cost an average worker $6,000 a year, said Mike McLaughlin, a 31-year employee.

Among the concessions being sought, according to McLaughlin and other workers:

? Higher out-of-pocket health insurance costs.
? A second-tier wage scale for new hires.
? A wage freeze for all workers hired since 1998.
? Eliminating job security language.
? Eliminating contractually guaranteed bonuses.
? Eliminating the primary early retirement option.
? Reduced benefits for retirees.

Under those conditions, ?we?ll absolutely be making less money per year,? said Al Hannah, a 32-year employee.

?They have not bargained in good faith whatsoever,? Hannah said. ?There?s no talk. They sit down, they hand our representatives a proposal and walk away. This is what you get. If you don?t like it, tough. You take it or leave it.?

?We gave them what we thought was fair and equitable proposal on health care, and they didn?t even want to look at it,? McLaughlin said.

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Al Hannah: "We?ll absolutely be making less money per year."	?	Mike McLaughlin: "We gave them what we thought was fair and equitable proposal on health care, and they didn?t even want to look at it."

Union Advocate photos

Lockout follows strike
The lockout occurred after the UAW ended a three-week strike that began Nov. 3. Members attempted to return to work under terms of the existing contract, as they had done for six months since that contract expired May 2.

?We?re willing to go to work, but they won?t let us go back in,? Hannah said. The St. Paul workers, who belong to UAW Local 763, found an unsigned note on a locked door. ?The company is not in a position to accept the offer to return to work,? the note said, in part. ?Therefore, please do not report for work. You will not be allowed to work.?

The lockout also affects workers in Racine, Wis;, Burlington, Iowa; and Burr Ridge, Ill. About 250 replacement workers have been hired in Racine and Burlington, which are manufacturing facilities, McLaughlin said, but no replacements have shown up in St. Paul.

?We?re willing to go back to work and keep talking,? said Gary Barnett, a 31-year employee. ?We don?t think we?re at impasse.? But the company ?looks like they want to break the local,? he said.

CNH America, part of a multi-national conglomerate that purchased Case IH five years, sells construction equipment under those names and other brands such as New Holland and Fiat-Allis.

Representatives of UAW?s Region 4 in Des Plaines, Ill., could not be reached for further details on the stalemate.