AHF Products’ (Mountville, Pa.) Beverly, W.Va., plant employees have voted to strike, according to a report by The Inter-Mountain.
The decision to strike was due to a contract proposal that would put a freeze on pension plans and increase health insurance costs, according to employees featured in the report. The contract proposed by AHF Products would have also increased employee hourly pay by 45 cents and included a one-time bonus of $1,100, the report states.
Ken Hall, president of the Teamsters Local 175 union group representing AHF employees, said they are willing to sit back down with AHF to negotiate. “The ball is in their court at this time,” he told the Inter-Mountain.
AHF Products President and CEO Brian Carson said that the plant remains open for business and is operating as usual to service customers.
“AHF Products has been bargaining in good faith with Teamsters Local 175 to achieve a new contract that is fair to our employees, our customers and the company, and allows us to remain competitive in our very competitive industry,” Carson said in a statement. “We don’t want a strike. A strike is not in the best interest of anyone involved, especially our hardworking employees, their families or the Beverly community. AHF Products remains focused on coming to agreement on a contract that works for our employees, our customers and our company. We are ready to return to the bargaining table as soon as the union is willing to join us to work towards a new agreement without any preconditions.”
A total of 369 AHF employees voted to reject the contract Feb. 23, with 26 voting in favor.
AHF Products held a ribbon-cutting ceremony in December for an expansion of the prefinished hardwood floor manufacturing plant. AHF’s parent company, American Industrial Partners, purchased Armstrong Flooring’s entire wood flooring segment, including the Beverly plant, in 2018.
This article was updated at 1:32 p.m. to include comments from AHF Products.
