‘They laughed in our face’: Latest talks in Seattle-area concrete worker strike fall flat

It was a frustrating day at the bargaining table for Seattle-area concrete delivery drivers on Thursday, after representatives for the union and employers failed to come to an agreement in discussions led by a federal mediator.

What’s next for West Seattle Bridge as concrete strike continues?

This marked the first formal meeting between the parties in a month, in the wake of an ongoing strike involving concrete delivery drivers spanning six companies, dating back nearly 100 days. After Thursday’s discussion, a spokesperson for Teamsters Local 174 expressed how the union’s side was stunned when employers wouldn’t consider their offer to return to work immediately with a one-year extension of their previous contract.

“We made a huge move and they laughed in our face,” Jamie Fleming told KIRO Newsradio. “We were hopeful that would at least garner some action, some real negotiation, and unfortunately we’re no better off than we were before.”

The union says it floated a second proposal to “sign a three-year agreement with an economic opener after the first year.”

“That was rejected as well,” Fleming said.

Companies instead reportedly offered “the same proposal they had before, which had already been rejected,” with the addition of 15 cents in hourly wages.

Sound Transit anxiously waiting for strike to end

After more than three months on the picket lines, Fleming says workers are anxious to return to the job sites.

“Our people want to go back to work,” she said. “We are so sick of standing out in the cold, waving signs around.”

KIRO Newsradio has reached out to a representative for the companies and is waiting for a response.

In the meantime, dozens of construction projects — including repairs on the West Seattle Bridge — are stalled as they await much-needed concrete deliveries.