For weeks retirees from FreightCar America told WTAJ their voices were not being heard. They said the health care plan being offered is to expensive, so Thursday, dozens boarded a bus to confront union leaders in Pittsburgh.
“This is not good for anyone,” said retired worker Robert Ambrovick. “There’s going to be probably, 95 percent of the people that are going to opt out of this coverage.”
The trip was not scheduled, but union leaders did agreed to hear the concerns. The USW reached a $31 million settlement with FreightCar America to cover health care costs. The union put together a health package, but the workers don’t understand why that money can’t be used to reimburse the health care plan they currently have.
Some workers left the meeting frustrated, but others felt there was progress made.
“What we did come away with is the possibility of the VEEBA committee being a little more responsive to the changes that we would like to see,” retired worker Tom Piljay told us.
“I’m just totally disgusted with it and fed up,” said Ambrovick.
Union president Leo Gerard said the real enemy is not the USW, it’s FreightCar America, which pulled out of Johnstown and shut off health care coverage it had promised, “Johnstown America really shafted them and we had to use the status we had in the courts to fight for them and get a lump of money that was about $30 million. Our objective is to then get a health care plan that can provide health care for as many people for as long as possible.”
There were mixed emotions as the retired workers headed home after their meeting with union leaders, but one thing they said is that their fight is not over.
“It’s long from being over,” said the spokesperson for the workers Thomas Brawley. “We have another year before they’ll change anything. We’re hoping to change a lot of things, which we made a little bit of progress on today.”
Brawley encourages the workers to not sign up for these benefits if they are not appropriate for them. He said they will continue negotiations with the union.