USW locals ratify Titan contract

QUINCY, Ill. — Unionized employees at Titan International Inc. facilities in Iowa, Illinois and Ohio have new contracts, according to the tire maker.

Members of the United Steelworkers union ratified a five-year labor agreement May 17, Titan said in a news release. The new deal covers employees at three facilities: Des Moines, Iowa (USW Local 164); Freeport, Ill. (USW Local 745); and Bryan, Ohio (USW Local 890).

USW representatives previously said the contract included wage increases of 1.5 percent in the final three years of the deal and kept the health care cost split at 80-20.

In a statement issued May 19, Paul Reitz, Titan president and CEO, said the contracts also include an incentive profit-sharing plan that rewards USW members based on their plant's profitability. That incentive takes effect in the second year of the contract.

"A separate wage scale was also introduced for bargaining unit employees who are hired after the ratification date," Mr. Reitz said. "In addition to the salary and benefit provisions, the new agreements provide additional management rights and economic flexibility that the prior agreement did not allow."

Titan employees at the Iowa, Illinois and Ohio facilities have been working without a contract since Jan. 13, when the previous agreement expired.

"We are thankful to the USW and our employees for their commitment to continue to work and build quality products as both parties worked through the bargaining process." Mr. Reitz said. "With these new five-year contracts we are excited to be able to continue to work together with the all of our employees as we maintain our position as a global leader in the markets we serve for many years to come."