Go back to work. it is not fair that i HAVE TO PAY FOR YOU PEOPLE who dont want to work. My taxes are going to go up b/c of you greedy people

Get back to work you lazy people. Work like the rest of us. Support yourself, why should we.

Get up and stand up guys! Let's go out there and conquer and win this battle! Today will be remembered, certainly, and will go down in history!

THE UNION AT AVCO THOUGHT THEY HAD THE POWER TO KEEP DEMANDING FROM THE COMPANY TOO. GO BACK IN BEFORE YOU CANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's obvious that sikorsky is Not going to go to the table. The deal they offered is better than no deal at all. Think of all the working class, that does not have the health care package being offered. This strike is affecting millons of people. Think of all the contractors trying to make a living, and having to pay for health care out of their own pocket. Soon they might not have a job to go to, No union check, No assistance from fellow union workers, Nothing. Just an unemployment check, which does't amount to nothing. Look at the big picture..... Who are you really hurting????

WHY? YOU WILL BE ON YOUR KNEES ASKING WHY THE PLANT MOVED OUT AND YOU HAVE NO JOB!! GO BACK TO WORK WHILE YOU STILL CAN!!

It's clear to see that Sikorsky Aircraft management has a plan. The longer you stay out, the more work will be outsourced to other lower-cost companies. Ask the Teamsters what will happen if 25% of your jobs are gone when the strike ends in another month or so. Will they have a job for you, will they still claim victory.

Who are you calling Working Class? These are UNION men and women.

Union's have a time and place, 2006 and now is not that time or place. Like a said Working Class. The "UNION" is pathetic. If you are so much of a "UNION", why are people going back to work? Call them rats, scabs or whatever. Obviously, they realized life isn't so bad, with the offer. How many people are protesting and haven't gone to the doctor in month's or years. Quit complaining, think of the others affected by this.........
Sikorsky's offer is nice,
Wish I had that opportunity............

Sikorsky striker Andrew Burke, a 22-year employee from Stratford, falls to his knees in frustration as the attendance at today's rally is announced (1549 was the lucky number -- what a crowd!!)

wow, so today will be remembered and go down in history??? Yes, SIK has a new president. did anything else happen today? a couple of people clogged up main st. oh, and 200 more jobs went SOUTH!!!!

you mean this ISN'T the "don't ask - don't tell parade?

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters….Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation

I know that Sikorsky is a business and they produce revenue by selling helicopters, spare parts and other related products and services.

I know the IBT is a labor union. What exactly is a labor union? I think it is a business. I think it is a service business that produces revenue by charging members for the services it provides, and it earns revenue by investing cash that is excess to its operating needs.

Which business is bigger? I don’t know. But, make no mistake about it; they are both big businesses that share a common goal of trying everyday to increase their revenue stream.

Salaried workers work for one company: Sikorsky. Those of you who are members of the IBT - you work for two companies; Sikorsky and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. The major difference is that when you are under contract only Sikorsky pays you. You are also under contract with the IBT for their services. And, as you have discovered, you pay for their services whether you are working or not, and whether you want the services they are providing you or not. You may think that they work for you, not vice versa, but if they have the power to tell you what to do, you work for them. I will come back to this point later.

The IBT is a large and politically powerful lobbying group. Unfortunately, however, not anywhere near as powerful as the lobbyists for the healthcare and pharmaceutical industries.

I know that Sikorsky represents only 5% of UTC’s revenue stream and even less of its earnings stream. UTC is prepared to see this strike go on forever rather than change its stance on the healthcare issue.

How important are you to the IBT? 3600 people paying roughly $60.00 per month is an annual revenue stream of about $2.5M. What percentage of the IBT revenue stream do you represent?
Apparently enough to get Jimmy Hoffa to show up for a day, but there is little doubt that you represent far, far less than 5% of the IBT revenue stream.

What does a strike do for the IBT? It costs them some money for sure for strike wages and those strike wages are about 16 times more than the union dues they are collecting on a monthly basis. But then again, every member has to pay those dues, but only those members walking the picket line get the strike pay. If only one sixteenth of the members (in this case about 576 members) earn strike pay they break even. How many members are earning strike pay?

Be that as it may, is this strike important to the IBT? You betcha, and it can only get more important everyday. Why? Because every time the IBT loses one of these battles with Corporate America, their power and influence in Washington gets diluted. And if they really lose, that is, have their members choose management representation over IBT representation in their place of employment, they lose revenue…permanently. But, don’t despair for the IBT. They can afford it.

So we now come back to that issue of working for two companies. That of course only occurs when you are under contract at your place of employment. Now, you are in the same boat with the salaried workers, working for only one company. And that company, which is now paying some of you $250 a week to work for them, is the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. You currently have no other employer.

I only know the little I have read, and know virtually nothing first hand about the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, so I will not offer any opinions. I will ask, though, how do they differ as an employer from UTC? How is the pay? How are the healthcare, education and other benefits? If UTC is a greedy company, how does the IBT compare?

There are those that would say I am showing my ignorance by describing the International Brotherhood of Teamsters as an employer. That it is far more than that. That it is in fact a “brotherhood” and membership in that brotherhood is one of the most honorable aspects of their lives. I have no issue with that. I truly understand what it means to be a member of something I consider to be very special, of which I am both honored and proud to be able to be included as a member of the “family.” So it really just becomes a matter of priorities. Where does your membership in the IBT fit on your list of priorities?

I would venture to say that for some of you it is first on that list. It provides you with status, power, prestige and camaraderie. You are a brother in the IBT and everything else follows. Let’s hope that that describes, at a minimum, your leadership, and probably describes many others. Does it describe you? Is your membership now providing you with status, power, prestige and camaraderie? If it is not, then it is only fair to ask, why are you on strike?

Healthcare costs; that’s why you are on strike.

George David, the Chairman of UTC, is one of the most well respected CEO’s in America. What is his stand on this? He announced to you, to Pratt & Whitney Union Workers (who will be next up at the bargaining table), to Wall Street and to the world that UTC will not bend on healthcare. The offer on the table is as good as it will ever get. He just promoted the guy who was running Sikorsky when last you were employed by that company to become the President of Pratt & Whitney. Sikorsky, in terms of size and corporate importance is dwarfed by P&W. To underscore that, the gentleman who was running P&W until yesterday is now the heir apparent to George David. Running P&W is as big a stepping-stone as there is in this corporation. So, in addition to drawing the line in concrete on healthcare, George obviously thinks very highly of the CEO of your former employer despite the strike.

Sikorsky today in the Connecticut Post has publicly placed the original offer, $2,000.00 ratification bonus and all, back on the table. How did Mr. Hoffa and your Local 1150 publicly respond to that offer today at the rally? How long do you think the company has to keep that offer on the table? That was a well orchestrated offer, especially the inclusion of the ratification bonus three weeks into the strike. Sikorsky comes off to the public as taking the high road, and caring enough about its workers to still pay them the bonus three weeks into the strike. Don’t assume, if the Local rejects it yet again, that an offer that good will ever come from Sikorsky again. Sikorsky played its hand on the day the national union played its hand. The national union has gone away, and don’t be surprised if the offer goes away with them.

The IBT is charging that UTC is engaging in unfair labor practices, an argument, quite frankly, with a foundation set on quick sand. There is no chance, that is ZERO chance, that the IBT’s 3600 members will win that argument over United Technologies Corporation’s 200,000 members. Once the decision comes down that this strike is over economic issues and not unfair labor practices, Sikorsky is free to replace all strikers with replacement workers. However long that takes for that decision to be made, Sikorsky has the ability to wait it out. Do you?

Your fate and financial well being, both short and perhaps long term, is in your hands. I think a reasonable unbiased view of the current situation is that your union has you out of work to fight a fight that will not be won. Those who put union before all else will fight the good fight. They are men and women of principle, or perhaps they are men and women who are not enduring great hardship as a result of this strike. As the union moves further down your list of priorities, this ceases to be an emotional issue, and you have to weigh the economic impact of the strike on you and whoever or whatever is higher on your priority list.

Taking what may appear as a rather cynical view, what has the strike done for your former employer:

All contracts have clauses that give Sikorsky total forgiveness for non-delivery due to a strike, so no penalties will be incurred and delays are now justified.

If you believe the stories that parts have been a problem, this strike is allowing all of Sikorsky’s outside vendors to catch up, although made parts would still be a problem.

Ask yourself why Sikorsky would want the real hardcore “Teamsters first” type employees back at work? This is a strike on economic issues; make no mistake about that. With that understanding comes the reality of Sikorsky’s hands being untied and being allowed to hire replacement workers, and shutting out the militant striking Teamsters. Sikorsky has the resources and the incentive to let this play itself out. The viability of the union as a representative of its members will erode as this strike wears on, and there is a much greater risk of loss than potential for gain or even recovery by staying on strike.

Where does your loyalty to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters reside on your list of priorities? Are they your choice as an employer? Which “greedy business” would you rather work for? What are you going to gain by staying out on strike?

I submitted this posting because I honestly believe that this may be a win-lose proposition for the IBT and Sikorsky, but it is a lose-lose for the strikers. The fight against assuming an increased financial burden with respect to healthcare costs is futile. UTC knows the stakes will be much, much higher in the near future when Pratt shows up at the bargaining table. They cannot and will not cave on this issue. Picture this six months from now, and just go ahead and pick a winner, Sikorsky or the IBT…who cares. Regardless the membership who remained out on strike will be the losers. They will be the ones who have suffered; they will have made the sacrifices; they will be the ones who will never recover. That is a fact; a very unemotional fact.

How much is pride and principle worth to you? It gets costlier every day.

I offer this as nothing more than food for thought. I wish you all the best and God’s speed.

All hail this guy, cuz he don't hav a job. FIRE HIS ASS!

LET THE LAYOFFS BEGIN.WHEN THE MUSIC STOPS ALOT OF YOU WON'T HAVE A PLACE TO SIT!!!!!THEY ARE NOT MOVING YOUR DEPARTMENT OUT TEMPORARILY.ITS GONE!!!

To all the polititions of CT,
What you should be doing is standing by gates of SAC to make sure the hourly and salary people who want to go to work get in safely and without ridicule. These are the people who sat down and read the contract and realized it was a fair contract. These are the people who have medical needs and have to work. These are the people who have kids at home and for whatever reason they go. You have to know they are being threatened, their families are being threatened, their property is being threatened, and last but not least the rest of their SAC days are going to be as described by the strikers a living hell. People want to cross, but fear these people, so they won't. So I ask you for your help for these people. I have already crossed for my own reasons. Hope to see you there at all SAC plants. This should be a right to work state and I would like to see the polititions work on making it one. Thank you for listening.

This guy burke is clueless, let him find a
job somewhere else and see how is medical benefits are, in addition to the big fat pay cut he will receive.

why don't we fire your corprorate ass bitch

that was toward mr JESUS

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