Workers who forge essential components used on aircraft, drilling rigs and ships have voted to join Machinists Union District Lodge 751.
By a 3-to-2 margin, workers at Jorgensen Forge Corp. in Seattle voted to join the union on Aug. 7. The vote affects more than 100 hourly workers at the company’s plant on East Marginal Way in Tukwila.
The results still must be certified by the National Labor Relations Board. Once that happens, the union will contact the company to request dates to start contract talks. In the meantime, it will continue surveying members to determine their priorities for their first union contract, according to a Machinists’ news release.
The JFC workers are specialists who forge everything from propeller shafts used in ships and submarines to parts used in the aerospace, maritime and drilling industries. Their products are created from stainless steel, aluminum, titanium and other metals.