Local 400 members working at the Dr. Pepper plants in Fairmont, West Virginia, and Belpre, Ohio, recently ratified a new contract that includes as much as $3.50 per hour more over the four-year term of the agreement—the largest wage increases since the facilities were organized.
The new contract includes a slight reduction in out-of-pocket costs for health insurance in 2019, and the employer has agreed to a 100 percent match to the 401(k) plan. In addition, the contract provides as much as $3.50 per hour more for warehouse workers, while drivers and others who are paid by the case or by the mile will also receive large pay hikes.
“We gained on everything,” said Rod Plauger, a bulk delivery driver and shop steward who organized the Fairmont plant approximately 20 years ago and served on the bargaining committee. “This gave us more than we ever had. We got everything we asked for.”
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