US shipyard workers strike over wages

Hundreds of designers, clerks and technicians went on strike in Maine at one of the US Navy’s largest shipbuilding contractors. The Bath Marine Draftsmen’s Association went on strike at General Dynamics Bath Iron Works after members voted to reject the shipyard’s proposed wage offer over the weekend.

The union represents 627 workers at the historic shipyard, which has built naval ships in Bath for more than a century. The strike arrived several weeks after a morale-boosting appearance in which US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth touted the need to boost defence manufacturing.

The union said in a statement that the shipyard’s offer does not address the members’ concerns about wages. “We had hoped the company took to heart the statements made by Secretary Hegseth at GD BIW because our membership certainly did,” union President Trent said in an emailed statement that also said General Dynamics “continues to make record profits off our labour”.