After nearly a week on strike, the Jim Beam Distillery union workers in Bullitt and Nelson counties will soon head back to work.
On Friday, union members voted 204-19 to approve a new labor agreement. Those workers said they are feeling good about the future after they stood up for what was right.
The local union represents 252 employees from the Clermont and Boston facilities. On October 11, 90 percent of union members turned down a contract proposal and voted to go on strike. A follow-up agreement days later was also struck down and union workers walked off the production line.
Members have always said this dispute was not about money. Their major issues were with scheduling, the number of temporary workers and a two-tier pay scale in which new hires would get paid 25 percent less than base employees doing the same job.
For many long-time employees it was the abuse of overtime that needed to be changed the most.
The board said all items of concern were addressed in this new contract and the company even agreed to hire about 30 full-time workers to help with scheduling.
Most workers will be back on the job at 7:30 a.m. Monday morning.
Source: WAVE
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