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Shipyard’s bargaining pact expires at end of October

NEWPORT NEWS—With about a month and a half left on their current contract, some 8,000 shipbuilders at the Newport News shipyard are looking for a new contract.

United Steelworkers Local 8888 said it began contract negotiations last week with the Northrop Grumman shipyard on a new collective bargaining agreement.

The local has gone to the airwaves to raise awareness about the negotiations and what it says is the “sharp economic pinch’’ felt by workers.

The existing contract expires on Oct. 26.

The shipyard is one of the biggest employers in Hampton Roads. It is the Navy’s only builder of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers.
The shipyard also has a hand in the building of fast-attack submarines.

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