Union workers come to agreement to end strike

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (WLNE) — Work on the nation’s first major offshore wind project is back on track again in New Bedford after union members from the ILA Local 1413 came to an agreement with representatives from Vineyard Wind to resume unloading the 62-turbine project that the company says will generate enough electricity to power about 400,000 homes.

Thursday’s agreement ends a six-day strike by union dockworkers outside the New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal.

The deal, according to union president Kevin Rose, will offer full-time jobs for union members, training, as well as see more locals get hired to work on the docks, which will create more jobs in New Bedford, and specifically for Cape Verdeans, who make up about 75% of the ILA Local 1413 union.

“We’re very excited we’re going back to work. It was tough [but we] pretty much both got what we wanted,” Rose said. “Life-changing. [It’s going to be] life-changing, especially for Cape Verdeans who make up about 75% of the union.”

Thursday morning, dockworkers were once again inside the gates ready to get moving on unloading the parts, which right now include sections for the towers. Blades are expected to arrive on-shore within a week, and eventually, the components will be put together on barges, making for what’s expected to be quite a spectacle on the waterfront

Vineyard Wind issued a statement after the agreement that says, “We’re pleased that the ILA has returned to work. We’ve made an arrangement with the local stevedoring company to ensure that local workers will fill the jobs that are necessary to build this first in the nation project. We’re excited to get started again, and look forward to future milestone in the coming months.”