Timken and United Steelworkers of America Local 1123 Reach New Tentative Agreement

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Feb 07, 2012, 06:14 ET

CANTON, Ohio, Feb. 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Timken Company and the United Steelworkers (USW) Local 1123 today announced they have reached a new tentative agreement on a five-year contract to replace the existing labor agreement, which expires Sep. 2013. Members will vote on the new agreement, which is unanimously supported by local USW negotiators, within the next two weeks.

The parties reached a preliminary agreement in December, but union membership failed to ratify the proposal in a January vote, putting at risk a multi-million dollar investment in Stark County (Ohio). Timken is prepared to invest $225 million in its Faircrest Steel Plant if a new labor agreement is ratified.

"We have outlined a very attractive investment for our steel operations," said Salvatore J. Miraglia, Jr., president of Timken's Steel Group. "But it clearly will not move forward without a new agreement that ensures workforce stability throughout construction and startup. The vote will be our final opportunity to put the pieces in place to make this investment happen."

The project has received state and local assistance, in return for Timken's commitment to job security at the plant during the term of that support.

The tentative agreement continues to provide:

Increases to permanent base wages every year, in addition to cost-of-living adjustments;
Increases in both variable pay opportunities and incentive pay;
Improvements in health and wellness plans;
Increases in pension benefits;
And, includes changes to the wage escalation rate for new employees.

Background information is available on www.timken.com/agreement.

About The Timken Company

The Timken Company (NYSE: TKR; www.timken.com) keeps the world turning with innovative friction management and power transmission products and services that help machinery perform more efficiently and reliably. With sales of $5.2 billion in 2011 and approximately 21,000 people operating from locations in 30 countries, Timken is Where You Turn® for better performance.

Media Contact: Lorrie Paul Crum
Manager – Global Media and Strategic Communications
Mail Code: GNW-37
1835 Dueber Avenue, S.W.
Canton, OH 44706 U.S.A.
Telephone: (330) 471-3514
Mobile: (330) 224-5021
[email protected]

Investor Contact: Steve Tschiegg
Director – Capital Markets and Investor Relations
Mail Code: GNE-26
1835 Dueber Avenue, S.W.
Canton, OH 44706 U.S.A.
Telephone: (330) 471-7446
[email protected]

For Additional Information:
www.timken.com/media
www.timken.com/investors

SOURCE The Timken Company