Wind Turbine Employees Reject Union

By Dave DeWitte, The Gazette, Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Jul. 1–CEDAR RAPIDS — Employees of Clipper Turbine Works decided not to join a union in a weekend vote that represented one of the first attempts to unionize a wind power supplier in Iowa.

The National Labor Relations Board conducted elections Friday and Saturday at the plant in southwest Cedar Rapids on representation by International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 204.

The vote was 45 in favor of the union and 125 opposed to the union, with 13 challenged votes, said Bob Chester, district director for the National Labor Relations Board.

Clipper Windpower, which operates the plant, was pleased by the result.

“Our work force represents a strong, skilled, cohesive team, which we highly value at Clipper,” plant manager Robert Lloyd said. “We also value our employees’ input and views and will continue to work together in support of a strong, mutually beneficial company culture.” Local 204 officials could not be reached for comment. They had cited a desire for better communication and greater fairness in their campaign to organize the plant.

Chester said the number of challenged votes was insufficient to have an impact on the outcome of the election. He said results will be certified in seven days unless an objection is filed.

The Cedar Rapids plant assembles Clipper’s 2.5-megawatt Liberty wind turbines.

Contact the writer: (319) 398-8317 or david.dewitte@gazcomm.com

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