Workers at Lockheed Martin, one of the largest arms manufacturers and defense contractors in the U.S., have gone on strike over the company’s attempts to reduce its employees’ access to health care benefits.
Machinists at the company’s fighter jet plant in Fort Worth, Texas, as well as other facilities in California and Maryland, are participating in the strike. As of this writing, the workers have been striking for over six weeks.
The plan put forward by Lockheed Martin would end defined-benefit pensions for new employees, and switch all employees to Lockheed’s company health care plan, a move that would increase premiums and co-pays, shifting more of the burden of paying for health care onto the workers.
The striking workers correctly point out that Lockheed is unlikely to stop making cuts to benefits if the union concedes. A spokesman for the Machinists’ union accused Lockheed of “taking away the pension on an installment plan.”
Under capitalism, constant struggle is needed to maintain even minor concessions from the owners and bosses.
