About 130 employees at Aurora’s GE HealthCare facility joined IAM Union Local 1363 in January 2025, and they’ve been negotiating their first collective bargaining agreement ever since.
Their patience is running thin.
The union — officially dubbed the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers — represents about 600,000 active and retired members in aerospace, defense, airlines, shipbuilding, rail, transit, healthcare, automotive and other industries across America.
Workers at the Aurora facility create coils for MRI machines that transmit critical imaging signals. The union alleges that the company has stonewalled “more than 18 months of contentious negotiations.” GE HealthCare has also repeatedly violated federal labor law, a press release states.
The IAM has sent letters to U.S. Sens. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) and Jon Husted (R-Ohio), along with U.S. Rep. David Joyce (R-Ohio), urging them to encourage GE HealthCare to bargain in good faith with IAM Local 1363. This outreach comes as Congress considers the Faster Labor Contracts Act, which aims to put stricter penalties on employers that refuse to negotiate first contracts in good faith.
The U.S. House passed the act on June 9. It now awaits Senate approval and, if passed, the president’s signature.
In letters to Moreno, Husted and Joyce, IAM Union International President Brian Bryant stated that, “despite consistent efforts by the workers and their bargaining committee, GE HealthCare refuses to meet to bargain on a regular schedule. It refused to provide any economic proposals until just two weeks ago — and those proposals were regressive, lowering wages below the employees’ current rates of pay, slashing PTO and increasing healthcare costs for the workers and their families.”
Montana Hayes, a production associate at GE HealthCare and member of the IAM Local 1363 negotiations committee, said in the news release that the union is not asking for anything extraordinary.
“We just want GE HealthCare to respect our rights, bargain fairly and recognize the value of the workers who make this company successful. After more than 18 months, it's time for the company to stop delaying and negotiate the fair first contract we've earned,” she said.
Meanwhile, the press release claims that GE HealthCare CEO Peter Arduini earns 241 times the median worker’s salary.
Echoing Hayes, IAM Local 1363 Directing Business Representative Tim Verlinden stated that GE Healthcare is shortchanging the very workers that make its success possible.
“No company that benefits from taxpayer dollars and posts billions in profits should be denying workers their annual raises while dragging out first-contract negotiations for more than 18 months,” he said. “We’re making sure lawmakers understand exactly what’s happening in Aurora, and we’re asking them to press GE HealthCare to stop the delays and bargain a fair first contract in good faith.”
The Portager reached out to GE HealthCare, which responded with the following comment:
“We are committed to serving our customers and their patients and fostering a supportive environment where our employees can excel, innovate, and help shape the future of healthcare.
“We have been bargaining in good faith and remain focused on reaching an agreement that provides competitive wages and meaningful benefits, while also supporting the long-term health of the business and our ability to serve patients and customers.”