Feds Say Kaiser Lockout Illegal
Labor Board Decision Bolsters USWA Campaign for Justice 

MINNEAPOLIS, April 26 - The General Counsel of the National Labor Relations
Board will charge the operating subsidiary of Kaiser Aluminum Corporation (NYSE:KLU) with illegally locking out 3,000 USWA members at five plants, the United Steelworkers of America (USWA) announced today.

In a letter dated April 26, Leonard Page, General Counsel of the NLRB, informed the USWA and Kaiser that the government will charge that the company's January 14, 1999, lockout violated U.S. labor laws.  The remedy for Kaiser's unlawful action is full back pay and benefits retroactive to January 14, 1999, when the company illegally locked out its employees. 

"Kaiser's potential back-pay liability is currently over $270 million, and it continues to grow by nearly one half million dollars per day,"  said David Foster, Director of USWA District 11 and chair of the union's Kaiser negotiating committee.  "In light of the NLRB action and the staggering consequences for the company, I once again call on Kaiser to end its illegal lockout immediately.  The continuation of the lockout benefits no one," said Foster.

News of the NLRB action followed on the heels of a break-off of negotiations by Kaiser late last night.  Earlier in the day, the union gave the company a comprehensive proposal that dramatically narrowed the differences between the parties.  Instead of continuing discussions, Kaiser walked out of negotiations. No further talks are scheduled.

In spite of the pending federal charges against the company and their consequences, Foster stressed that the union's only objective remains what it has always been - reaching a fair contract.  "Despite its illegal actions, we want a fair agreement with this company," he stated.     "We are willing to negotiate any time, anywhere, any place."

"We expect that Kaiser will launch an expensive public relations campaign in our communities in an attempt to obscure its illegal conduct and stampede lawmakers in Washington, Ohio, and Louisiana into denying extended unemployment benefits to our illegally locked out members," Foster said.
 
"Our modified proposal, the NLRB action, and our willingness to continue bargaining - all of these things clearly demonstrate that an extension in state unemployment benefits is warranted.  This company broke the law, and thousands of hardworking citizens have suffered long enough."

The NLRB action came after seven months of intensive review by the agency's Office of Appeals in Washington, D.C. On July 16, 1999, the NLRB regional office in Oakland, California, originally dismissed the union's charges, but the union appealed that determination to Washington on September 22, 1999.

"Today's NLRB announcement also shows the need for a Good Corporate Citizenship Clause (GCCC) in contracts between the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) and direct service industries that receive low-cost federal power," said Foster.  The BPA provides low-cost federal power to Kaiser at its facilities in Washington state.

The BPA recently made an initial recommendation to include a Good Corporate Citizenship Clause in its 2001 - 2006 contracts for direct service industries that purchase BPA power. The clause would require the Direct Service Industries (primarily aluminum smelters) to demonstrate a law-abiding record in their conduct of labor, environmental, safety and health, and other commercial affairs in order to receive cost-based electric power from the BPA.

If such a policy is adopted and Kaiser fails to comply with the GCCC, Kaiser's electric power rates could increase 50% above current levels, leaving Kaiser's smelters in the Northwest with some of the highest power costs in the world.

Foster noted that Kaiser's labor law violations are only part of a pattern of illegal conduct by Kaiser. The company was fined in excess of $200,000 by the Washington State Department of Ecology for air quality violations at its Mead smelter and fined $533,000 by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) for 13 serious violations of MSHA's safety standards and eight instances of impeding the agency's investigation of the July 1999 explosion
at the Gramercy alumina refinery. According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, MSHA investigators are conducting a special investigation that may lead to a referral to the Justice Department for a criminal investigation.

Kaiser Aluminum Corporation is 63%-owned by Maxxam, Inc. (AMEX:MXM) whose controversial CEO, Charles Hurwitz, has been the target of continued environmental protests over the clearcutting of ancient redwoods in California by the company's Pacific Lumber subsidiary. Hurwitz and related entities are also the target of lawsuits filed by the Office of Thrift Supervision and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation that seek to recover $810 million for improprieties leading to the failure of a Hurwitz-owned Savings and Loan and a resulting $1.8 billion bail-out by U.S. taxpayers.

"From the previous record of Charles Hurwitz, we fully expect that Kaiser will hotly deny these charges and vow, in effect, to drag them through the courts," noted Foster.  "But NLRB charges of this magnitude raise serious questions whether the company's management is acting in the long term interest of its many stakeholders," said Foster.