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Threatening to strike
Bridgestone workers walk picket line
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The clock is ticking, inching closer to midnight as bargaining continues in earnest to avert a work stoppage at Bridgestone – a strike union officials say could come as soon as next Sunday.
The deadline to reach a new labor agreement between Bridgestone and six of its plants, one of which is the plant in Morrison, is July 27. Failure to bridge the gap between labor and management could lead to a strike that will include the Morrison plant’s 750 members.
“It’s all been concessionary across the board,” said Van Tenpenny of the Local United Steel Workers 1155, noting the company wants the workforce to take concessions just as employees did in 2009. “Back then the economy was bad, but it’s recovering. It’s a different situation today.”
Tenpenny said Bridgestone made a $2.5 billion net profit in 2012 and looks to be following its robust growth this year. The brisk business, Tenpenny noted, has workers wondering why they would be asked to take more cuts.
“The membership has had enough,” Tenpenny said, adding the rank and file is ready to strike if an equitable agreement is not made. “It’s little things like bereavement pay for our newer employees and the lack of vacation time for the new employees for up to a year and a half.”
Part of the concessions from 2009 allowed Bridgestone to hire up to 10 percent of new employees with lesser pay and benefits than older employees.
“This affects over 200 people’s lives,” Tenpenny said.
While the possibility of a strike looms, Tenpenny said there are still vigorous negotiations going on in Louisville between management and labor. The talks have been ongoing since July 4.
“It’s a good sign they are sitting down and talking,” Tenpenny said. “Hopefully they will be able to reach a fair and equitable agreement.”
Any proposal would have to be ratified by the rank and file of the union by a majority vote before the contact would become active.
While less than a week remains until the deadline, contract talks have held high drama over the years, some agreements not reached until literally the last hour before midnight.
Bridgestone is withholding comment on specifics while negotiations are ongoing, saying only they face challenges from “the ever-increasing global competition” in their field.

Local farm partnership brings fresh beef to Warren County Schools
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Warren County Schools has beefed up lunch menus this school year through a new community partnership. Thanks to a collaboration between the district’s School Nutrition Department and Barton Creek Farms, students at Warren County High School, Warren County Middle School, West Elementary, Eastside Elementary, and Dibrell Elementary are enjoying locally sourced, farm-fresh beef in their lunches as part of a pilot program.

The initiative, spearheaded by Terri Mullican, Director of School Nutrition, has already shown great promise in its first few months. The partnership with Barton Creek Farms, located in Rock Island, Tennessee, ensures that the beef served is not only local to Warren County but of the highest quality. Barton Creek Farms specializes in farm-to-fork beef, with grass-fed and grain-finished cattle. Each calf is born and raised in Rock Island and goes through USDA-inspected processing, ensuring it meets the strictest safety and quality standards.

“When the opportunity arose to provide fresh, local beef, we knew it was a no-brainer,” Mullican said. “The fact that it’s a product from right here in our community makes it even more special. We can’t wait to implement it district-wide.”

Barton Creek Farms delivers fresh ground beef to the district monthly, and the nutrition

department incorporates it into homemade recipes such as lasagna, meatloaf, chili, and tacos.

As of now, the beef is being served at five schools, but the ultimate goal is to expand the program to all ten lunch-serving schools in the district.

The pilot program originated from a conversation between Mary Roller of Barton Creek Farms and Mullican. Roller, recognizing the farm’s potential to support local schools, reached out to gauge the district’s interest in serving local beef to students. Around the same time, a Warren County school board member contacted Mullican to share information about a similar partnership in neighboring Dekalb County, which helped push the initiative forward.

The timing worked in the district’s favor, as the nutrition department was able to fund the purchase of the beef using existing resources, eliminating the need for additional funding. Now that the pilot program is enjoying a successful run, the department has budgeted to extend the partnership district-wide for the 2025-26 school year.

Dr. Grant Swallows, Director of Schools, praised the program’s economic approach to student nutrition.

“This pilot is a perfect example of how we can use local resources to continue providing nutritious, healthy meals for our students,” he said. “We are grateful for partnerships like this one that benefit both our students and our local community. We always strive to support our local businesses when we can because our community is so good to us.”

In addition to working with Warren County Schools, Barton Creek Farms also partners with local restaurants to offer farm-fresh beef on their menus. The farm’s offerings include ground beef, steaks, roasts, and custom cuts by the quarter, half, or whole cow, meeting diverse consumer needs.

As the program continues to grow, the district hopes to expand its focus on farm-to-school meals, benefiting students’ health and connecting them to the agricultural roots of the community