BEAUMONT, Texas — It's been nearly a month since union steelworkers and have sat down with ExxonMobil as the union's workers continue to be locked out.
Representatives of United Steelworkers Local 13-243 have recently reached out to ExxonMobil about possibly meeting next week according to union spokesperson Richard "Hoot" Landry.
The union's 650 members have been locked out of the Beaumont plant since May 1, 2021, after talks between them and the company stalled.
The two sides last met on May 12, 2021.
In an email sent to 12News after their May 12 meeting, ExxonMobil said their new deal would last for six years, through January 31, 2027.
It would provide refinery-specific wage increases as well as eliminates "senior bidding" for jobs.
It also adopts other union-approved language for layoffs and onboarding, among other issues.
The lockout has been hard on workers and their families Landry told 12News on Tuesday.
A pantry was recently set up at union headquarters in Beaumont to help locked out workers with food and other supplies.
The local began bargaining a new contract in January. But talks led to little movement on either side, and on April 23, ExxonMobil provided the local with written notice of its intention to lock out members starting May 1.
The union has called the lockout an unfair labor practice, and they have filed charges with the National Labor Relations Board.
The two sides remain far apart on many issues. The local had requested that a federal mediator be brought in to resolve the lockout, but both sides must agree and so far Exxon has not. The local has also filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board.