About 50 union supporters rallied outside a Port of Kalama grain terminal Friday morning, urging the owners to hire local construction labor for an upcoming expansion project.
According to Cowlitz County planning officials, Temco is planning a $50 million expansion, building eight to 12 new storage silos, new rail lines and new conveyor belts. Temco is a joint venture owned by Minnesota-based cooperative CHS Inc. and Cargill.
The trade unions are still smarting because they feel they were left out of the construction of the EGT terminal in Longview. The local union halls reported little activity during the 18-month construction period of the EGT terminal because general contractor Ibberson hired a large percentage of the 300 workers from outside the region, union officials said.