OTEC Linemen prepare for August 22 strike as negotiations reach an apex
By Garrett Christensen on Friday, August 14th, 2026 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
BAKER CITY – In June 2026, local linemen with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 125 showed their solidarity for the then recent termination of 24-year veteran lineman Tom Higgins from the Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative (OTEC). At the time, the termination as well as other grievances expressed by OTEC employees stemmed from, according to Journeymen Linemen Nick Simons, a policy shift within OTEC requiring linemen to respond to week day standby calls without proper compensation under the threat of heavy disciplinary action. As explained to our newsroom at the time:
“He explained, “We all have standby weekends, but we are now being pushed to…answer every call within district, and if we don’t, somebody is receiving a letter of discipline. Tom received three, and on that third one he was terminated.”
Now, tensions are seemingly continuing to increase between OTEC’s linemen and its leadership as negotiations remain ongoing between the co-op and the Local 125 Union. Should negotiations fall through and a tentative agreement (TA) not be put forward by Tuesday, August 18th, OTEC’s linemen are prepared to go on strike beginning on August 22.
In a follow up interview with Simons regarding the current situation and the pending strike, he explained that the issue stems further back than the recent protests to the on-call policy and the termination of Tom Higgins, though those recent events did have an impact on the decision.
According to Simons, around 2012, OTEC allegedly cut pension options for new employees, and only began providing 401ks. This allegedly was followed by a gradual erosion of employee benefits and a reduced pay scale for linemen. Simons now claims that, compared to other utility organizations involved within the collective bargaining agreement for Local 125, OTEC has reduced its pay-scale and benefits packages to the bottom percentile. During the recent interview, Simons even went as far as to accuse current OTEC CEO Les Penning of openly intending to keep OTEC’s linemen and other Local 125 employees within the bottom percentile.
This gradual reduction in pay and benefits, combined with frustration over recent disciplinary action of veteran employees has, according to Simons, caused the local linemen to “put their foot down.”
As of the time of writing, the most recent goals for negotiation that Simons was familiar with requested a three-year gradual pay increase, 5% for 2026, 6% for 2027, and 6% for 2028, with restoration of benefits supposedly being left out of current negotiations in order to focus on pay-scale. This increase, according to Simons, would hopefully place OTEC’s linemen more in the middle range of pay scales for regional utility providers, with the union seeking at least to be above the bottom 30.
As the initial negotiations were supposed to have closed on April 26 and linemen have been working per the stipulations of the old contract during the delay, they are also requesting the 2026 pay scale increase be applied retroactively back to the initial contract expiration. Summarizing the position of employees on the situation, Simons commented:
“It’s their way of dictating the situation. We’re not a bunch of sheep, we’re independent thinkers. We know we can work somewhere else if we need to. The boots on the ground are the people that make this company work. They (OTEC leadership) know that, but I don’t think they care.”
OTEC’s Previous contract settlement was allegedly rejected in a 34-3 no vote. Simons also speculates that, should recently terminated staff like Larry Robb and Tom Higgins not be reinstated, and the retroactive pay increase not be applied, the union is unlikely to approve the agreement.
Again, according to Simons, the union is hoping to receive a TA sometime on Monday August 17 or Tuesday August 18 in order to avoid a strike. If a TA is received, the union would then draft ballots for members to vote, which could conclude as early as the end of next week. Should a TA not be reached by the end of those two days, the linemen are prepared to go on strike beginning August 22nd.
Should the strike occur, in blunt terms, OTEC and its member owners would have no internal response to any issues with its grid, including power outages, for the duration of the strike. OTEC is within its power to hire third-party contractors to conduct maintenance and respond to outages. Simons commented that local contractors already working with OTEC, being members of the same union, may, in some capacity, join the strike in solidarity, which could require OTEC to recruit contractors from out of state, though as of now this is speculative.
In either case, should the strike come to fruition and align with the speculation of Simons and other linemen, OTEC member owners should prepare for heavily reduced response capability from OTEC to outages or other electrical issues. As Simons commented again:
“I want the public to understand that we don’t want this. It’s such a double edge sword, but you have to stand up for your trade. We’ve gotten to a point where we know we’re worth a little bit more. We’re ready to put our foot down. Somebody’s got to suffer and it’s going to be us and the members for a little bit”
Elkhorn Media Group did reach out to OTEC for comment on the negotiations and the potential strike. OTEC’s official statement on the situation is as follows:
“Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative and IBEW Local 125 remain at the table, negotiating in good faith. That has not changed. We respect our employees and the collective bargaining process, and our focus remains on reaching a fair agreement while continuing to provide the safe, reliable power our member-owners count on. Out of respect for that process, we will not negotiate through the media. For questions, contact Shiraz Mukarram, Manager of Communications at smukarram@otec.coop.”
As of the time of writing, Simons claims that unfair labor lawsuits are also being developed in response to the disciplinary action, though these will take some time. Elkhorn Media Group’s previous article on the employee response to the termination of Tom Higgins can be found at: https://elkhornmediagroup.com/linemen-allege-unfair-labor-practices-and-continue-contract-negotiations-with-otec/
