Federal mediators have ordered a brief break in labor talks as a strike at the Pantex nuclear weapons plant near Amarillo reached the one-month mark.
Scot Beckenbaugh, deputy director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, says the break will give officials from the Metal Trades Council and Pantex operating contractor Consolidated Nuclear Security an opportunity to review new information. Both sides will resume talks later this week, but Beckenbaugh says a time and place haven't been decided.
Saturday marked the 30th day of the strike, which began when the labor council rejected a management proposal to compare Pantex workers' benefits with those of other Texas Panhandle businesses, the Amarillo Globe-News reported.
Metal Trades Council members voted down a four-year contract proposal from Consolidated Nuclear Security on Aug. 8.
