Delta Western workers on strike in February. /Credit: Pipa Escalante

It’s official: Delta Western fuel supply workers are unionized in Unalaska.

The National Labor Relations Board certified the workers’ vote to join the Inlandboatmen’s Union last week, according to an IBU statement.

Eight of 15 workers voted 'yes' to joining the union in early April. An NLRB representative oversaw the election.

The next step will be to negotiate a contract for the workers. The IBU will head up that process.

The road to unionizing began in February, when Delta Western workers walked off the job in protest of alleged workplace mistreatment. They went on strike again in March. They also filed a federal complaint with the NLRB, saying their managers were using illegal methods to punish them for striking and to keep them from organizing.

The group petitioned to join the IBU soon after. They’re now the only unionized Delta Western terminal in Alaska.

Related stories:

• Delta Western Workers Approve Union Membership (April 10, 2014)
• Delta Western's Pro-Union Fuelers Strike Again (March 5, 2014)
• Pro-Union Delta Western Workers Press On (Feb. 21, 2014)
• Delta Western Workers Seek Union Membership (Feb. 18, 2014)