Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, March 30, 1991                   TAG: 9103300331
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: A-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS                                LENGTH: Short

SHIPYARD, UNION FORGE TENTATIVE PACT

"We negotiated with the strong intent of no give-backs, and we feel we did pretty well in that area," said Russell N. Axsom, president of the local.

If approved at a union membership meeting Monday, the proposed multiyear contract, which has been in negotiation since Feb. 7, would replace a 4-year-old contract that expires Sunday.

Neither side would disclose specifics or the length of the proposed pact, but a source close to the negotiations told the Daily Press the contract would cover more than two years but fewer than five or six.

Before contract talks began, Axsom said the union wanted wage increases that kept pace with inflation without cuts in company-paid health benefits. He declined to say Thursday whether the current agreement met those tests.

- Associated Press