Merck Independent Union Votes Overwhelmingly to Affiliate with Office and Professional Employees International Union

West Point, PA, (June 14, 2012) - Merck Independent Union (MIU) in West Point, Pennsylvania has overwhelmingly voted to join the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU), AFL-CIO.  MIU represents administrative employees employed by Merck Sharp & Dohme, a pharmaceutical corporation.

The 287 members of MIU voted 96 - 4 in favor of affiliation with OPEIU and will now be known as MIU/OPEIU Local 1937, which celebrates the year in which MIU was founded.  MIU recently ratified a 5-year agreement with the company.

“Our affiliation with OPEIU will give us more strength in representing our members as part of the 108,000 member OPEIU and the support of the 13 million members of the AFL-CIO and organized labor,” said MIU President Dottie Miller.  “We evaluated the pros and cons of affiliating with several unions and chose OPEIU as the best fit for our group.”

“We look forward to working with MIU to give them the additional leverage they need to carry out their work,” said OPEIU President Michael Goodwin.  “With the help of Director of Organization and Field Services Kevin Kistler, OPEIU structured an affiliation agreement that preserves the autonomy of MIU.”