BUFFALO, N.Y. — Milk-Bone workers have been on strike for more than a month as they negotiate for affordable health insurance costs. Some 175 members of the BCTGM Local Union 36G are picketing around the clock, even as the weather turns.

Joe Mahoney, a processor at the facility, said the union was offered a plan that increased insurance premiums by 50%.

“I mean, no person should have to make that kind of sacrifice and have to just come up with ridiculous amounts of money to cover the costs of medical care while you have a corporation making billions of dollars,” said Mahoney.

More than one union worker is undergoing treatment for cancer or has dependents in treatment.

A spokesperson for Milk-Bone’s parent company J.M. Smucker told Spectrum News 1 in a statement:

"We have maintained open lines of communication with the BCTGM since the strike was enacted, however after receiving confirmation that our latest offer was voted down, we have not received further feedback from the Union to allow us to continue negotiations. We remain open and willing to work with the BCTGM in hopes that we can come to a mutually acceptable agreement. 

As we have shared, we are confident the agreement put forward was not only fair but very competitive based on the current market. To offer further context, the Company provided two offers to the BCTGM.  Both offers included a 16% three-year wage increase on current competitive wages, which go up to $30 an hour after only three years of employment.

With respect to concerns around the medical plan, to confirm, the plan presented to the BCTGM is the same medical plan and costs that all Smucker employees, including all other employees at the Buffalo facility, have access to (this is consistent across salaried, hourly, union and non-union employees).

The medical plan structure offers employees options at different pricing tiers based on how they prefer to receive and pay for medical care so they can select the plan that best meets their needs and financial preferences. In some cases, based on the plan selected, medical premiums have been reduced for employees. For employees selecting a plan where medical premiums have increased, these increases are more than offset by the proposed wage increase."

Workers on the picket line said Smucker has not been coming to the table for negotiations.

The union says Milk-Bone has brought in replacement workers. The people we met said they’re prepared to be out here for as long as it takes not only for their team now, but future team members as well.