Work has yet to resume on Highway 224 improvements near Red Mountain due to a strike by members of a union representing heavy equipment operators. 

City of Richland officials said in a statement work could restart on the project on Aug. 26 based on a three-week schedule submitted by contractor Apollo Inc. of Kennewick “but this is not confirmed.” 

City officials first announced on Aug. 12 they were aware of the project being delayed due to the strike by the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 302.  

The highway is already closed to through traffic between Paradise Way and the Ruppert Road-Belmont Boulevard intersection. Traffic is being detoured along Paradise Way, Keene Road and Ruppert, and Apollo will continue managing the project site and traffic control for the detours. 

Details behind the strike and its cause have not been shared by the union or contractors. Pasco city councilperson Leo Perales, in a post to his personal Facebook page, indicated the dispute is between IUOE and the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC). 

“The AGC needs to get back to the table and give our hard-working Operating Engineers a fair compensation package,” Perales wrote. “As your city councilman, I’ll continue to use my influence to push for resolution, because when labor is respected, our community wins.”