Consolidated Edison workers have asked state regulators to end the lockout. The workers say that the power company is violating its regulatory obligations by locking out the workers. The state says that it has asked the company to respond by next Tuesday. A sticking point in the negotiations, which have been ongoing, is proposed changes to pension benefits. ConEd locked out 8,500 workers on July 1, and has been operating using managers and some replacement workers.
See "Power workers ask state to order end to NYC lockout", Steve James, Chicago Tribune, July 12, 2012