The sugar giant will offer beet growers in the Red River Valley a lower price this year, partly because of the financial toll of its lockout of 1,300 union workers. But the company says it has already replaced more than half of those workers. Crystal promised growers higher prices next year, when the company expects all of the locked out workers will have been replaced.

Workers from the Red River Valley are teaming up with locked-out Ohio workers from Cooper Tire on what they're calling a "Journey for Justice" tour. The unions say they're trying to draw attention to "the most recent wave of greed-motivated corporate attacks on workers and their unions."

A few locked out workers from American Crystal Sugar were back on the picket line Wednesday to mark the one-year anniversary of the union lockout by company. More than 1,300 workers from plants in Minnesota, North Dakota and Iowa have been affected by the lockout.

Ten Democrats in the Legislature have introduced a bill that would prohibit government departments and agencies from buying sugar from American Crystal until the company resolves its dispute with union workers. More than 1,300 workers have been locked out since Aug. 1.

Union leaders and company executives returned to the bargaining table for the first time in more than two months, though they left again without a deal. WDAY reports Crystal Sugar is sticking with what it calls its final offer, but union workers are still worried about some of the contract's wording surrounding job security.

Talks are set to resume Friday between American Crystal Sugar Co. and 1,300 locked-out union workers. It's been more than four months since the two sides last met. Union spokesman John Riskey told the Associated Press he hopes the company will "cooperate and negotiate." Company spokesman Brian Ingulsrud says the company's last contract offer stands.

American Crystal says the latest proposal from its workers includes none of the company's suggestions for ending the lockout that is approaching six months. Meanwhile, the company has posted help wanted ads for what it describes as "long-term temporary" workers.

Contract talks between American Crystal Sugar's leaders and union representatives once again ended Friday with no resolution. The meeting marked the fourth time the parties have tried to resolve their dispute with a federal mediator. More than 1,300 union workers have been locked-out of plants in Minnesota, North Dakota and Iowa for the past 10 months.