BATH – The 55-day Bath Iron Works strike has been over for weeks, but management and the Machinists union are at odds over the number of shipbuilders who chose not to return to their jobs.

“Most everyone is back to work at BIW,” company spokeswoman Susan Pierter said last week. “We estimate that less than 2 percent of the work force, fewer than 100 people, didn’t come back.”

By contrast, Local S6 Vice President Troy Osgood pegged the number at closer to 500 people, or 10 percent of the 4,800 workers who went on strike over wages, benefits and contract language regarding job security.

“I can’t give you an exact number, but it appears to be up to 10 percent,” Osgood said. “We’ve lost a lot of good welders, electricians and shipbuilders. Some retired because there wasn’t any increase in their pension until the third year. We know of a lot of people for sure; others have no contact with us or the company.”

Among those who left was Kelly Woods of Clinton, who worked as a fabricator at BIW’s Harding facility. Now, instead of riding 130 miles a day round-trip in a commuter van, he travels just 16 miles to his new job at Sonetex, a manufacturing company in Pittsfield.