Ford, UAW reach local contract agreement at Kentucky Truck plant
The union said last week said that nearly 9,000 workers at the massive plant in Louisville would walk picket lines starting Friday if the contract dispute was not resolved.
The union said last week said that nearly 9,000 workers at the massive plant in Louisville would walk picket lines starting Friday if the contract dispute was not resolved.
The United Auto Workers said nearly 9,000 workers at the Kentucky Truck Plant will strike Friday if the local contract dispute is not resolved.
The UAW unveiled a website where workers at 13 different companies can electronically sign union authorization cards in a first step toward attempting to organize their factories.
The United Auto Workers union overwhelmingly ratified new contracts with Ford and Stellantis, that along with a similar deal with General Motors will raise pay across the industry, force automakers to absorb higher costs and help reshape the auto business.
With the deals set to be approved, workers at Ford and Stellatis will join counterparts at General Motors in ratifying the record contracts, ending a contentious labor dispute that brought a punishing series of strikes over six weeks.
The agreements provide a blueprint for which vehicles Stellantis, Ford and General Motors intend to build in the coming years and where they will do so.
The United Auto Workers provided some information on the deals, including a detailed explanation of the agreement it reached with Ford. The agreement is expected to become the model for later settlements with GM and Stellantis.
The contract with General Motors is similar to those reached by Ford and Stellantis, but there are some differences.
The four-year deal, which still has to be approved by 57,000 union members at Ford, could set the pattern for agreements with General Motors and Stellantis.
United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain said Friday that while Detroit’s automakers have increased their wage and benefit offers, he believes the union can gain more if it holds out longer in contract talks.
United Auto Workers union President Shawn Fain is expected to update members Friday afternoon on progress in contract talks with Detroit’s three automakers as movement was reported with General Motors.
In a rare speech during contract talks in the company’s hometown of Dearborn, Michigan, Ford Motor Co. Executive Chairman Bill Ford said high labor costs could limit spending to develop new vehicles and invest in factories.
UAW President Shawn Fain told workers in a live video appearance that the companies started gaming the system, waiting until Fridays to make progress in bargaining.
The UAW contends that the layoffs are unjustified and were imposed as part of the companies’ pressure campaign to persuade union members to accept less favorable terms in negotiations with automakers.
With the UAW strike now in its fourth week, EVs and their potential impact on job security have become central to union negotiations with the automakers.
In just a few months, Shawn Fain has gone from obscurity to one of the most visible leaders in America, demanding that his workers get more concessions from the Big Three automakers after two decades of givebacks.
Additional walkouts will take place at noon Friday without serious progress in contract talks, the United Auto Workers union said.
In a statement, UAW President Shawn Fain called the move “a shameful, barely-veiled threat by Ford to cut jobs” at a plant that’s not open yet.
UAW President Shawn Fain has not said which plants would be affected next—the union’s stated strategy is to “keep the companies guessing.”
UAW President Shawn Fain said workers at more factories will join those who are now in the fifth day of a strike at three plants.