DETROIT – A 12 months after the United Auto Workers' unprecedented strikes against Detroit automakers, the union is again threatening work stoppages that would seriously disrupt the U.S. auto industry.
The UAW announced on Wednesday a strike deadline of Ford Motor Tool and die plant that supports the automaker's Rouge Complex near Detroit – one among two U.S. plants that produce the corporate's highly profitable F-150 pickup truck.
The strike deadline of 11:59 p.m. on September 25 got here a day after UAW President Shawn Fain announced plans to carry strike authorization votes at a number of local unions that Stellantis Plants within the USA
Both announcements are warning shots against Ford and Stellantis and deal with collective agreements and native problems on the plants. The union has not taken similar motion against General Motors.
UAW members are subject to national agreements that cover issues reminiscent of wages, bonuses and other advantages, in addition to local contracts tailored to every location.
In the past, it took months, if not years, for local contracts to be concluded after a national agreement was reached. they should not regulated in any respect in the course of the term of the national agreement.
Last 12 months's autoworkers' strikes took place during historic negotiations over national contracts with all three Detroit automakers without delay. The union won record wage increases – 25% over the lifetime of the contract – and the reinstatement of cost-of-living pay, but labor experts warned that this might come at the associated fee of jobs.
The last strike date at Ford was called due to negotiations on the plant on site, which were about “job security, equal pay for skilled workers and work rules,” in keeping with to the union.
A strike at an assembly plant's supplier facility could disrupt vehicle assembly if the automaker cannot make contingency plans for parts. The plant employs fewer than 500 staff.
Ford said in an announcement Thursday that negotiations with the union were ongoing: “Ford invested $15 million in the plant last year and we have come together at the bargaining table to resolve issues. Negotiations are ongoing and we look forward to reaching an agreement with UAW Local 600 at Dearborn Tool & Die.”
The strike deadline is heightening tensions there even further than at Stellantis, where the union has announced an authorization vote at Stellantis. Strike authorization votes are procedural votes. They are votes by staff that authorize UAW leadership to call a strike when warranted. Such national bargaining votes are often passed with over 90% of staff in favor.
The announced vote at Stellantis comes after months of mudslinging by Fain against Stellantis and its CEO Carlos Tavares over product cuts, layoffs and other measures the union considers detrimental to union members, including the potential of moving production of vehicles reminiscent of the Dodge Durango out of the United States.
The union filed unfair labor practice complaints against Stellantis with the National Labor Relations Board on Monday, claiming the automaker refused to supply the union with “relevant information” regarding investments and products.
“The company wants you to be afraid, but we are 100 percent within our rights and power to strike if necessary,” Fain said in a web based broadcast on Tuesday evening.
Stellantis claims that such a strike could be illegal.
Fain insists that the union won its right to strike during national negotiations due to automakers' product and investment commitments, however the contracts still contain language about market conditions, economics and other aspects that would give the corporate leniency.
After Fain voted to authorize a strike on Tuesday night, the corporate criticized the union leader for his actions and comments.
“Shawn Fain continues to claim that the company violated the contract, but to date has provided no data or information to support his claims. Instead, he continues to intentionally damage the company's reputation with his public attacks, which helps no one, including its members,” the corporate said in an emailed statement.
Stellantis said a strike “benefits no one – our customers, our dealers, the community and, above all, our employees.”
In addition to the NLRB's grievance against the corporate on Monday, Fain said 28 Stellantis unions have filed complaints against the automaker. Those complaints cover about 98% of Stellantis' UAW-represented workforce, in keeping with the union.
“Once we have authorized a strike at a location, we meet with the company seven times and either resolve the issue or take strike action, depending on what our union deems appropriate,” Fain said.
At the start of this 12 months, Stellantis employed around 43,000 unionized staff.
This week, the union also began collective bargaining with Volkswagen. VW staff in Chattanooga, Tennessee, voted overwhelmingly in favor of representation by the UAW earlier this 12 months.
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