The United Auto Workers made it official Monday: The new labor contract is ratified across the Detroit Three automakers.
In reaction to the official news, Ford Motor Co.'s CEO Jim Farley said Monday he plans to visit factories soon, and he will be closely monitoring operating costs because "this labor agreement added significant cost, and we are going to have to work very hard on productivity and efficiency to become more competitive."
At GM, manufacturing boss Gerald Johnson said Monday he too will visit factories and that employees will "work aggressive schedules" to meet high consumer demand for new vehicles after the targeted strike took down four GM assembly plants and 18 parts distribution centers.
The UAW said 64% of voting members at Ford, GM and Stellantis voted to ratify their new "record" contracts.
UAW President Shawn Fain talks with the news media after his speech to striking workers from the bed of a Ford F-150 at the UAW Solidarity House on Jefferson Avenue in Detroit on Friday, Sept. 29, 2023. Many of the workers caravanned in Ford Broncos and Jeeps to hear him speak.
“The members have spoken. After years of cutbacks, months of our Stand Up campaign, and weeks on the picket line, we have turned the tide for the American autoworker,” said UAW President Shawn Fain in a statement.
Fain said the so-called targeted Stand Up Strike that hit certain plants and not others was just the beginning for the union to expand its membership and win more gains for the working class.
"Now, we take our strike muscle and our fighting spirit to the rest of the industries we represent, and to millions of nonunion workers ready to Stand Up and fight for a better way of life," Fain said.
The wins
The UAW represents about 150,000 autoworkers at the Detroit Three. In the contracts, which largely mirror each other with a few individual company exceptions, the union won back some of the big provisions lost during the Great Recession such as cost-of-living adjustments (COLA), annual bonuses for retirees and the elimination of wage tiers.
The agreements will provide compensation increases of at least 33%, after COLA and compounded wage increases, ranging up to over 160% for some of the lowest-paid workers, over the 4½ years of the contract. The union won a three-year wage progression to the top pay rate, down from eight years, at all three automakers.
At Stellantis, which makes Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Ram and Fiat vehicles, it will reopen an assembly plant in Belvidere, Illinois, that it idled in February. The automaker committed to build a $3.2 billion battery plant there employing more than a thousand union workers.
Also, the UAW won commitments at all three companies to bring thousands of electric vehicle (EV) and battery jobs under the union’s national agreements.
Finally, retirees will receive annual bonuses for the first time in 15 years, a $1.25 billion boost in their total benefits. That is a billion dollars more than the union won for retirees in the last four contracts combined.
At all three companies, traditional workers hired — those on the job before 2007 — won a $5 increase to their pension multiplier, the first time getting an increase in over 15 years. Still, many at GM were dissatisfied with that increase and cited that as one of the reasons several GM assembly plants voted "no" on the agreement.
CEO Farley said in a statement the automaker was pleased the agreement is ratified for its 57,000 UAW-represented employees because 2024 is a crucial year.
"Thankfully, we are on track to reach full production schedules in the coming days at our assembly plants in Michigan, Kentucky and Illinois that were affected during the strike," Farley said. "I’m excited to personally get out to as many of our plants and operations as possible in the coming weeks and months to spend time with our teams who build our vehicles."
Farley said Ford is entering one of its biggest new product launch years in the country and delivering the vehicles on time and at top quality is critical.
Jim Farley, president and CEO of Ford Motor Co.
"I am talking about new Ranger and Ranger Raptor. New F-150 and F-150 Raptor. New Expedition. New Explorer. New Lincoln Navigator and new Lincoln Aviator," Farley said. "All told, we are refreshing about half of our U.S. volume in 2024."
Ford is also working on its next generation EVs and software platforms, he said.
"It’s also imperative that we continue to attack cost and waste throughout our operations," Farley said.
GM and Stellantis react
On Monday, in reaction to the UAW's official ratification declaration, Stellantis issued the same statement it did on Saturday when results on the UAW's online tracker showed the agreement passing by a vote of 19,741 in favor (70%) to 8,477 (30%) against.
“With negotiations now officially behind us, we will focus our full attention on executing our Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan and serving our customers by delivering the high quality products and technologies they want and expect, especially as we prepare to launch eight all-new electric vehicles in the U.S. market in 2024,” said Mark Stewart, Stellantis chief operating officer.
GM CEO Mary Barra said in a statement, “We are pleased our team members have ratified the new agreement that rewards our employees, protects the future of the business and allows us to continue to provide good jobs in communities across the U.S. We can now move forward as one team doing what we do best — delivering great products for our customers and winning together.”
GM plans plant visits
In a video post to its www.gmnegotiations2023.com page Monday, GM Executive Vice President of Global Manufacturing and Sustainability Johnson said getting an agreement that balanced the needs of employees with keeping the company competitive was “not easy work.”
“But it was important work because it impacts the livelihood of our entire team,” Johnson said. “The end result is an agreement that both rewards our team members, provides great products for our customers and protects the future of our business. That’s been our goal the entire time.”
Johnson said he will visit the plants to hear from employees on "how we can all come together as one team." He insinuated there will be heavy overtime to bring production back up to speed after the strike shut down several GM facilities.
“Our products continue to be in high demand so we will work aggressive schedules for the good of our customers,” Johnson said. “We’re at an inflection point in our EV transitions and we have an opportunity to continue to lead the industry forward. We can do this.”
GM was the last of the three to secure a tentative agreement with the union after some haggling over how to include its joint venture battery cell employees in the master contract, sources have told the Free Press. Behind the scenes, the signing of the deal was tense with Barra indicating that a ceremonial closing handshake may not be needed.
The vote across GM on the contract was more contentious than the other two. At Fort Wayne Assembly plant in Indiana, UAW Local 2209 Shop Chairman Rich LeTourneau told the Free Press the reason for the rejection vote there there was that traditional members wanted the bigger wage gains to come in the first two years of the agreement rather than waiting for the total 25% gain across 4½ years.
UAW Local 2209 Shop Chairman Rich LeTourneau stands next to a 2020 Chevrolet Trail Boss Silverado pickup built on June 2, 2020. It was recently at GM’s Fort Wayne Assembly plant.
For those members who are currently "in progression," LeTourneau said they wanted the pension reinstated and retiree health care, neither of which happened in this contract.
The union said in a statement Monday, "Though the union did not win back defined benefit pensions for post-2007 hires, the employer contribution to their 401(k)s is massively boosted to 10%, which will more than double many members’ annual 401(k) contributions over the life of the contract."
