The United Auto Workers (UAW) union has reached a tentative agreement on a record contract with Ford after 41 days on strike against Detroit’s Big Three automakers.
“For months we’ve said that record profits mean record contracts, and UAW family, our Stand Up Strike has delivered. What started at three plants at midnight on September 15, has become a national movement,” UAW President Shawn Fain stated in a recent video address.
“We won things nobody thought possible. Since the strike began, Ford put 50% more on the table than when we walked out,” Fain noted. “This agreement sets us on a new path to make things right at Ford, at the Big Three, and across the auto industry. Together, we are turning the tide for the working class in this country.”
The deal follows a strike that began on September 15 at three factories of the Big Three — Ford, General Motors (GM), and Stellantis — which escalated as more union locals were called to action. As of October 19, the strike had impacted the production of approximately 43,000 vehicles per week, out of the 145,000 produced by these automakers, according to Cox Automotive.
The proposed contract is pending ratification by Ford’s union members, allowing workers to return to work before the final agreement is reached.
Once ratified, the workers will enjoy an immediate 11% wage increase, effectively recovering nearly all of their wage increases since 2007. The agreement also reinstates benefits such as cost-of-living allowances and introduces a three-year wage progression that were lost during the Great Recession. Additionally, it includes the right to strike over potential plant closures.
“We are pleased to have reached a tentative agreement on a new labor contract with the UAW covering our U.S. operations,” Ford CEO and President Jim Farley commented in a statement. “We are focused on restarting the Kentucky truck plant, Michigan assembly plant, and Chicago assembly plant, calling 20,000 Ford employees back to work in order to ship our full lineup to our customers again.”
Ongoing Strikes at GM and Stellantis
Meanwhile, strikes continue at GM and Stellantis.
On October 24 at GM, 5,000 workers from its Arlington, Texas, assembly plant joined the strike, bringing the total number of Big Three union members on strike at that time to over 45,000.
This walkout occurred just one day after 6,800 workers halted operations at the Sterling Heights, Michigan, assembly plant of Stellantis, and less than two weeks following an 8,700-worker walkout that paralyzed Ford’s Louisville, Kentucky truck plant.
According to the UAW, strike assistance of $500 per week is available, along with a bonus check payable the week prior to the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.
