The union stated that the agreement included a 25 percent increase in pay over four years. It also had major gains for pensions, job security, and the right to strike against plant closures. The union called on Ford employees to return to work until the tentative agreement is ratified.
Shawn Fain said that in a livestream on Facebook, the agreement would be presented to the U.A.W. The council that oversees Ford’s relationship was meeting in Detroit on Sunday. The union will then submit the contract to Ford’s 57,000 workers union for their approval if the council approves.
“We made history,” said Mr. Fain. Ford did as we told them to.
Ford released a short statement in which it stated, in part: “We are delighted to have reached an agreement tentatively on a new labour contract with the U.A.W. Covering our U.S. Operations.”
The union is continuing to negotiate with General Motors (G.M.) and Stellantis (whose brands include Chrysler Jeep Ram).
Fain stated that the tentative agreement between Ford and him “breaks records.” “We know that it will change the lives of many people,” he said. But he stressed that union members would make the final decision.
Ford made an offer two weeks ago when it stated that it had reached its limit in terms of what it could afford to do without harming its business. Ford offered to raise wages by 23 percent, adjust the pay to inflation, and reduce the time it takes for new employees to reach the top salary to four years from eight. Other companies have also made similar offers.
The U.A.W. The U.A.W. demanded greater concessions. They intensified the walkouts in order to target factories that produce some of the most profitable automakers’ models.
This is a major win for the U.A.W. after years of erosion due to inflation, wage divisions, and other issues at work that made people angry, said Harley Shaiken. Harley Shaiken is an emeritus professor at the University of California Berkeley who has been following the U.A.W. For more than 30 years. It sets a high standard for workers in the entire economy.
The agreement was hailed by President Biden, who championed the cause of the union and had joined a picket line during a Michigan visit last month. “I applaud U.A.W. Ford and the U.A.W. for reaching a historic tentative agreement after a long, hard-fought and good-faith negotiations,” he said.
The union stated that the agreement would eventually raise the top wage to over $40 an hour. This would give a member who works 40 hours per week a salary of more than $83000, without overtime or profit-sharing bonuses, which are more than $14,000.
The top hourly wage in the United States is currently $32 per hour. This is equivalent to about $67,000 annually based on working a 40-hour work week.
The union stated that recent hires earning less than the highest wage will have their wages nearly doubled throughout their contract.
The tentative agreement with Ford may increase pressure on other companies to agree with the union. Once the union had reached an agreement with one automaker in the past, other tentative agreements were quickly signed. This history is less relevant today because the U.A.W. The U.A.W. has never affected all three companies at the same time before this year.
Around 45,000 Ford, G.M. About 45,000 workers from Ford, G.M.
Ford’s executive chairman, William C. Ford Jr., said last week that the union’s demands could damage the Detroit automaker’s ability to compete against non-union companies like Tesla and foreign rivals. Ford’s chairman, William C. Ford Jr., said last week that the union’s demands could harm Detroit automakers’ ability to compete with non-union companies such as Tesla and foreign competitors.
He said, “Toyotas, Hondas, Teslas and others are enjoying the strike because they know that the longer it lasts, the better for them.” “They will win and we will all lose.”
The U.A.W. The U.A.W.
The walkouts began when the union contracts of the companies expired in mid-September. It received immediate backing from Mr. Biden, who called for the automakers “to ensure record corporate profits means record contracts.” Briefly joined workers at a G.M. plant near Detroit late last month.
The union originally demanded a wage increase of 40 percent over four years. This amount, according to union officials, is the same as the raises that top executives from the three companies received in the past four years. These raises also aim to compensate for the modest wage increases that autoworkers have received over the last few years and concessions made by the union to companies starting in 2007.
The union also called for the end of a system where new hires are paid just over half the highest wage of $32 per hour. It called for adjustments to increase salaries in order to compensate for inflation. It also demanded the reinstatement of pensions, better retiree benefits, and shorter working hours for all workers.
G.M. G.M. The U.A.W. The union called out 6,800 workers in Michigan on Monday and 5,000 workers at a G.M. This factory produces large sport utility vehicles such as the Chevrolet Tahoe GMC, Yukon, and the Cadillac Escalade.
“Ford was aware of what would happen to them on Wednesday, if we did not get a deal,” said Mr. Fain. “That was checkmate.”
G.M. announced a third-quarter profit of $3.1 billion. This is a 7 percent decrease from the year before, due in part to a strike. Ford will report its third-quarter earnings on Thursday.
