DETROIT – The UAW and the Big Three automakers are still in negotiation talks as the strike deadline approaches.
Local 4 has been told that there has been some movement in contract negotiations, but there have not been any confirmed deals with any of the automakers.
The existing contract expires at 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 14. Nearly all of the 146,000 auto workers represented by the UAW have already voted to authorize a strike, should leaders decide to call one.
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The UAW has made its list of demands public and that list includes the elimination of tiers, big wave increases, restoration of Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA), right to strike, increase retiree pay, and more.
The UAW was asking for wage increases of 40%, but they have decreased that to 36%. As of Friday, the highest wage increase was from Stellantis and was 14.5%. Sources say the highest wage increase offer is now more than 14.5%.
Ford CEO Jim Farley spoke to reporters after the reveal of the new F-150 at the Detroit International Auto Show on Tuesday, Sept. 12.
“We put an offer in today that’s our most generous offer in 80 years at the UAW and Ford. Pay increases, elimination of tiers, inflation protection, five weeks of vacation, 17 paid holidays, bigger contributions for retirement. So it’s a significant, significant enhancement. Still optimistic that we’ll get a deal, but there is a limit -- and because we have to protect for future investments and the profitability of the company funds those. We’re America’s largest employer of automobile manufacturing in the U.S. It is very important that Ford gets this right,” Ford CEO Jim Farley said.
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Fain has warned that auto workers will strike at any of the Big Three automakers that haven’t reached a deal by the deadline. If a national strike is called at each of the Big Three at the same time, it would be the first time in history.
“I think there is gonna be a strike,” Clark Hill labor management attorney Dennis Devaney said. “I actually think that the target probably is gonna be Stellantis and I think because of the background and the movement, particularly by Ford, I think there is a fair chance that there may be -- not an agreement by Thursday -- but an extension of time to continue.”
UAW President Shawn Fain is expected to provide an update on contract negotiation talks at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 13, on Facebook Live.
The Associated Press said sources confirmed to them that UAW leaders are considering targeted strikes at a small number of factories run by each of the Big Three automakers if they can’t reach a contract agreement by the deadline.
According to the Associated Press, union leadership discussed smaller-scale strikes at a meeting on Friday, and local union leaders were told about the strategy on Tuesday afternoon.
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