The United Auto Workers and Stellantis reached a tentative four-year contract on Saturday, ending a 44-day strike. By Monday morning, General Motors and union negotiators appeared to also reach an agreement. This comes days after Ford reached a provisional deal with union workers that would raise pay, improve benefits, and increase job security.
“Our union is once again victorious,” UAW President Shawn Fain announced in a video to union members. “Once again, we have achieved what just weeks ago we were told was impossible. At Stellantis in particular, we have not only secured a record contract, we have begun to turn the tide in the war on the American working class. And we truly are saving the American dream.”
Contract votes by UAW members at Stellantis plants are expected in the coming days. If approved, it would be the first major UAW contract since 2019. But about 43,000 workers are expected to return to their jobs this week.
As UAW brass was upping the pressure on GM, which was the last holdout among the Big Three automakers, Bloomberg reported the two sides reached a tentative deal to end the strike.
Over the weekend, the UAW escalated its stand-up strike against GM by ordering members to picket at GM’s engine plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee, which supplies powertrain components to nine other factories. This impacts the production of GM’s profitable light- and medium-duty pickups, as well as several SUVs and Corvettes. Last week, the UAW began to strike at GM’s largest and most profitable assembly plant in Arlington, Texas.
“We are disappointed by the UAW’s action in light of the progress we have made. We have continued to bargain in good faith with the UAW, and our goal remains to reach an agreement as quickly as possible,” GM officials said in a statement issued over the weekend.
See also: Mack, UAW leave bargaining table without a contract
Stellantis-UAW deal details
“We look forward to welcoming our 43,000 employees back to work and resuming operations to serve our customers and execute our Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan to maintain Stellantis’ position at the forefront of innovation,” Mark Stewart, Stellantis North America COO, said.
Here are the details of the pending Stellantis deal:
- 25% pay raises over contract; 11% wage bump at ratification
- Cost-of-living-adjustments (COLA) that could increase wages an additional 5%
- The right to strike over proposed plant closures
- Faster progression from starting wages to full UAW scale
- Improved pension and 401(k) benefits
Stellantis also agreed to reopen its Belvidere, Illinois, plant to make a new mid-sized pickup and to build a battery plant there.
“Going into these negotiations, the company was explicit; they wanted to cut 5,000 jobs across Stellantis,” Fain said. “We were looking at a net loss of jobs. We turned it all the way around. By the end of this agreement, Stellantis will be adding 5,000 jobs.”
Read more coverage of the Big Three strikes and work resumption from FleetOwner affiliate IndustryWeek Editor-in-Chief Robert Schoenberger.
