When United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain announced on 30 October that the union had reached a contract agreement with General Motors, he praised the workers for their relentless struggle.
“The result is one of the most stunning contract victories since the sit-down strikes of the 1930s,” Fain told the workers.
But not all rank-and-file workers were convinced.
Their discontent has been on full display as they’ve gone into their union halls to vote on whether to ratify the deal – a deal that includes a 25 per cent wage increase, cost of living allowances tied to inflation, increased pension contributions and other improvements.
By Wednesday afternoon, a large minority of GM workers had voted against the record contracts, including a majority at some of the automaker’s largest plants: Flint Assembly in Michigan, Spring Hill Manufacturing in Tennessee, Wentzville Assembly in Missouri and Fort Wayne Assembly in Indiana.
Workers at GM’s Arlington Assembly plant, another large plant, went the other way, with more than 60% voting in favour of the deal.
Results from a handful of GM plants are still pending.
At Ford, 66% of workers had voted in favour of a similar deal by Wednesday afternoon, according to a vote tracker on the UAW website, although 55% of workers at Ford’s largest plant, the Kentucky Truck Plant, voted no.
“There were a lot of wins,” says Kentucky Truck Plant worker Jenn Thompson, who voted no. “But there were just a few things I would have liked to see in this contract that didn’t make it,” including retiree health care.
Stellantis was the last to vote. Workers at Stellantis’ Toledo Assembly Complex, which builds Jeeps, are voting today, with many more votes to come.
A majority of UAW workers at each plant must vote “yes” before an agreement is ratified. It’s possible that one automaker’s contract could be ratified while another’s is rejected. Fain has repeatedly told workers that they are the ultimate authority in the union.
“We are sending you this contract because we know it will break records. We know it will change lives. But what happens next is up to all of you,” Fain told workers after an agreement was reached at Ford.
If a contract is rejected, negotiators go back to the bargaining table. This is not uncommon, but the outcome is uncertain. Earlier this autumn, union members at Mack Trucks rejected a tentative agreement and went on strike. According to a UAW memo, the company rejected the union’s proposals and declared an impasse. Workers are voting again this week on essentially the same contract, which Mack Trucks has called its last, best and final offer.
In 2021, UAW workers at John Deere twice voted down contracts presented to them by their union leadership before finally approving an improved deal.