Stellantis in Auburn Hills and the United Auto Workers (UAW) came to terms over the weekend on a new tentative contract, ending the 44-day strike at key Stellantis plants, while this morning several news outlets are reporting General Motors Co. in Detroit also has agreed to a new contract although neither side has confirmed the report.
Like the agreement with Ford Motor Co. in Dearborn, the Stellantis deal includes gains valued at more than four times the gains from the union’s 2019 contract. It provides more in base wage increases than Stellantis workers have received in the past 22 years, according to the UAW.
“Today, as we announce that we have reached a tentative agreement with the UAW on a new labor contract, I would like to thank all the negotiating teams who have worked tirelessly for many weeks to get to this point,” says Mark Stewart, COO of Stellantis North America.
“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.”
The agreement grants 25 percent in base wage increases through April 2028, and will cumulatively raise the top wage by 33 percent compounded with estimated cost of living adjustment (COLA) to more than $42 an hour.
The starting wage will increase by 67 percent compounded with estimated COLA, to more than $30 an hour. The lowest-paid workers at Stellantis, temporary workers, will see a raise of more than 165 percent over the life of the agreement. Some workers at Mopar will receive an immediate 76 percent increase upon ratification.
“Once again, we have achieved what just weeks ago we were told was impossible,” says Shawn Fain, president of the UAW. “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. Going into these negotiations, the company wanted to cut 5,000 jobs across Stellantis. Our Stand Up Strike changed that equation. Not only did we not lose those 5,000 jobs, we turned it all the way around. By the end of this agreement, Stellantis will be adding 5,000 jobs. We truly are saving the American dream.”
The reported GM deal is expected to be along the lines of the Ford and Stellantis agreements, including an immediate 11 percent raise in the top hourly wage rate, additional pay hikes totaling another 14 percent during the four-and-a-half years of the contract, as well as a return of COLA meant to protect workers from rising prices.
Stellantis also came to terms with its Canadian workers, represented by Unifor, after a two-day strike.
The Canadian work stoppage involved more than 8,200 autoworkers at facilities Ontario, including two large assembly plants that produce the Chrysler 300 sedan, the Pacifica minivan, and Dodge Challenger and Charger.
Details of the tentative Canadian agreement were not immediately available, but is said to be patterned from a ratified agreement between the union and Ford, which included hourly wage increases of up to 25 percent, reactivation of a COLA to battle inflation, and a shorter progression for workers to reach top pay, among other new or altered benefits.
“Once ratified, this agreement will reward our 8,000 represented employees and protect the long-term health of our Canadian operations,” Stewart says. “Out of respect for the bargaining process, we will refrain from commenting until the ratification process is complete.
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