General Motors and the United Auto Workers have agreed to a four-and-a-half-year tentative agreement which will put an end to the ongoing strikes that have been going on for six weeks.
UAW Flag, Photo Courtesy: ABC News
General Motors is the final Detroit automaker to reach a deal with the union, following talks with the United Auto Workers. General Motors joins Stellantis and Ford, who had reached deals last week. The tentative deal, however, must still be ratified by members at each of the automakers.
The tentative deal included guidelines like calling for a roughly 25% raise over the course of four years, calling for improvements on pensions, and the right to strike on plant closures. The UAW originally sought out a 40% pay increase combined over the four-year duration, as well as a 32-hour work week at 40-hour pay. The current agreements with Ford and Stellantis appear to not be at these terms, but they do deliver improve raises and job security protections.
The UAW celebrated the deal, calling it a “…historic tentative agreement that paves the way for a just transition and wins record economic gains for autoworkers.” President Biden also praised the recent contract agreements, calling them “historic”, and went on to say, “These agreements ensure the iconic Big 3 can still lead the world in quality and innovation…due to the commitment and solidarity of the United Auto Workers willing to exercise their right to collectively bargain, they won a record contract.”
The UAW represents about 150,000 autoworkers, with the work strikes that started against the Big 3 automakers beginning more then a month ago. At the peak of the strike, it was reported that more than 46,000 employees refused to work.
Last week, it was said that the strikes costed the automotive industry at least $9.3 billion. Automakers had originally expressed much reluctance to meet some of the demands from the UAW they had considered “ambitious” and said that their proposals would take their investments away from the shift to electric vehicles, as well as their need to compete with non-union competitors.
General Motors CEO Mary Barra said in a statement that “General Motors is pleased to have reached a tentative agreement with the United Auto Workers that reflects the contributions of the team while enabling us to continue to invest in our future and provide…we are looking forward to having everyone back to work across all of our operations, delivering great products for our customers, and winning as one team.”
UAW Worker on Strike, Photo Courtesy: NBC