UAW union and Ford reach tentative labor agreement
United Auto Workers and Ford have reached a tentative agreement to return 16,600 strikers to work within days and pay them at least 25% more between now and 2028, ending a 41-day strike at Ford.
There will be no end to the strike at two other unionized automakers, General Motors, the nation’s largest carmaker, and Stellantis, which builds Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler vehicles in North America. Until their companies reach a similar agreement with Ford, the 29,000 UAW members there will remain on strike.
According to UAW President Shawn Fain, those moves convinced Ford to meet the union’s demands at the bargaining table. Following an all-night bargaining session Tuesday and Wednesday, a tentative agreement was announced just after 8 p.m.
In a video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, Fain declared, “Our Stand Up strike has delivered.”.
“We knew we were getting close to the finish line. Our attack on the companies was as effective as possible,” Fain said. “Ford knew what was coming to them if we didn’t reach an agreement by Wednesday.
An agreement has been tentatively reached, Ford said in a statement.
According to Ford, the company employs the most hourly autoworkers and assembles the most vehicles in the United States. “We are focusing on restarting Kentucky Truck Plant, Michigan Assembly Plant, and Chicago Assembly Plant, and returning 20,000 Ford employees to work.”