On Saturday evening, the United Auto Workers (UAW) reached a tentative agreement with Stellantis NV, ending the 44-day strike against selected plants.
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The agreement includes product allocation for most U.S. plants, including a midsize pickup truck at the Belvidere assembly plant in Illinois that Stellantis has idled earlier this year, said UAW Vice President Rich Boyer in a video posted to social media.
The automaker also committed new products to Trenton Engine, protecting jobs there, and to Toledo Machining, which would double the workforce there.
Stellantis and General Motors (GM) made new offers late this week to match a 25-percent raise over the course of Ford's agreement reached Wednesday that would expire in April 2028. The top pay would reach US$40.46 per hour by the end of the contract. There also would be a US$5,000 ratification bonus.
Stellantis' chief operating officer in North America Mark Stewart refrained from commenting on the details of the contract until it is shared with UAW members but said in a statement:
"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 amount of money we won in gains for temporary workers in this contract is more than the total amount in gains we won for everyone in the 2019 agreement. The days of low-wage, unstable jobs at the Big Three are coming to an end," UAW President Shawn Fain said.
Stellantis has over 14,000 UAW members on strike at its two assembly plants and parts distribution centers nationwide.
Ford reached a tentative agreement on a new contract with the UAW Wednesday night, exerting pressure on Stellantis and GM to intensify their negotiations with the UAW.
U.S. President Joe Biden hailed the tentative agreement between UAW and Stellantis as a "groundbreaking contract" in a statement issued Saturday evening, saying it "rewards the autoworkers who sacrificed so much to revive our auto industry with record raises, more paid leave, greater retirement security, and more rights and respect at work."
"This contract is a testament to the power of unions and collective bargaining to build strong middle-class jobs while helping our most iconic American companies thrive," Biden said.
Since Sept. 14, when the UAW declared strikes at Ford, GM, and Stellantis after its contract with the Big Three expired, over 45,000 autoworkers from eight assembly plants and 38 parts distribution centers of the Big Three have joined the strikes.