UAW Members Officially Ratify New Contract with Detroit's Big 3
The United Auto Workers announced Monday that employees at each of the Big Three U.S. automakers officially ratified new contracts.
It had been clear for several days that the contract would win approval. The union said 64% of employees at Ford, Stellantis and General Motors voted to accept the deals, which were won after a six-week strike.
"As I mentioned when I joined the picket line in Toledo several times that this was a UAW strike, but the impact would be felt by working people everywhere," said Ohio AFL-CIO President Tim Burga. "This victory shows the power of a union and of collective action when workers stand together in solidarity."
As reported, after the many sacrifices autoworkers have made to help save the auto industry, the new contracts will give union workers an immediate pay increase of 11%, and union members will get a total pay increase of 25% over the course of the 4½-year deal. The new contracts also reinstate cost-of-living adjustments, let workers reach top wages in three years instead of eight, and protect their right to strike over plant closures.
The contracts were negotiated after members of the UAW went on strike from Sept. 15 until late October, in its first simultaneous strike against Ford, GM and Stellantis, which owns Chrysler and other brands.