DETROIT (WXYZ) — The United Auto Workers union has reached its second tentative agreement, this time with Stellantis.
It comes three days after the union first reached an agreement with Ford Motor Company on Wednesday night. and it leave General Motors as the only automaker without a tentative agreement
The deal with Ford came on day 40 of the strike, and it still has to be ratified by more than 57,000 UAW members for Ford. The same process will have to happen with Stellantis.
The deal follows the same template that was reached with Ford earlier in the week. The agreement will have to be ratified by UAW workers at Stellantis, but it's expected that the 14,000 workers on strike will get back to work while the process plays out, just like it is with Ford. The deal, like Ford's, is set to run through April 30, 2028.
According to the UAW, the deal with Ford included a 25% pay raise over the life of the contract, the reinstatement of pre-2009 cost-of-living adjustments, retiree benefits, temp worker raise, wage progression and more.
Stellantis COO Mark Stewart released a statement saying in part, "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. 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. "
After the deal was announced with Ford, the union said Ford workers should get back to work on the line while the process of ratification plays out. That’s because they wanted to keep the pressure on GM and Stellantis.
“The last thing they want is for Ford to get back to full capacity while they mess around and lag behind,” UAW Vice President Chuck Browning said after the Ford agreement was announced.
It was reported on Friday night that the UAW agreed to a pay raise of 25% GM and Stellantis offered, which was matched by Ford.
The initial deadline for a new contract was 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 14. After the contract expired, workers walked out at three plants: GM Wentzville Assembly in Missouri, Stellantis Toledo Assembly Complex in Ohio, and the Ford Michigan Assembly Plant, final assembly and paint only.
Since the strike announcement, the Stand Up Strike expanded to 45,000 UAW workers across the country at some of the Big Three’s largest and most profitable plants.
Fain also said he would stop waiting until Fridays to announce new plant strikes, which came to fruition when he announced a strike at the Ford Kentucky Truck Plant first, then back-to-back announcements of strikes at the Stellantis Sterling Heights Assembly on Oct. 23 and GM’s Arlington Assembly on Oct. 24.
Throughout the negotiation process, UAW President Shawn Fain has called for the union to stand together, and the automakers have proposed offers that they say stretch their limits.
As of the last UAW update on Oct. 20, the automakers were proposing 23% pay increases, but Fain said there were still more to go on some issues including cost-of-living adjustments, retiree wages, tiers and more.
When the UAW announced plans for negotiations, the union said wanted double-digit pay increases, the end of the tiered wage system, better healthcare, a 32-hour work week and more.
The UAW had well over $800 million in the strike fund at the beginning of the strike, and many workers we spoke with during negotiations said they were willing to fight for what they wanted.
The UAW also went on strike against GM in 2019 after failing to reach a tentative contract agreement. That strike lasted from Sept. 15 through Oct. 25 after an agreement was reached on Oct. 16 but ratified nine days later.
