Monday, November 13, 2023

Ford UAW workers in Louisville vote on new contract. What we know

Olivia Evans, Louisville Courier Journal
Updated Mon, November 13, 2023 

UAW Local 862 President Todd Dunn cast his ballot on the vote to ratify a Ford contract at the Galt House in Louisville, Ky. on Nov. 12, 2023.


United Auto Workers at Ford Motor Co. in Louisville headed to the polls Sunday to vote on a tentative agreement that, if passed, would immediately give all workers an 11% wage increase, restore cost-of-living allowances and new retirement benefits.

The 12,000 Louisville area Ford workers at the Kentucky Truck Plant and the Louisville Assembly Plant, represented by UAW Local 862, are voting on the tentative agreement along with 53 other union locals nationwide.

The results from Local 862's voting are expected to be announced Monday.


Todd Dunn, president of UAW Local 862, the largest autoworkers' local, previously told The Courier Journal, "... We've got a contract that's the best contract we've seen in two decades."

Ford and the UAW, the union representing 57,000 Ford workers nationally, reached a tentative agreement on a new four-year contract on Oct. 25.

Reaching this contract was no easy feat. The UAW, led by recently elected International President Shawn Fain, enacted a new strike strategy against the Detroit Three automakers — Ford, General Motors and Stellantis — after failing to reach an agreement before the contract expired Sept. 14 at 11:59 p.m.

The "stand up" strike Fain crafted made its way to Louisville Oct. 11 when the UAW called the KTP, home of the Super Duty truck, out to strike. Some 9,000 Louisville Ford workers were on strike for two weeks before a tentative agreement was announced.

In Louisville, workers voted Sunday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. The UAW will announce the final status of the tentative agreement and if it has been ratified after all local unions across the nation have voted. Local elections on the tentative agreement are expected to last through mid-November.

Dexter Estes, a member of the Local 862 color guard, said this contract brings a lot to the lives of members, specifically the "young folks."

"I'm happy for them, I'm happy for this contract, I'm happy we've reached this point," Estes said after voting in favor of the contract.

What are workers saying at the ratification polls?


UAW Local 862 members cast their ballots on the vote to ratify a Ford contract at the Galt House in Louisville, Ky. on Nov. 12, 2023.

By 9:07 a.m. in Louisville, members of Local 862 made a motion to open the polls, and thousands of workers filled the Galt House Hotel's Grand Ballroom lobby to cast ballots.

Kenneth Walker, a 28-year member of Local 862 and member of the union's color guard, said he voted "yes" for the contract for the "the betterment of my livelihood."

"We negotiated a good contract, and I want to come out and do my part in my contract," Walker said.

For Walker, the best part of the contract is the retirement benefits package. Walker plans to retire soon, so having strong retiree benefits was crucial to him. The tentative agreement offers a retirement buyout up to $50,000, a 401(k)-annuity retirement option, retiree lump sum bonuses and expanded education benefits to attend college.

"The retirement that they got here and what they're offering right now is beneficial for some of us and will give us a good score on retirement," Walker said.

While many workers came in, voted and quickly left, Local 862 was hosting a meeting in the Grand Ballroom where members could ask questions about the contract and hear from UAW representatives and bargaining committee members. Dunn said the goal of this was to allow members a chance to wager any concerns and learn the union's thought process through bargaining.

"[Workers] get to go and talk to the international reps ... then you can go to the polls and actually vote yea or nay," Marcus Cheatom, a union steward for Local 862, said.

Cheatom said he voted to ratify the contract because it "made a big step toward" returning Ford to a career destination for workers and a place where people with only a high school diploma could earn a good living with high wages, company provided health care and retirement benefits.

"It's important for members to vote because it's our contract, and you pay your dues, so therefore you should have a say in the contract," Cheatom said. "We want everyone to get the facts, get your analysis, and then make the decision based on what you feel is better for you, the present and the future."

How have other UAW locals voted on the tentative agreement?


UAW Local 862 President Todd Dunn, right, greeted UAW Color Guard member Dexter Estes during the vote to ratify a Ford contract at the Galt House in Louisville, Ky. on Nov. 12, 2023.

Nationwide, 25 of the 54 UAW locals representing Ford workers had already voted on the contract as of Sunday. Every local that voted so far, except Local 788 in Florida, has voted in favor of the contract by a high margin.

The Michigan Assembly Plant final assembly and paint, which was the first Ford plant called to strike, voted 82.4% in favor of the tentative agreement.

The Chicago Assembly Plant, which was also called to strike Ford, voted to ratify the contract with 56.7% of voters in favor of the potential contract.

Overall, as of Sunday morning, the national contract vote swayed 70.8% in favor of ratifying it.

"I didn't get everything I personally wanted, but there's no doubt this contract is historic in some ways," said Shawn McIntyre, affectionately known as "Chappy" at the Louisville Assembly Plant. "We got a lot that's going to change lives now; we can always fight for more later."

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What's in the contract: Ford workers are heading to the polls. What we know about Ford, UAW tentative contract

Contact business reporter Olivia Evans at oevans@courier-journal.com or on Twitter at @oliviamevans_.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: UAW, Ford tentative contract agreement goes to a vote in Louisville

Ford production workers at Kentucky, Louisville vote against new labor deal


Reuters
Sun, November 12, 2023 

United Auto Workers (UAW) union members picket outside Ford's Kentucky truck plant


(Reuters) -Production workers at Ford's Louisville assembly and Kentucky truck plants have voted against the tentative labor agreement, while skilled trades workers voted in favor, the local chapter of the United Auto Workers (UAW) said on Monday.

The ratification of the contract was voted down by 55% of the production workers whereas 69% of the skilled trades workers, which includes maintenance and construction employees backed it, the UAW Local 862 said in a Facebook post.

The union did not disclose the overall percentage of the votes in favor or the total number of votes cast.

The vote signals that approval of the deal, which is set to significantly raise Ford's costs, is not guaranteed. The union and the company did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

The automaker had last month pulled its full-year forecast due to uncertainty over the pending ratification of the deal with the UAW.

Union workers are voting on contracts from each of Chrysler-owner Stellantis, GM and Ford, after the first coordinated strike against Detroit's Big Three automakers.

Of the total votes cast at Ford's various facilities so far, 70.7% of workers have voted in favor of the deal, according to a UAW vote tracker.

Workers at some of the company's major plants including the Dearborn Truck plant in Michigan are yet to vote.

On Friday, union members at General Motors' Flint assembly plant in Michigan narrowly voted against the proposed contract with the U.S. automaker.

(Reporting by Gokul Pisharody and Shivansh Tiwary in Bengaluru; Editing by Dhanya Ann Thoppil and Arun Koyyur)

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