It took a two-day strike, extraordinary solidarity and more than two months of tough bargaining for 73,000 UAW members at General Motors to bring home a new contract with unprecedented product and investment commitments.
With the protection of U.S. manufacturing jobs at the top of the union’s bargaining agenda, UAW negotiators insisted on — and won — solid pledges from GM to build specific products in specific plants.
GM also agreed to a moratorium on outsourcing, a pledge to insource more than 3,000 UAW jobs and a commitment to hire 3,000 temporary workers as permanent GM employees.
“For too many years, America has stood idly by while industries moved overseas,” said UAW President Ron Gettelfinger. “U.S. autoworkers made a decision: We were fighting for U.S. auto jobs. We made progress at GM, and we’re going to continue to advocate for a strong U.S. manufacturing sector.”
The tentative agreement, reached at 3:05 a.m. Sept. 26, delivers solid economic gains for active and retired members, despite repeated attempts by GM to impose harsh takeaways
The agreement will deliver more than $13,000 in economic gains for a typical UAW member, including a $3,000 signing bonus, two 3 percent lump sums and a 4 percent lump sum.
Active workers will see their comprehensive health care coverage continue, with dental, hearing and other benefits improved. Retired workers will have their health benefits secured by a Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association (VEBA), prefunded by GM with $29.9 billion in cash and other assets. The fund can only be used to pay retiree health benefits, and will remain solvent for decades regardless of the financial condition of GM.
The proposed contract will also deliver benefits to current and future retirees, with four lump-sum payments for current retirees, and a raise in basic benefit rates, the 30-and-out supplement, temporary and interim benefits for future retirees.
The company came into these talks looking to shred our contract to pieces,” said UAW Vice President Cal Rapson, who directs the UAW GM Department.
“But you can’t tear apart a group that stands together the way UAW members do.”The new agreement also requires contributions from active UAW members to benefit retirees, and an adjustment in wage schedules to encourage new hiring at GM. Resources that would have gone to a general wage increase for active workers will instead be used to contribute to the VEBA to fund retiree health care benefits, and GM will have the right to hire entry-level workers at a lower wage rate for certain “non-core” operations.
“We’re dealing with the realities of a highly competitive industry that does not operate on a level playing field,” said Rapson. “We’ve negotiated a realistic agreement that protects existing manufacturing jobs, and also creates the possibility for future growth.”
Here's the Chrysler contract information (hourly workers) Salaried workers
Ford hourly -- Ford Salaried
Now they're trying to shake down the taxpayer.
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