Union claims employer 'refusing to meet pattern agreement' reached last month
Thousands of General Motors (GM) Canada workers began strike action this midnight.
This comes just weeks after Unifor workers ratified a new three-year labor contract with Ford late in September.
“This strike is about General Motors stubbornly refusing to meet the pattern agreement. The company knows our members will never let GM break our pattern – not today – not ever,” said Lana Payne, Unifor national president. “The company continues to fall short on our pension demands, income supports for retired workers, and meaningful steps to transition temporary workers into permanent, full-time jobs.”
In September, United Auto Workers – the union representing hundreds of thousands of auto workers in the United States – launched a strike action that targets the “Big Three” employers in the car-making industry.
The strike at GM includes approximately 4,280 autoworkers at the Oshawa Assembly Complex and CCA Stamped Products, St. Catharines Powertrain Plant and Woodstock Parts Distribution Centre. They are members from Unifor Locals 222, 199 and 636.
“Our bargaining team was crystal clear with the company throughout these negotiations: our members are united and ready to strike, no exceptions,” said Jason Gale, Unifor GM master bargaining chair. “Everything our members do, from the trucks we assemble, the stamping plant we run, the engines and transmissions we build and the parts we deliver, are all critical to GM’s bottom line. This dispute can only end one way: with GM agreeing to the same terms in our pattern agreement with Ford.”
The GM workers will remain on strike until the pattern is met, according to the Unifor. Meanwhile, Unifor Local 88 members at the CAMI Assembly Plant in Ingersoll, Ont. will continue operations as they are covered by a separate collective agreement.
In April, around 5,000 of its white-collar workers opted for GM's buyout offers.
‘We remain at the bargaining table’
In a press release, GM noted that they have made “very positive progress on several key priorities” over the past weeks, they are “disappointed that we were not able to achieve a new collective agreement with Unifor at this time”.
“We remain at the bargaining table and are committed to keep working with Unifor to reach an agreement that is fair and flexible,” said the company.
Payne echoed the statement in a news report from The Associated Press.
“We made some progress throughout the day, but sadly not enough,” she told reporters, according to the report. She said the union was still speaking with the company, but there was “a lot of ground that needed to be covered to reach a tentative agreement.”
Several unions have held labour strikes this year, and more may be in store, two experts previously warned.
