It’s no secret that Ford rival Stellantis has faced its fair share of struggles as of late, compounded by an angry dealer network, industry-high inventory levels, and falling sales and profit. However, the automaker has also been dealing with some backlash from the United Auto Workers (UAW) union, which filed unfair labor practices against the company recently, accusing it of failing to live up to the terms of the new master contract agreement the two sides reached last fall. Now, Stellantis has filed more lawsuits against the UAW as this dispute intensifies.
Earlier this month, Stellantis filed a lawsuit against the UAW and UAW Local 230 representing the Los Angeles Parts Distribution Center, and now, it has added eight additional lawsuits against the UAW and 23 Local unions as well. Stellantis notes that the UAW has proposed reinstituting a concept called the Jobs Bank – established by General Motors in the mid-80s and adopted by Ford and Chrysler due to pattern bargaining agreements – which generally prohibited the Detroit automakers from laying off employees. Stellantis notes that this concept was a contributing factor to the automaker’s bankruptcy in 2009, as at that time, Chrysler had 2,000 workers in the Jobs Bank that were on the active payroll, but were not allowed to perform any production work.
The UAW wants to reinstate the Jobs Bank for workers at the Belvidere Assembly plant in Illinois after Stellantis reportedly canceled plans to build a mid-size pickup there as previously promised, which was also included in its contract agreement with the union. Regardless, Stellantis now says that it has merely delayed its plans for Belvidere, and has chosen to reject the UAW’s proposal on grounds that it’s not financially feasible, calling any potential strike by the union illegal amid a changing market. “If necessary, the company intends to see this litigation through to conclusion and will hold the UAW and its locals responsible for lost revenue, which could amount to tens of millions a day, and other damages resulting from lost production due to an unlawful strike,” the company stated.
This move comes after a supermajority of UAW members at the Stellantis Los Angeles Parts Distribution Center voted to request strike authorization from the International Executive Board if the company and union can’t settle their grievance. As the grievances proceed, more UAW locals at Stellantis could be holding strike authorization votes soon, too.
Comments
Maybe the UAW should purchase part of Stellantis.
They’d better hurry because rumor has it that it’s looking to merge with Renault and maybe BMW too. I know, weird but true.
Stellantis is simply brain-dead.
They have been building shit for over 30 years, the government bailed them out twice.
When does it stop, you build shit, it doesn’t sell, you go out of business. End of story.