Ford EV Battery Plant Workers Intend To Join UAW

For some time, it’s been unclear if under-construction EV battery plants in the U.S. would ultimately organize under unions, though this past September, General Motors workers voted to join the United Auto Workers (UAW) this past September. From the start, Ford has stated that it would leave that decision up to its workers, but Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear recently stated that the future BlueOval SK Battery Park site in that state wouldn’t utilize union labor when it opens early next year. Now, however, it seems as if the UAW may have swayed workers in that direction after all.

According to the UAW, a supermajority of workers at the future joint-venture Ford EV battery plant have signed union authorization cards and subsequently launched their campaign to join the organization. Those workers noted that “battery workers are autoworkers” and deserve “the good, safe union jobs” that UAW members have secured elsewhere in the auto industry. The UAW also added that this move should result in higher wages, given the fact that BlueOval SK is offering a $21 hourly starting pay compared to the $26.32 workers at unionized Ford plants now earn.

As Ford Authority previously reported, production at BlueOval SK Battery Park is now slated to begin in Q1 of next year, which is a few months earlier than previously expected. Though the joint-venture is building two battery plants at the site, only one will be used for now – employing 2,500 people when it opens – while the other will remain idle amid slow demand for Ford EVs.

Back in February, the UAW announced that it was allocating $40 million in funds specifically to organizing future EV battery plants in the U.S. between now and 2026. The UAW International Executive Board voted in favor of using those funds for that particular purpose, which is notable given the fact that over the next several years, those types of plants are expected to add tens of thousands of jobs in the U.S. – or, in some cases, replace or supplement existing jobs.