Two GM employees on strike, one, a temp worker celebrating her 37th birthday, the other a skilled tradesman of 48 years speak. Kathleen Galligan, Detroit Free Press
A day after the director of the UAW’s Ford Department touted progress in bargaining negotiations to members as the strike against General Motors continues, the head of the union’s Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Department did the same for her members.
In a letter to FCA union members, UAW Vice President Cindy Estrada said the number of issues that remain outstanding between the two sides has dwindled. Although the union picked GM as the target for negotiations, the union committees have continued to meet with both Ford and FCA.
“Your UAW-FCA Bargaining Committee continue to meet daily with the company in subcommittees. Some of the committees are close to completing to the point where the only issues left are economic or patterned that will be resolved once the UAW-GM negotiations are settled,” Estrada said in the letter. “Our current goal is to have all your noneconomic and noninstitutional demands resolved before our turn to settle comes.”
Estrada noted that “negotiating agreements as large and complex as ours takes time and the process has many ups and downs.”
Generally, clearing subcommittee issues means bargaining on major issues such as wages, temporary workers and job security are left for “main table” talks.
Her comments came as the strike against GM, involving more than 46,000 workers, nears the end of its third week. The spillover impact has been growing with GM idling plants outside the United States, suppliers laying off workers and striking employees now earning $250 per week from union strike pay.
Estrada encouraged FCA UAW workers to show their support for their striking brothers and sisters as well.
“I ask all of you to donate your time and visit the picket lines during your off-work hours. I know many of you have, but make sure to let them know that the membership of UAW-FCA thanks them for the sacrifice they are making for all of us. They will set the pattern for us to follow,” Estrada said.
FCA responded to the Estrada letter but did not provide any clues on what progress has been made to date:
“Bargaining between FCA and the UAW continues with the goal of reaching an agreement that will allow us to continue investing in our future while creating opportunities for our employees, their families and the communities where we live and work. We thank all of our employees for their continued hard work and dedication.”
On Thursday, Rory Gamble, vice president for the UAW Ford Department, sent a letter to members saying his team had “made significant progress in this set of negotiations” with 18 out of 20 subcommittees reaching tentative agreements or negotiated “to the point that only patterned or large economic items remain open for discussion.”
Gamble’s letter noted that UAW-Ford negotiations are fluid but progressing well.
Ford Motor Co. hourly employees have been showing support for GM strikers, too. Members from Local 600, which represents Ford’s Dearborn Truck plant, have been filling in on the picket lines at GM plants.
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“I go to the picket lines myself every five to six days a week and picket for an hour,” said Gary Walkowicz, bargaining committeeman at Dearborn Truck Plant.
Walkowicz said he has picketed with GM’s UAW workers at GM’s Romulus Powertrain plant and Detroit Hamtramck.
“There were Chrysler and Ford workers there, too,” said Walkowicz. “We’ve had a few days when we’ve had different crews come out together and we’ve had good turnout. We had a day with 100 workers that came at Romulus.”
Most of the UAW members at Ford and FCA are ready to help because, said Walkowicz, “This fight is our fight, this can greatly impact our contract and our future.”
As autoworkers from other companies show their support for the GM workers, a prominent union official representing 3 million construction workers is now pushing GM to reach a deal with the UAW.
Sean McGarvey, president of North America’s Building Trades Unions, noted in a letter dated Friday to GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra that his group’s pension plans hold about 7% ($3.46 billion) of GM’s shares.
“As a major GM shareholder, we strongly encourage you to reach an equitable settlement with the UAW as soon as possible. We have watched this strike closely and remained quiet until now. We are increasingly concerned with your approach to our company’s most important asset, its workforce, and the fallout on GM’s ability to generate long-term value for shareholders,” the letter said. “We believe it’s time for a fair resolution, especially when GM recorded a net profit of $2.4 billion in just the second quarter of this year alone.”
In a response sent to the Free Press, GM noted its goal:
“We continue to negotiate and exchange proposals, and it remains our goal to reach a tentative agreement that builds a stronger future for our employees and our company.”
Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com or 313-223-4272. Follow him on Twitter: @_ericdlawrence.
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