Unifor local president hopeful Ford becomes target for pattern deal
UAW strike possible, according to analysts
Unifor Local 200 president John D'Agnolo says both the Ford Motor Company and his union local are glad to hear Ford may be the target to set pattern bargaining this year.
"We're always excited when Ford leads because that means we're at the table first and we get the opportunity to do what we can for our members," said D'Agnolo who represents 1,700 members at the Ford Essex Engine plant and the Annex.
Clarity on where Ford stands on the transition to electric vehicles is one of the reasons Unifor President Lana Payne is considering Ford to set the pattern for bargaining, and that is especially important for the workers in Windsor.
"We build the combustion engine for the F150s, the 250s and I would hope to get some diversity there to support the young workers that are coming up today so they can retire," said D'Agnolo, who also sits on the Unifor bargaining team.
"When it comes to the EV transition, we have the clearest picture of what the Ford Oakville retool will look like, and we think that provides us with a useful baseline on which to negotiate," said Payne last Thursday at the ceremonial kickoff of talks with the Detroit Three in Toronto.
When it comes transitioning, D'Agnolo is optimistic governments will come through with more funding for Windsor to help.
"Both governments have helped us out tremendously and I'm hoping to get more," said D'Agnolo. "We have 500,000 plus square feet at Essex Engine Plant. I have an empty Windsor Engine Plant. I would love to see more work on the [battery electric vehicle] side."
But sabre rattling in the U.S. has analysts expecting strike action there come September. United Auto Workers president Shawn Fain recently called for strike votes at UAW plants at all Detroit Three automakers.
"Our view, and a lot of the industry sort of agrees with us, is it's going to be all three at the same time," said Joe McCabe, CEO of AutoForecast Solutions. "If you do all three at the same time, that is going to cripple the market or they're going to go to some critical supplier market at the lower end and they're going to pinch it off at the supplier, which is going to just gonna shut down anyway."
If that happens it will shut down engine plant operations here during the strike period.
"So GM, Ford, and Stellantis all walking away at the same time, it shuts down pretty much production right across North America," said Toronto-based automotive journalist Kay Layne.
Unifor will announce which company it will target for the pattern on Labour Day weekend. Strike votes will take place across all locals on Aug. 26 and 27. Stellantis workers will vote at Caesars Windsor at 9 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 27.
Contracts between the Detroit Three and the UAW expire on Sept. 14. The contracts between the Detroit Three and Unifor expire on Sept. 18.
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