(CBS DETROIT) – Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers, says the union plans to hold a vote on a strike authorization against Stellantis, which he says has failed to meet contractual obligations that were made through 2023.
In a livestream on Tuesday, Fain said the votes are scheduled to take place at one or more Stellantis locations. While the union would normally call for a strike over an expiring contract, the union has won the right to strike over product and investment commitments through a negotiated agreement in 2023.
“We are certainly not going to turn around and let Stellantis violate our agreement and destroy thousands of good working-class jobs in America. The right to strike over product investments is new to the UAW,” Fain said. “If we are going to win this fight, we must be educated, organized, and most importantly, united when we take action.”
On Monday, the UAW has filed federal unfair labor practice charges against the automaker for reportedly planning to move production of the Dodge Durango outside the United States to Canada. Production currently takes place at the Detroit Assembly Complex.
Fain says the measure “would cost thousands of American jobs and would be a blatant violation of our contract.”
Fain also criticized Stellantis for delaying the reopening of the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois. The plant was set to close in 2023, but under the contractual agreement, the automaker promised to reopen the plant.
In August 2024, the UAW threatened to go on strike over the delayand said Stellantis is “not receptive” to discussions about continuing to reopen Belvidere.
“We have 100% the right and the power to take strike action if necessary,” Fain said Tuesday.
More than a dozen UAW affiliates have filed complaints against Stellantis, which has a portfolio of 14 brands including Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, Fiat and Maserati.
Stellantis responded to Fain’s speech:
“Like all of our competitors, Stellantis is trying to carefully manage how and when we launch new products in an electric vehicle market that remains highly volatile. We remain focused on bringing affordable multi-energy vehicles to consumers while ensuring our future sustainability, which is necessary to protect American manufacturing jobs. The commitments we made during the 2023 negotiations cover the 4-year, 7-1/2-month term of the agreement, so it is not surprising that they were not fully realized in the first year. And to be clear, Shawn Fain’s claim that the company has confirmed plans for the Dodge Durango is simply not true. The company has not confirmed such a thing. However, Shawn Fain continues to allege that the company is in breach of the contract, but to date has provided no data or information to support his claims. Instead, he continues to deliberately damage the company’s reputation with his public attacks, which helps no one, including its members. We would all be better off if these issues were addressed at the table with productive, respectful and progressive dialogue. A strike benefits no one: our customers, our dealers, the community and most importantly, our employees.”
