UAW reaches tentative agreement with Ford to end strike
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- The United Auto Workers union has reached a tentative agreement with Ford Motor to end a strike.
- The strike started on September 15 and is coming up to six weeks.
- The tentative agreement still needs to be ratified by union-represented Ford workers.
The United Auto Workers union has reached a tentative agreement with Ford Motor to end a strike that's coming to six weeks.
UAW union President Shawn Fain announced the tentative agreement in an X post. The tentative agreement still needs to be approved by union leaders and ratified by union-represented Ford workers.
—UAW (@UAW) October 26, 2023
If approved, it would be the first settlement of strikes against automakers including General Motors and Stellantis.
The tentative deal includes a 25% wage increase over the course of the contract.
Ford said in a statement that it's calling 20,000 of its workers back to work.
UAW workers first walked off the job on September 15, when the union's previous contract expired. A unique strategy known as a "standup strike," threw precedence out the window, allowing the union to add factories to its action based on results at the bargaining table — all while only slowly dipping into its strike fund. About 46,000 UAW members — or about one-third of the union — went on strike.
Underpinning the negotiations were anxieties about electric vehicles, their unique manufacturing process that requires less labor, and their impact on automakers' profitability.