In a pivotal vote, union workers at Mack Trucks have rejected a tentative five-year contract with the company, stirring the stew of industrial unease, with plans to commence a strike at dawn on Monday. The United Auto Workers union, representing the dissenting workers, confirmed this development.
Shawn Fain, Union President, communicated the voter sentiment to Mack’s parent company, Volvo Trucks, in a missive stating about 73 per cent of the workforce indicated their dissent in a vote held on Sunday.
The UAW, which acts on behalf of around 4,000 Mack employees distributed across three states, reached an initial agreement regarding the deal earlier in the month.
The offer on the table encompassed a series of enticements including a 19% salary increment spread over the duration of the contract with a front-loaded 10% increase upon ratification. Further incentives comprised a US$3,500 ratification bonus and a freeze in weekly healthcare contributions. With the intention of ameliorating post-retirement, healthcare-related financial stresses, a provision was also made for increased yearly lump sum payments for the retired workforce and an annual US$1,000 lump sum towards the 401(k) of employees ineligible for post-retirement healthcare provision.
Fain’s letter emphasized the readiness of early shift workers on Monday to vacate the manufacturing units after completing tasks to prevent potential harm to company property. Fain was representing workers located in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Florida.
In his written communication, Fain underscored the aspirations of UAW members as well as workers on a national plane to secure fair remunerations in the form of wages and benefits. His statement reiterated the remaining union commitment to exploring all possible routes to reaching an agreement, despite its non-realization at current.
Fain indicated that concerns over work schedules, health, safety, pensions, healthcare, prescription medication coverage, overtime, among other issues, were the sticking points preventing closure on the deal. The ambitious targets set by Fain in negotiations with Detroit’s three automakers might have torpedoed the contract. In these discussions, UAW demanded a 36% raise over four years, whereas Ford proposed 23%, with the other two firms offering only 20%.
Reflecting on the situation, Stephen Roy, Mack Trucks President, expressed his surprise and disappointment on Sunday night, over the union’s decision to strike. In shaping the argument from the company’s standpoint, Roy highlighted the high standards that Mack sets in the heavy trucking industry and emphasized the unique competitive landscape of the passenger car industry.
In his communique, Roy affirmed Mack’s commitment to collective bargaining and expressed the company’s confidence in achieving a resolution that would not only ensure competitive wages and benefits but also secure the sustainable future of the company.
The incident came on the heels of a UAW strike staged at selective production units run by General Motors, Ford, and Jeep maker Stellantis, which commenced on Sept. 15. The initial focus involved one assembly unit per company, and the protests escalated to involve 38 GM and Stellantis parts warehouses. Two additional assembly units at Ford and GM were also embroiled in the strikes later on.
Earlier on Friday, the union decided to adopt a more constrained approach and paused the introduction of strikes at further units. This reaction was prompted by GM’s agreement to incorporate its electric vehicle battery plants into the UAW’s national contract, thereby assuring future unionization. Concurrently, the union recorded significant progress in negotiations with all three automakers.
