Ford and UAW reach tentative agreement on contract changes
In the interest of remaining competitive with transplants (non-union automotive plants in the U.S. owned and operated by import automakers), Ford and the United Auto Workers union have tentatively agreed on modifications to their current contract that affects some 41,000 hour workers. The exact modifications won't be officially revealed until the UAW and its members have a chance to ratify the contract changes later this week, but Automotive News is reporting that they include additional product commitments by Ford for UAW plants in the U.S., as well as bringing some parts work back in-house. Also reported are reported are concessions by the UAW for more work rule changes and a reduction in the number of skilled-trades classifications, both aimed at increasing productivity and saving money.
Ford is in a tough spot since its cross-town rivals, General Motors and Chrysler LLC, were able to renegotiate their contracts with the UAW under the umbrella of Chapter 11 bankruptcy this past summer. Ford, having avoided accepting any loans from the government and filing Ch. 11, has enjoyed better-than-expected sales the past few months, and so asking its hourly work force for concessions without the pressure of reorganization and while it's doing relatively well is a tough case to make. Nevertheless, it appears that UAW leaders were willing to see Ford's side of things. We'll let you know later this week when the official contract changes are revealed, so stay tuned.
[Source: Ford, Automotive News - sub. req'd | Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty]
PRESS RELEASE
FORD AND UAW REACH TENTATIVE AGREEMENT ON LABOR CONTRACT MODIFICATIONS
Editor's Note: The following statement is attributable to Joe Hinrichs, group vice president, Global Manufacturing and Labor Affairs, Ford Motor Company.
DEARBORN, Mich., Oct. 13 – Ford and the United Auto Workers union have reached a tentative agreement on additional modifications to the 2007 UAW-Ford national labor agreement, which would help Ford improve its current and long-term competitiveness in the United States.
The tentative agreement, which covers approximately 41,000 UAW-represented employees in the United States, is subject to ratification by the active UAW-Ford membership. We will not discuss details of the agreement until after the ratification process is complete.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Sea Urchin 4:36PM (10/13/2009)
With this new Card Check law what has happened at Ford, GM and Chrysler will start happening everywhere.......but wait there's more. Now that the government is hiring so many people what they will also start unionizing and needless to say they will lobby politicians, so 5 years down the road all state and federal employees will retire at 55 with a pension and thanks to certain politicians they will represent 30% of all labor force.
But it gets much better, those who work in the private sector and will retire at 70 will have to subsidies all those federal employees. Yayy.
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Peter 5:09PM (10/13/2009)
What new card check law? It hasn't passed yet and probably won't.
I try my best to ignore your posts but you are doing a disservice to Autoblog readers by posting false information. Your entire thesis is faulty in so many ways...
Sea Urchin 5:13PM (10/13/2009)
The one that is in the news every day.
They are working on it, once health care bill is out of the way this Bill will take center stage.
Nathan 4:38PM (10/13/2009)
Unionizing is treason.
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Sea Urchin 4:55PM (10/13/2009)
I recently foundout that in many government Establishments like hospitals and social services even finance and accounting departments as well as lower management are unionized. Aside from top 2-3 guys everyone else is a part of the union.
l.i.dave 4:56PM (10/13/2009)
Nathan is a clown.
Unoriginal douche: LI Dave is a........
John 6:35PM (10/13/2009)
@ Sea Urchin:
I am an accountant and I am not part of ANY union, nor is anyone in my finance department. I have been in the field for about 4 years now, and if the accounting department in any of my jobs ever unionized, we would be laughed at by the executives.
Public accountants such as Price Waterhouse, KPMG, E&Y, etc. don't have unions. Most local firms don't either.
Clavius 5:07PM (10/13/2009)
Ford and the UAW are making a smart move on both their parts. With people shying away from the SUV's and more torwards smaller cars their profit margin shall be smaller. Ford is somehow pulling it off by surviving but I'm sure with current UAW contracts it wont last for long. I hope they give Ford the same deal they did GM and Chrysler to remain competitive.
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HoorayForUnions 5:11PM (10/13/2009)
Please get all the latest union info at www.unionfacts.com.
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vetteracer 6:39PM (10/13/2009)
Clavius
5:07PM (10/13/2009)
Ford and the UAW are making a smart move
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Yea ford is making lots of moves but they are not smart or quality moves.
Ford recall hits 4.5 million vehicles
Automaker issues largest single recall ever due to a faulty cruise control switch that could lead to a fire.
Ford issued the largest single recall in its history Tuesday as drivers of an additional 4.5 million vehicles were alerted about a fire hazard from a faulty switch.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said this was the eighth recall, involving a total of 16 million Ford Motor vehicles !!,
concerning the cruise control deactivation switch manufactured by Texas Instruments.
The faulty switch can leak hydraulic fluid, overheat, smoke and then burn, and risks causing a fire even when the ignition is turned off, parked and unattended, the NHTSA said.
The risk is elevated for 1.1 million Windstars that were subject to a government investigation, said Ford spokesman Wes Sherwood.
"We determined with the government that there is a low risk of fires for those vehicles," Sherwood said.
"The other 3.4 million vehicles are the remaining vehicles that have the Texas Instrument switch, so we're recalling them to reassure customers and prevent future recalls."
Sherwood added that Ford has always gone beyond recalling only the cars that present a risk.
While the company does not discuss its current suppliers, Sherwood said that Ford vehicles did not use the Texas Instrument switch in post-2003 models.
NHTSA said Ford drivers should look for warnings of possible imminent fires, including malfunctioning cruise control systems and brake lights and antilock braking system and brake light warnings on the dashboard. The safety agency also said difficulty in getting the vehicle out of the park mode should be treated as a warning.
"I urge customers to pay attention to this warning and bring the affected models in to have them repaired as soon as possible," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, in a statement.
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cvialp5901 7:13PM (10/13/2009)
You forgot to mention that they are post 2003 vehicles and the chip resposible for the fires are made by TEXAS INSTRUMENTS. When it comes to chips overheating this is Texas Instruments fault.
06VistaBlueGT 7:30PM (10/13/2009)
You do know that alot of the vehicles on that cruise control recall are vehicles that are no longer around, and are most likely in junk yards somewhere (Broncos, Bronco II, Lincoln Mk VI, T-Birds, etc). This is SUCH OLD NEWS!! Way to live in the past!!!
KT 7:33PM (10/13/2009)
@vetteracer....way to stay on topic, nimrod.
I read an article today regarding these negotiations and it quoted a union local leader who sent out an email condemning these concessions. He said if they keep giving concessions, specifically the no strike clause for the 2011 contract talks, that it's basically busting the union. He went on to say they should vote against the new pact to keep Ford competitive with GM/Chrysler.
I hope he's the first one to lose his job if Ford is forced to eliminate more jobs because they have a labor cost disadvantage.
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MONTE 12:47AM (10/14/2009)
I am in a union, but we are a no-strike government agency that is more or less just a bargaining unit. The UAW carries the weight of the auto company collapse on their shoulders, and I think Ford should shutter every factory that is union just like Wal-Mart did in Jonquierre, Quebec, Canada.
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Tony 7:02AM (10/14/2009)
Yup, because Wallmart is a paragon of virtue when it comes to labour relations. (sarcasm, just in case you missed it)
MONTE 11:10AM (10/14/2009)
Wal-Mart is what the U.S. is all about. I know it's cool to talk down about evil capitalism, but that's only an issue for lazy people. Wal-Mart started out as one store, and with the proper vision became a huge force in the World of retail, all the while employing thousands and thousands of people. They run their business exactly how the automakers should, and that's why you don't see Wal-Mart asking for a bailout.
People in this country are irresponsible with money, spend too much time trying to keep up with the Jones', and no amount of money would even be enough for the majority of them. In the end it is the Company's job to keep their bottom line in the black, and not have to keep helping their employees who aren't smart enough to help themselves. The car companies bowed down to the UAW every time there was a dispute, and now the UAW members want to blame everyone else for their greed.
People need to stop complaining about how unfairly they are treated in their job, because right now there are a lot of people that would be grateful to have it instead. Once we are out of this financial melt down then everyone can go back to hating capitalism, but right now all of us with jobs are having to support everyone without one, even if we don't like it.
SCTBIRD 3:35PM (10/14/2009)
I can't understand how Ford can be profitable against non-union manufactures like Toyota.
It puts them at a disadvantage right from the start. Unions carry such a high overhead especially to a huge company like Ford.
I really don't see a need for unions in this day and age. Between the Internet and the media I can't see a company treating workers unfairly and not getting hung out to dry for it.
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