The United Auto Workers union is sending workers at Ford Motor Co.’s highly profitable Kentucky Truck Plant on strike.
The union announced the escalation of its targeted strike in the factories at around 6:35 p.m. on Wednesday.
The plant produces Ford’s Super Duty trucks and two large SUVs, the Ford Expedition and the Lincoln Navigator.
A UAW spokesman did not immediately comment on the deleted post, replying to the Detroit News via text message with a shrug emoji. Ford did not immediately comment.
A strike at the Kentucky plant would significantly increase the number of 25,300 auto workers striking at select Ford, GM and Stellantis plants across the country. The strike, which union leaders said could be expanded at any time depending on progress at the bargaining table, included the Ford Bronco and Ranger plant in Wayne and the Explorer and Lincoln Aviator plant in Chicago; Stellantis’ Jeep Wrangler and Gladiator factory in Toledo, Ohio; GM’s midsize pickup and commercial vehicle plant in Wentzville, Missouri, and the Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave plant outside Lansing; and 38 GM and Stellantis parts distribution centers.
The strike led to thousands of layoffs among automakers and their suppliers and was estimated to result in approximately $5.5 billion in economic losses for workers, automakers, suppliers, dealers and consumers.
Battery factory rises
BlueOval SK, the joint venture between Ford Motor Co. and battery maker SK On, isn’t finished building three battery factories in Kentucky and Tennessee but is already offering higher wages to potential workers.
The company said in a news release Wednesday that it is increasing wages for maintenance technicians and associated maintenance technicians to between $24 and $37.50 per hour based on experience.
The offer of higher wages comes as contract negotiations between Detroit automakers – including Ford – and the United Auto Workers continue, including discussions over battery factories and whether they will be included in the union’s master contracts with the companies. The UAW launched an unprecedented simultaneous strike by all three automakers on September 15; The targeted strike marked its 27th day on Wednesday.
One of the most significant developments in the talks so far was the revelation last week that General Motors Co. had agreed to include its joint-venture battery factories in its nationwide agreement with the union, although no details about how that would work were revealed. As a result, the union decided at the last minute not to extend the strike to GM’s SUV plant in Arlington, Texas, which is GM’s most profitable plant.
Workers’ wages at Ultium Cells LLC, the joint venture between GM and LG Energy Solution, could increase as a result of this agreement. The joint venture and the UAW agreed in August to raise the starting rate for production operators from $16.50 to $20 an hour. After six months of employment or 1,000 hours worked, her wages would increase to $21 per hour. Maintenance technicians there earn between $25 and $32.50 per hour.
NextStar Energy, the joint venture between Stellantis NV and LG Energy Solution in Windsor, Ontario, has not publicly disclosed details about workers’ compensation there.
UAW leaders representing Stellantis workers have said they expect the automaker to follow the pattern set by GM, even though Stellantis does not yet have an operating battery plant in North America. However, that will soon change. The maker of Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram vehicles announced Wednesday that Kokomo, Indiana, will be home to not one but two factories producing batteries for electric vehicles, with a second location expected in early 2027 of 3.2 billion US dollars is to be opened.
Kokomo, now the center of the company’s current powertrain operations, will house the second U.S. plant of StarPlus Energy, its joint venture with Korean battery maker Samsung SDI. Construction is underway on the first StarPlus Energy power plant in Kokomo, scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2025.
Meanwhile, BlueOval SK announced it will begin hiring maintenance technicians, associate maintenance technicians and production employees in Tennessee later this month. New employees are already being hired in Kentucky.
The company said construction at both sites is on schedule. Ford and SK are investing $11.4 billion to build two battery plants at the BlueOval SK Battery Park in Glendale, Kentucky, and a manufacturing campus called BlueOval City in Stanton, Tennessee, which includes a battery plant. The start of production is planned for 2025.
“These new, higher wages are more competitive and in line with the current market,” BlueOval SK human resources director Neva McGruder Burke said in a statement. “We are pleased to be able to offer great wages and excellent benefits to all of our employees.”
Ford said it “remains open to the possibility of working with the UAW on future battery factories in the United States,” but noted that these are “multibillion-dollar investments and will be made at competitive and sustainable levels.” must be operated”. Three of the four battery plants we announced are part of the BlueOval SK joint venture between Ford and SK On.”
“The workers for these businesses have not been hired. Prospective employees of these operations may elect to be represented by unions and participate in collective bargaining,” the company said in a statement last week.
Pay for maintenance technicians ranges from $28.50 per hour to $37.50 per hour. Associate maintenance technicians earn between $24 and $27.75 per hour. Production associates start at $21 per hour.
The company says hourly employees are entitled to “regular” raises every six months.
“Once an employee reaches the top pay bracket, our human resources team regularly considers salary increases to maintain competitiveness,” the company said. “In addition, hourly employees are entitled to bonuses of up to 5% per year, depending on position and performance. Our employees can also expect affordable medical premiums, 401(k) matching, Ford friends and family vehicle discount benefits, and vision and dental insurance.”
Meanwhile, collective bargaining continued across the border, where the Canadian auto workers union Unifor reached a tentative agreement for about 4,300 GM workers on Tuesday after a brief strike. GM workers will vote this weekend on whether to ratify the agreement. Unifor has already reached an agreement with Ford; Next is Stellantis.
The number of UAW members on picket lines could rise later this month after General Dynamics members voted 97% to authorize a strike. The defense company has around 1,100 members in Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
As of midday Wednesday, 30,000 UAW members were on strike, including Detroit Three autoworkers, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan workers and nearly 4,000 Mack Trucks, Inc. workers who walked out earlier in the week.
About 3,700 casino workers in Detroit, represented by a union council that includes the UAW, also could go on strike next week after authorizing a strike. Workers are demanding wage increases, better pension benefits, protection from the introduction of new technologies and other contract improvements.
Staff writers Breana Noble and Kalea Hall contributed.