Current:Home > reviewsAuto workers begin strike at GM plants in Canada-VaTradeCoin
Auto workers begin strike at GM plants in Canada
lotradecoin tradingbot View Date:2024-12-25 23:24:07
TORONTO (AP) — Auto workers walked off the job at three General Motors facilities in Canada early Tuesday after failing to reach agreement with the automaker.
Their union, Unifor, represents more than 4,200 workers at the plants. They had warned they would begin a strike if no agreement was struck with GM by midnight local time.
The action came after Unifor workers ratified a new three-year labor contract with Ford. They are seeking a similar agreement with GM.
“This strike is about General Motors stubbornly refusing to meet the pattern agreement. The company knows our members will never let GM break our pattern — not today — not ever,” Unifor President Lana Payne said in a statement.
She said GM was not meeting the union’s demands for pensions, support for retired workers and steps to transition temporary workers to permanent, full-time jobs.
General Motors Corp. said that while “very positive progress” had been made, the company was disappointed not to be able to strike an agreement.
“We remain at the bargaining table and are committed to keep working with Unifor to reach an agreement that is fair and flexible for our 4,200 represented employees at Oshawa Assembly & Operations, St. Catharines Propulsion Plant, and Woodstock Parts Distribution Centre,” Jennifer Wright, GM Canada’s executive director for communications, said in a statement.
Payne said earlier that the union had a lot of bargaining leverage with GM because the factory in Oshawa, Ontario, is working around the clock to build profitable Chevrolet pickups.
Workers at Ford of Canada ratified a new deal late last month that raises base hourly pay for production workers by almost 20% over three years.
Unifor had so far avoided going on strike against the Detroit automakers, unlike its U.S. counterpart, the United Auto Workers.
Its members at a fourth GM facility, the CAMI Assembly Plant in Ingersoll, Ontario, are covered by a separate bargaining agreement and remain at work, the Unifor statement said.
Unifor is Canada’s largest private sector union, with 315,000 workers in many industries.
veryGood! (5429)
Related
- Fewer U.S. grandparents are taking care of grandchildren, according to new data
- Greek authorities arrest 2 for arson as wildfires across the country continue to burn
- DeSantis booed at vigil for Jacksonville shooting victims
- Florida football team alters its travel plans with Tropical Storm Idalia approaching the state
- Shanghai bear cub Junjun becomes breakout star
- The 34 Most Popular Amazon Items E! Readers Bought This Month
- Joe the Plumber, who questioned Obama's tax plans during 2008 campaign, dead at 49
- Double threat shapes up as Tropical Storm Idalia and Hurricane Franklin intensify
- Shanghai bear cub Junjun becomes breakout star
- Khloe Kardashian Shares Cryptic Message on What No Longer Bothers Her
Ranking
- Stock market today: Asian stocks are mixed ahead of key US inflation data
- War Eagle. Sooner Schooner. The Grove. Top college football traditions, ranked.
- Record-breaking 14-foot-long alligator that weighs more than 800 pounds captured in Mississippi
- NYPD warns it has zero tolerance for drones at the US Open
- California judges say they’re underpaid, and their new lawsuit could cost taxpayers millions
- Tropical Storm Idalia forms in the Gulf of Mexico
- Trey Lance trade provides needed reset for QB, low-risk flier for Cowboys
- 'Be vigilant': Idalia intensifying, could slam Florida as major hurricane. Live updates
Recommendation
-
California judges say they’re underpaid, and their new lawsuit could cost taxpayers millions
-
'Shakedown': Los Angeles politician sentenced to 42 months on corruption charges, latest in city scandals
-
Meghan Markle’s Hidden “Something Blue” Wedding Dress Detail Revealed 5 Years Later
-
Google to invest another $1.7 billion into Ohio data centers
-
Stock market today: Asian shares advance, tracking rally on Wall Street
-
Judge dismisses lawsuit by sorority sisters who sought to block a transgender woman from joining
-
Ariana Grande shares confessions about 'Yours Truly' album, including that 'horrible' cover
-
16-year-old girl stabbed to death by another teen during McDonald's sauce dispute