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Ultium Workers in Tennessee Win Their Union as Majority Sign Cards to Join the UAW

SPRING HILL, Tenn. — A majority of workers at Ultium Cells in Tennessee have signed cards to join the UAW and the company has agreed to recognize their union. Ultium, a joint venture of General Motors and LG Energy Solution, did not interfere with the decision by its 1,000 employees to join the UAW. The workers organized without facing threats or intimidation and won their union once a majority of workers signed cards. 

 “This is a great day for Ultium workers and for every worker in Tennessee and the South,” said Trudy Lindahl, a worker at Ultium in Spring Hill. “Southern workers are ready to stand up and win our fair share by winning our unions. And when we have a free and fair choice, we will win every time.”

 The Ultium workers’ victory marks the latest big win for autoworkers in the South. In April, 4,300 workers at Volkswagen in Chattanooga, Tenn., made history as they became the first Southern autoworkers outside of the Big Three to win their union.  

 “The UAW members at Ultium and VW are proving that the new jobs of the South will be union jobs,” said Director Tim Smith of UAW Region 8, which includes Tennessee and ranges from the Southeast to New Mexico. “In the battery plants and EV factories springing up from Georgia to Kentucky to Texas, workers know they deserve the same strong pay and benefits our members have won. And we’re going to make sure they have the support they need to win their unions and win their fair share.” 

 The Ultium plant in Spring Hill, which started production this year, is the second Ultium factory built in the United States and the second to go union. The first, in Lordstown, Ohio, opened in 2022, and workers there also organized with the UAW. 

 “Being unionized will help us reap the benefits as far as better healthcare, better pay, and overall, just having decency within the workplace— not just for us, but future generations,” said Tradistine Chambers, a worker at Ultium in Spring Hill.

Noting the strength that comes from forming a union, Ultium worker Jim Erwin commented, “You’re grouped together, and you can stand up as one. That’s the power of being a union.” He added, “Instead of just one stick, you’ve got several. You can’t snap several sticks, but you can snap one.” 

  Just two months ago, the Ultium workers in Lordstown won a breakthrough contract that sets a new standard for the EV industry. It includes strong health and safety standards and life-changing wage increases. By 2027, the pay for Ultium Lordstown workers will be more than double what it was when the plant opened. 

  The Ultium contract in Lordstown sets a powerful precedent for Spring Hill and for the tens of thousands of new battery jobs that will be coming online soon across the South, including at Ford’s Blue Oval plants in Tennessee and Kentucky.

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Over 1,000 UAW Members at Stellantis’ Warren Stamping Plant to Take Strike Authorization Vote Over Health & Safety Grievances

Around 1,100 members of UAW Local 869 at Stellantis’ Warren Stamping Plant in Warren, Mich., will take a strike authorization vote on Monday, May 6th, after Stellantis’ failure to resolve health & safety grievances in the plant. On Monday, members will vote on whether to authorize strike action against Stellantis at the plant, over health & safety and outside contractor grievances that the company has failed to resolve. 

“We’re standing up for health & safety at Warren Stamping,” said UAW Local 869 President Romaine McKinney III. “When it rains, the facility floods because the ceiling is leaking. We have to fight for every single pair of work gloves, while we handle metal and materials to build world class vehicles for Stellantis. The list goes on, and we’re putting an end to it. Our union grievance procedure gives us the power to stand up for safety on the job, and we intend to take action if necessary.” 

Workers at the plant are facing a wide range of issues, including problems with ventilation fans, ergo matting, personal protective equipment (PPE), flooding, basement lighting & flooring, restrooms, oil leaks, overall sanitation, and more. 

Warren Stamping supplies over half a dozen Stellantis plants, from Windsor, Ontario to Saltillo, Mexico, and any work stoppage could particularly impact production of the Dodge RAM, Jeep Wrangler, and Jeep Wagoneer. 

Local 869 voted on April 2nd to authorize a strike over local contract issues, with Monday’s vote to address a strike authorization over grievance issues. 

Stellantis made nearly $20 billion in profits last year, and Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares was given a 56% raise. 

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Nearly 9,000 UAW Autoworkers Serve Strike Notice at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant Over Local Agreement Issues Including Health & Safety and Skilled Trades

Louisville, KY – Nearly 9,000 UAW autoworkers at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant will strike on Friday, February 23rd if local contract issues are not resolved.  

After Ford Motor Company has failed to reach a local agreement with UAW Local 862 at Kentucky Truck Plant more than five months past the contract deadline, UAW Vice President Chuck Browning has requested authorization from UAW President Fain to set a strike deadline at Kentucky Truck Plant for 12:01 a.m., Friday, February 23rd.  

The core issues in Kentucky Truck Plant’s local negotiations are health and safety in the plant, including minimum in-plant nurse staffing levels and ergonomic issues, as well as Ford’s continued attempts to erode the skilled trades at Kentucky Truck Plant. 

Ford autoworkers at Kentucky Truck, along with 150,000 autoworkers at GM, Ford, and Stellantis, won historic raises and contract improvements in national negotiations last year. UAW members at Kentucky Truck played a leading role in the Stand Up Strike that secured those victories.  

In addition to the UAW’s national contracts, UAW members negotiate local agreements around plant-specific issues at each facility. Along with Kentucky Truck Plant, there are 19 other open local agreements across Ford, along with several open local agreements at GM and Stellantis. 

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HIGH RISK & LOW PAY: New Report Exposes Major Health and Safety Problems at GM’s New Battery Cell Plant in Ohio

Today, the UAW releases “High Risk & Low Pay: A Case Study of Ultium Cells Lordstown,” a white paper that highlights the dangerous working conditions at General Motors’ joint-venture battery cell plant in Lordstown, Ohio. It includes worker testimonials and health & safety research that show the urgent need to raise wages and safety standards in the EV battery industry.

READ THE WHITE PAPER HERE: UAW.org/Ultium

In December 2022, the workers who build electric vehicle batteries for Ultium Cells in Lordstown, Ohio, voted overwhelmingly to join the UAW.

The white paper follows a video released last week, “Our Defining Moment,” featuring the voices of Ultium workers speaking out on the risk of a failed transition to electric vehicles if companies like General Motors continue to pursue a low-road approach. View the video here.

It also follows an independent report by Good Jobs First, “Power Outrage: Will Heavily Subsidized Battery Factories Generate Substandard Jobs?” The report details the immense government subsidies going into the EV battery industry, and how corporate America is using them to drastically lower industry standards for EV workers. Read the report here.

For the full story of the Ultium workers’ fight for justice, visit UAW.org/Ultium

 

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