Tag Archive for: Freightliner

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UAW Members Ratify Historic Contract at Daimler Truck

UAW members at Daimler Truck turned out in record numbers to ratify their new historic common contract by 94.5%. The four-year agreement delivers major economic gains for 7,300 workers who build Freightliner and Western Star trucks and Thomas Built Buses in North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia. The deal includes raises of more than 25%, and the introduction of profit-sharing and Cost-of-Living (COLA) for the first time at Daimler. The agreement will end the tiered wage system at Daimler, ensuring that workers who make trucks and workers who make buses get equal pay for equal work by the end of the contract.

“Daimler Truck workers just showed the world that Southern workers have the power to Stand Up and win big in heavy truck and beyond,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “Knowing that Daimler had made record profits year after year from their hard work, members used every tool – including the potent threat of a strike – to win. Daimler workers and UAW members are not only setting the standard but raising it. Workers are fed up and ready to fight for a better way of life, and the UAW is ready to go all-out in that fight.” 

“The membership at Daimler Truck was fired up and unified. That energy fueled the bargaining team’s push for a record contract – and they made great gains on the issues our members said were most important to them,” said Tim Smith, Region 8 Director. “Across Region 8, workers are standing up for justice and a better way of life. Whether they’re just forming their union, like the brave workers in Chattanooga and Tuscaloosa, or bargaining a new contract at Daimler, Southern workers continue to push for a voice and a fair deal in this economy.” 

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TONIGHT: UAW President Shawn Fain & UAW Daimler Bargaining Committee to Announce Major Updates Ahead of Midnight Contract Expiration at Daimler Truck

VIRTUAL – On Friday, April 26 at 10pm ET, UAW President Shawn Fain, alongside the UAW Daimler Truck North America Bargaining Committee, will address Daimler workers and allies on Facebook Live just hours before the contract for the over 7,000 UAW workers expires at midnight.

Contract negotiations kicked off earlier this month, with the Daimler workers – who work in plants across North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia – demanding an agreement that reflects the record profits Daimler Truck has garnered and includes the long overdue fair wages and working conditions workers deserve.

The workers who build Freightliner trucks, Western Star trucks, and Thomas Built Buses are facing declining real wages and job security against a backdrop of rising cost of living and massive profits and shareholder payouts by Daimler Truck. Over the past six years, Daimler’s profits have increased by 90% while workers’ buying power has fallen 13%.

Tonight’s contract expiration comes just days after the UAW filed four separate unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Daimler Truck, citing violations of workers’ rights and federal labor laws amid ongoing contract negotiations.

Coming on the heels of the historic Stand Up Strike, and just one week after Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga, TN, made history in the South voting to join the UAW, the Daimler workers’ fight is once again shining a light on the momentum of workers in the South and showing how this is not just about one worker or one industry. This fight is about all workers standing up and fighting for what they deserve.

Everywhere across the country, the story is the same: corporations, shareholders, and executives are lining their own pockets, while workers are going backwards. Daimler Truck workers have made it clear from day one – and from their resounding 96% strike authorization vote – they are united and ready to do what is necessary for their record contract.

WHAT: UAW President Shawn Fain & UAW Daimler Bargaining Committee to Announce Major Updates Ahead of Midnight Contract Expiration at Daimler Truck

WHO: 
UAW President Shawn Fain 
UAW Daimler Bargaining Committee
Daimler NC, TN, GA Workers
Allies

WHERE:  VIRTUAL UAW Facebook Live

WHEN: Friday, April 26 at 10pm ET

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UAW President Shawn Fain and Hundreds of Workers Kicking Off Daimler Truck Contract Talks Tuesday with Livestreamed Rally

STATESVILLE, N.C. — On Tuesday, April 2, UAW President Shawn Fain will rally in North Carolina with Daimler Truck workers as contract negotiations covering 7,000 UAW members get underway. The workers are demanding an agreement that includes the long overdue fair wages and working conditions they deserve.

Tuesday’s 6 p.m. ET rally will be livestreamed at the UAW’s Facebook page. It can also be viewed at the UAW’s YouTube Channel. (Media are invited to use the footage.)

Bargaining with Daimler Truck management begins on Tuesday morning and the workers’ contract expires on April 26. Fain and UAW members at Daimler are standing up and speaking out against the workers’ unfair pay and worsening working conditions.

The workers who build Freightliner trucks, Western Star trucks, and Thomas Built Buses are facing declining real wages and job security even as Daimler Truck tallies record profits and makes massive payouts to shareholders. Over the past six years, Daimler’s profits have increased by 90% while workers’ buying power has fallen 13%.

Tuesday’s rally with Fain comes just weeks after 7,000 Daimler Truck North America workers voted by 96% to authorize a strike if necessary. This overwhelming support shows the workers are determined to secure the record contract they’ve earned.

On the heels of the UAW’s historic Stand Up Strike and record contracts with the Big Three automakers, and as tens of thousands of workers across the country continue organizing to join the UAW, Fain will stand with Daimler workers in their fight for fair pay, cost of living adjustments (COLA), job security and a better future for working families. 

WHAT:   
UAW President Shawn Fain to Rally with Hundreds of Daimler Truck Workers as Contract Talks Begin

WHEN:   
Tuesday, April 2, at 6 p.m. ET 
*Press should arrive by 5:45 p.m. ET

WHERE:  
UAW Local 3520
2290 Salisbury Hwy.
Statesville, NC 28677 

WHO:    
UAW President Shawn Fain 
UAW Region 8 Director Tim Smith
UAW Local 3520 President Corey Hill 
UAW Local 5285 President Ricky McDowell 
North Carolina State AFL-CIO President MaryBe McMillan
Daimler Truck workers and Allies

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Nearly 7,000 UAW Members at Daimler Truck Vote to Authorize Strike, If Necessary

On Friday, March 8th, 7,000 Daimler Truck North America workers voted by a resounding 96% to authorize a strike if necessary. The contract covers 7,000 parts and assembly workers in North Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee, and expires on April 26th.

The workers who build Freightliner trucks, Western Star trucks, and Thomas Built Buses are facing declining real wages and job security against a backdrop of rising cost of living and massive profits and shareholder payouts by Daimler Truck.

In a video released by the UAW last week, Daimler workers spoke out on the declining standards at the company that have led to their willingness to stand up and fight for better wages, benefits, and job security.

Daimler amassed nearly $6 billion in 2023. In addition, the company plans to spend billions of dollars on stock buybacks over the next two years while lavishing millions of dollars on its shareholders. In a recent interview, Daimler Truck CEO Martin Daum boasted that the company’s profits are “red hot” and claimed that any “leftover money certainly belongs” to the company’s stockholders. Daum received over $7.5 million in total compensation last year alone.

Daimler workers are the latest UAW members standing up to corporate greed. Thousands of UAW members have won record contracts in the last year, including autoworkers at the Big Three automakers, and Allison Transmission workers in Indianapolis, IN.

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“Not Like It Used To Be”: Daimler Truck Workers Gear Up For Historic Contract Fight

The nearly 7,000 UAW members who build Freightliner and Western Star trucks and Thomas Built Buses for Daimler Truck North America are gearing up for a historic contract fight. The current contract expires at 12:01 am on Friday, April 26, and covers thousands of workers at six facilities in North Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee.

In a new video, “Not Like It Used to Be,” workers speak out on the declining standards at Daimler Truck, and their fight for fair pay, cost of living adjustments (COLA), job security, and more.

The video announcing the campaign can be accessed here and the media is invited to use the footage.

“When I first started here, I only needed to work one job. Now you need to work two jobs in order to make ends meet,” said Clavonne Davis, a worker at the Daimler plant in Cleveland, NC. “It is our time to fight. It is our time to stand up and fight for what we deserve.”

“We signed this contract six years ago,” said Freightliner worker Derek Smith. “In the last six years, things have changed in our economy. Inflation has gone through the roof. Groceries are more expensive. Eating out is a luxury.”

“We insist on living wages for everyone. We insist on affordable and accessible health care benefits,” said Thomas Built Buses worker, Jennifer Moore.

Daimler workers are the latest UAW members standing up to win their fair share of the massive profits they produce. Last year, thousands of UAW autoworkers walked out on strike for six weeks and won record contracts at the Big Three automakers. Earlier this year, workers at Allison Transmission in Indianapolis, IN, won a historic contract agreement by posing a credible strike threat.

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