Tag Archive for: Keep the Promise

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In First Strike Authorization Vote at Stellantis, UAW Members at Los Angeles Parts Center Overwhelmingly Approve a Walkout if U.S. Investments Aren’t Made

ONTARIO, Calif. — On Thursday night, a supermajority of UAW members at Stellantis’ Los Angeles Parts Distribution Center voted to request strike authorization from the International Executive Board if the company and union can’t settle the grievance over the company’s refusal to meet contractually required investments in America.

They are the first UAW members at Stellantis to hold such a vote since UAW locals began filing grievances against the company in August. The locals have charged Stellantis with violating product and investment commitments in the current contract. As the grievances proceed, more UAW locals at Stellantis could be holding strike authorization votes soon.

“Stellantis made a contractual promise to invest in America and we are not going to let them weasel out of it,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “Our members won those investments during the Stand Up strike, and we will strike again to make Stellantis keep the promise if we have to.”

In the UAW’s 2023 contract, the union won $19 billion in investment commitments, securing a future for tens-of-thousands of good union jobs in the United States. The UAW also made history by winning the right to strike if the company fails to fulfill those commitments. A year into the collective bargaining agreement, the company has put forward investment plans equal to only about 2% of the $19 billion in commitments and is now publicly backtracking on its commitments to reopen the idled assembly plant in Belvidere, Illinois, and to build the Dodge Durango in Detroit.

“If Stellantis can give CEO Carlos Tavares a 56% raise and spend billions lavishing rich shareholders with stock buybacks and dividends, then they sure as hell have the money for productive investments in our plants,” said Fain.

Stellantis is mounting a desperate effort to intervene in the union’s constitutional strike authorization process. This week, the company has been making robocalls to tens of thousands of UAW members across the country telling them to vote no on strike authorization. Yesterday’s overwhelming yes vote at the Los Angeles parts center shows members are ready to fight and that Stellantis’ campaign is backfiring. The company has additionally filed frivolous suits in federal court to try and stop UAW members from utilizing their contractual right to strike over the company’s broken promises.

“Carlos Tavares is being sued by suppliers and shareholders, the national dealers network is up in arms against him, and he is now facing down a strike from the mighty UAW. If an autoworker in the plant did as piss-poor of a job as Tavares, they would be fired. It’s time for Stellantis to shitcan Carlos!” said Fain.

For more information on the fight to make Stellantis Keep The Promise, visit UAW.org/KeepThePromise.

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“Stellantis Is Scared”: New UAW Video Exposes Company’s Robocalls to UAW Members Urging a No Vote on Strike Authorization

DETROIT – Today, the UAW released a video exposing a robocall campaign by Stellantis telling tens of thousands of UAW members to vote no on a potential strike authorization vote. In August, the union filed grievances against Stellantis for violating product and investment commitments in its current contract and the grievance process could escalate to a strike.

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

The new video is narrated by UAW President Shawn Fain. “Stellantis management is literally saying we’re going to eliminate your job and gut your community, but we would appreciate your support,” Fain says in the video. “The company has NO BUSINESS telling you how to vote. But it’s clear that Stellantis is scared.”

The video is dropping on the same day that Stellantis members and allies are holding a 3:30 p.m. rally and march at UAW Local 1264 at Stellantis’ Sterling Stamping Plant. 

In the UAW’s 2023 contract, the union won major gains, including a commitment from Stellantis to reopen an idled assembly plant in Belvidere, Illinois, and to build the Dodge Durango in Detroit. Now the company is trying to backtrack on those commitments.

In the 2023 contract, the UAW also won the right to strike over product and investment commitments, and the union’s members are preparing to strike if necessary to make Stellantis Keep the Promise.

The full transcript of President Fain’s narration is below:  

Carlos Tavares is out of control, and it’s once again up to UAW members to save this company from itself.

The company has sent robocalls to tens of thousands of UAW members trying to tell us how to vote on a strike authorization.

Let me break this down for you.

Stellantis management is literally saying we’re going to eliminate your job and gut your community, but we would appreciate your support.

The company has NO BUSINESS telling you how to vote.

But it’s clear that Stellantis is scared.

They’re scared that our union will finally start fighting back to save our plants and save our jobs.

For years this company picked us off plant by plant and our union took no action.

That’s why it was so important for us to win the right to strike over violations of the product commitments in our historic 2023 contract.

And now the company is scared.

They’re scared because rather than picking us off we now have the power to stand up together.

They’re scared of the power of our membership.

Stellantis is desperate to keep going down a path of cutting short-term costs even if it kills this company.

That path is a DEAD END.

And if UAW members have to strike to make them change course and keep their promise to America, that’s exactly what we’ll do.

Here’s Carlos Tavares’ plan for this company:

Carlos Tavares wants to kill good jobs in America and shift 80 percent of production to so-called “low-cost countries.”

These are high-exploitation, low-wage countries where workers make pennies on the dollar so Stellantis can ship the product back into the USA at an insane profit.

And Tavares is going to have his way, unless we in the UAW join together to stop him.

Carlos Tavares also wants to cut staffing and investment to the bone.

And that has real consequences for real people.

The lives of thousands of families in Belvidere, Ill., are hanging in the balance, as Stellantis tries to back out of their promise to reopen that plant.

Thousands of Michigan workers are under threat as Stellantis tries to back out of their commitments for the Dodge Durango at the Detroit Assembly Complex.

Carlos Tavares is also turning good union jobs into dangerous jobs.

At Stellantis’ Toledo Assembly plant in Ohio, one of our union brothers recently lost his life on the assembly line.

That’s what happens when you cut staffing to the bone, and force people to work endless hours.

It’s not safe. It’s not fair. And it’s not right.

Carlos Tavares is driving this company into the ground. Literally.

In Toledo, a smokestack recently collapsed and crushed an employee’s car – a Dodge Durango.

But we will not let Carlos Tavares continue to tear this company down.

For decades Stellantis management has been more than happy to sacrifice autoworker jobs and our communities at the altar of corporate greed.

The UAW has two words for Carlos Taveres and Stellantis: HELL NO.

If it takes a fight, we’ll fight.

If it takes a strike, we’ll strike.

Carlos, we’re voting yes.

To make Stellantis Keep The Promise.

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UAW Escalating Campaign to Keep the Promise at Stellantis with Detroit-Area Rally and March on Thursday

WHAT:    Keep the Promise Rally and March
WHEN:   Thursday, Oct. 3, 3:30 PM
WHERE: UAW Local 1264, 7450 15 Mile Rd, #2, Sterling Heights, MI 48312

STERLING HEIGHTS, Mich. — UAW President Shawn Fain will headline a Detroit-area rally and march on Thursday demanding that Stellantis fulfill its promise to invest in good American jobs. Stellantis is trying to backtrack on its contractual commitments to build the Dodge Durango in Detroit and to reopen the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois.

“We are done with the days of plant closings,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “During the Stand Up Strike, UAW members at Stellantis fought and won a commitment from the company to reopen Belvidere and invest billions in our plants across the country. That was a promise to invest in America and we’re going to make sure they keep the promise.”

Thursday’s Keep the Promise Rally will begin at 3:30 p.m. at UAW Local 1264 in Sterling Heights. Rally-goers will then march roughly half a mile to Stellantis’ Sterling Stamping Plant. ** UAW members will not be picketing or striking, this is not a work stoppage.  Attendees will not block traffic or driveways. Workers must work their shifts as scheduled. **

The rally and march are part of the UAW’s ongoing campaign to enforce the union’s contract at Stellantis. The campaign began when UAW locals representing tens of thousands of Stellantis workers filed grievances with the company over its failure to Keep the Promise made in contract negotiations in 2023. Once the grievance procedure is exhausted under the national contract, the union may authorize a strike.

Last week, nearly 200 leaders from UAW locals representing Stellantis workers from across the country met and voted unanimously to recommend that members get ready to vote YES to authorize a strike at Stellantis if the company refuses to fulfill its product and investment commitments.

For more information on the fight to make Stellantis Keep The Promise, visit UAW.org/KeepThePromise.

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UAW President Shawn Fain Holding Facebook Live at 7 p.m. ET on the Fight for Good U.S. Jobs at Stellantis

DETROIT – UAW President Shawn Fain will address the UAW membership on Facebook Live at 7 p.m. ET tonight. He will discuss Stellantis’ refusal to fulfill the product and investment commitments it made in the UAW’s 2023 contract and the union’s next steps to ensure the company invests in America.

The media is invited to view the livestream at the UAW’s YouTube Channel or social media accounts. 

The livestream comes one day after the union filed federal labor charges and grievances against Stellantis for violating the 2023 contract, refusing to provide information about its product and investment commitments, and moving Durango production out of the United States.

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UAW Files Federal Labor Charges, Grievances Against Stellantis for Violating Contract, Refusing to Provide Information, and Moving Durango Production Out of America

On Monday, the UAW filed federal unfair labor practice charges at the National Labor Relations Board for Stellantis’ illegal refusal to provide information about the company’s plans regarding product commitments it made in the UAW’s 2023 collective bargaining agreement.

Several UAW locals covering thousands of members have also filed contract grievances over the company’s attempt to move Dodge Durango production out of the United States, in violation of the UAW’s national agreement.

On Tuesday, September 17, at 7pm ET, UAW President Shawn Fain will address the UAW membership on Facebook Live. The media is invited to watch on UAW’s YouTube or social media accounts.

“In our 2023 contract, we won major gains, including a commitment to reopen an idled assembly plant in Belvidere, Illinois, and to build the Dodge Durango in Detroit. We also won the right to strike over those commitments, if we have to,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “Now, Stellantis wants to go back on the deal. As a united UAW, we intend to enforce our contract, and to make Stellantis keep the promise.”

“Stellantis is one of the most profitable auto companies on the planet, and makes its money off of the American market,” said UAW Stellantis Department Director Kevin Gotinsky. “UAW members generate that profit and build the product that keeps this company running. We will take action if necessary to stop Stellantis from violating our contract and abandoning the American worker.”

More than a dozen local unions covering tens of thousands of Stellantis workers have filed grievances against the company’s attempt to back out of their commitment to reopen Belvidere Assembly and other violations of the product & investment commitments secured in the UAW’s Stand Up Strike last year. The filings are the union’s latest push to get Stellantis to Keep The Promise to American autoworkers.

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UAW Members to Rally Outside Sterling Heights Assembly Plant, Call On Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares to Keep The Promise

On Friday, August 23rd, UAW members will rally outside Stellantis Sterling Heights Assembly Plant (SHAP) to call on Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares to honor the union contract and Keep The Promise to maintain product and investment commitments in Belvidere, Illinois and across the country.

Tavares is set to visit SHAP on Friday and has refused to meet with local union leadership.

“We want to make sure Carlos Tavares is listening to the people who make the product that makes this company run,” said UAW Local 1700 President Mike Spencer. “We intend to enforce our national agreement so that this company keeps its commitments, and we intend to make our voices heard.”

WHAT: Rally to Make Stellantis Keep The Promise
WHERE: West side of Van Dyke Avenue, south of 16 ½ Mile Road, Sterling Heights, Michigan
WHEN: Friday, August 23rd, 1-2:30pm

**UAW members are participating in an informational rally to demand Stellantis keep the promise made to autoworkers. We will not be picketing or striking, this is not a work stoppage.  Attendees will not block traffic or driveways. Workers must work their shifts as scheduled.**

On Monday, UAW locals representing tens of thousands of Stellantis workers filed grievances with the company over their failure to Keep the Promise made in contract negotiations in 2023. Once the grievance procedure is exhausted under the national contract, the union may authorize a strike.

For more information on the fight to make Stellantis Keep The Promise, visit UAW.org/KeepThePromise.

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UAW Stellantis Locals Prepare Grievances Over Company’s Failure to Keep Product Commitments, Paving Way for Strike Action, if Necessary

Several UAW locals representing tens of thousands of workers under the national UAW Stellantis agreement are prepared to file grievances over the company’s failure to keep its investment commitments and honor the union contract, paving the way for a national strike at Stellantis, if necessary. 

For more information, visit UAW.org/KeepThePromise.

“This company made a commitment to autoworkers at Stellantis in our union contract, and we intend to enforce that contract to the full extent,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “On behalf of autoworkers everywhere, we’re standing up against a company that wants to go back on its commitments and drive a race to the bottom at the expense of the American worker.” 

In the 2023 UAW Stellantis agreement, the union won the right to strike over product and investment commitments, and a historic commitment to reopen Belvidere Assembly, which was indefinitely idled in early 2023. Since ratification, the company has gone back on its product commitments at Belvidere, and has been unreceptive in talks with the union to stay on track. 

Aside from the impact on Belvidere, this glaring violation of the contract imperils all of the other investment commitments the company has made, and also impacts Stellantis members nationally, as they will not have those jobs for transfer opportunities in the event of layoffs. 

Under the UAW Stellantis contract, once an issue has been taken through the grievance procedure, the union may authorize a strike over the grievance. UAW Stellantis members are prepared to take action if necessary. 

Some of the largest locals that may file these grievances include UAW Local 12 (Toledo Assembly, Toledo, OH); Local 140 (Warren Truck, Warren, MI); Local 1700 (Sterling Heights Assembly, Sterling Heights, MI); Local 7 (Detroit Assembly Complex – Jefferson, Detroit, MI); Local 51 (Detroit Assembly Complex – Mack, Detroit, MI); Local 685 (Kokomo Transmission, Kokomo, IN); and Local 1166 (Kokomo Casting, Kokomo, IN). Any local covered under the national UAW Stellantis agreement may file these grievances at any time. 

The language of the grievance filed is as follows:

“The Company has informed the Union that it will not launch the Belvidere Consolidated Mopar Mega Hub in 2024, it will not begin stamping operations for the Belvidere Mega Hub in 2025 and it will not begin production of a midsize truck in Belvidere in 2027.  The Company’s failure to plan for, fund and launch these programs constitute a violation of the U.S. Investment letter in the P&M and OC&E Collective Bargaining Agreements.  During 2023 National Negotiations the parties agreed to the investment plan for Belvidere to address job security concerns impacting bargaining unit members throughout the entire system.  The Company’s failure to honor its commitments in the U.S. Investment letter is a serious concern to all bargaining unit members. 

Demand:  The Union demands that the Company rescind its decision to push back the above-referenced launches and immediately plan for and fund the Belvidere investments in order to comply with the agreed upon timeline for launching the Belvidere Mega Hub (2024), the Belvidere Stamping operation (2025) and Belvidere midsize truck production (2027).” 

For more information, visit UAW.org/KeepThePromise.

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In First Strike Authorization Vote at Stellantis, UAW Members at Los Angeles Parts Center Overwhelmingly Approve a Walkout if U.S. Investments Aren’t Made

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