Congratulations to UAW Region 1D, Local 2290 Kalamazoo County Dispatch Authority, ratifying their contract at 100%. The showing of solidarity that proves when our essential public sector workers stand together, they can secure a contact with the respect and recognition they deserve.
FLINT — UAW workers and supportive community members rallied earlier today in Flint at a canvassing kick-off for U.S. Senate candidate Elissa Slotkin. With Michigan at the heart of U.S. manufacturing and the fight for good union jobs, the event promoted the UAW’s endorsement of Slotkin and highlighted the large field program Michigan UAW members are running to elect her as their next senator.
UAW President Shawn Fain, UAW Region 1D Director Steve Dawes, and Rep. Slotkin all delivered remarks at the rally.
The Flint event is part of a broader election effort by the union in Michigan. Across the state, UAW members are canvassing to engage co-workers, retirees, and UAW households. They’re holding conversations that emphasize the importance of supporting candidates who back a pro-worker, anti-corporate greed agenda to secure the future of manufacturing in Michigan and beyond.
“Rep. Slotkin has been a champion for autoworkers and union members in Michigan while her opponent has consistently voted to weaken workers’ rights. We need Rep. Slotkin to be Michigan’s next senator,” said Steve Dawes, UAW Region 1D Director. “We also know that the path to the White House could run through Michigan. Vice President Kamala Harris has walked our picket lines, showing her support not only for labor but for all working-class people.”
In August, UAW launched its most ambitious political program in decades for an all-out effort to elect Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States and to put other pro-worker candidates in office. The Union’s program includes mobilizing UAW members online, at worksites, and in the field with a door-to-door program to reach members, retirees, and their families.
The Union’s one million active and retired members will form a core base of support for the Harris-Walz campaign and will provide a major piece of the campaign’s margin of victory in Michigan. In 2020, the UAW’s membership accounted for 9.2% of Biden-Harris’ votes in Michigan alone.
The UAW’s plan to win stems from the vision that launched 2023’s Stand Up strike and movement. By putting out the facts, uniting the working class, and letting members lead the way, the UAW’s “Stand Up, Speak Up, Show Up” campaign will mobilize workers to defeat the billionaire class at the ballot box.
Photos and videos from the event can be access here.
FLINT — With Michigan at the heart of U.S. manufacturing and the fight for good union jobs, the UAW will host a rally and canvass kick-off with U.S. Senate candidate Elissa Slotkin in Flint, Michigan on Saturday, September 28. The event will promote the UAW’s endorsement of Slotkin and highlight the large field program Michigan UAW members are running to elect her as their next senator.
UAW President Shawn Fain, UAW Region 1D Director Steve Dawes, and Rep. Slotkin will deliver remarks to kick off the rally.
The Flint event is part of a broader election effort by the union in Michigan. Across the state, UAW members are canvassing to engage co-workers, retirees, and UAW households. They’re holding conversations that emphasize the importance of supporting candidates who back a pro-worker, anti-corporate greed agenda to secure the future of manufacturing in Michigan and beyond.
“Rep. Slotkin has been a champion for autoworkers and union members in Michigan while her opponent has consistently voted to weaken workers’ rights. We need Rep. Slotkin to be Michigan’s next senator,” said Steve Dawes, UAW Region 1D Director. “We also know that the path to the White House could run through Michigan. Vice President Kamala Harris has walked our picket lines, showing her support not only for labor but for all working-class people.”
WHAT:
UAW Canvassing Kickoff in Flint with featured speakers UAW President Shawn Fain, UAW Region 1D Regional Director Steve Dawes, and Rep. Elissa Slotkin
WHEN:
Saturday, September 28, at 3:00 p.m. ET
WHERE:
UAW Local 659
4549 Van Slyke Rd, Flint, MI 48507
WHO:
UAW President Shawn Fain
UAW Region 1D Director Steve Dawes
Elissa Slotkin, candidate for U.S. Senate
UAW workers and allies
In August, UAW launched its most ambitious political program in decades for an all-out effort to elect Kamala Harris as the next president of the United States and to put other pro-worker candidates in office. The Union’s program includes mobilizing UAW members online, at worksites, and in the field with a door-to-door program to reach members, retirees, and their families.
The Union’s one million active and retired members will form a core base of support for the Harris-Walz campaign and will provide a major piece of the campaign’s margin of victory in Michigan. In 2020, the UAW’s membership accounted for 9.2% of Biden-Harris’ votes in Michigan alone.
JACKSON – After months of negotiations, approximately 525 UAW members have walked out on strike at Eaton Aerospace, an aerospace factory in Jackson, Michigan that produces hydraulics equipment for civil, commercial, and military aircraft. The strike came after the workers’ extended contract expired on September 5.
“We are fighting for our future and our community,” said Donnie Huffman, president of UAW Local 475. “Every worker should have the right to be able to spend time with our grandkids. When your CEO is making more than $20 million, it’s pretty galling when they cry poverty at the negotiating table.
“Enough is enough. We’re standing up to fight for what is fair.”
The Fortune 500 company has continued to push for a two-tier retirement system that would end the pension plan and 401(k) for all new hires by the end of the contract.
In addition to fighting to protect their right to retire, workers are also calling for their next contract to provide quality health care, include wages that reflect workers’ contributions to the company’s growing profits, and establish fair processes for scheduling and promotions.
Over the last decade, Eaton Aerospace has had a revenue of over $208 billion and a net income of $22 billion. In 2023 alone, the company had a net income of $3.2 billion, an increase of 31% from the year prior. Eaton paid its CEO $20.5 million in 2023, an increase of 46%. Eaton has yet to offer workers a contract that reflects the gains its top executives have been receiving.
“This company has made billions on workers’ backs,” said Don Donihue, a trustee at the UAW local. “It is insulting that Eaton executives are trying to deny us our right to retire while giving themselves millions year after year. They can clearly afford to pay what we’re asking for.”
“UAW members are not afraid to stand up for what we’re owed. We are fighting for each other and for our families,” said Lynann Bacon, an inspector who works at Eaton. “If Eaton’s executives want to not respect workers, we will hold them accountable.”
“Eaton workers see the record profits and know it should mean a record contract,” said UAW Region 1D Director Steve Dawes. “This corporation continues to funnel money to the top and then ask workers to sacrifice more. Our members see through that and are demanding their fair share of the profits.”
Eaton workers are the latest UAW members to Stand Up during contract negotiations. UAW members have won record contracts in the last year, including at Cornell University in New York and Daimler Truck in North Carolina. The one-year anniversary of the Stand Up strike that resulted in autoworkers at the Big Three winning historic raises and benefits is September 15, 2024.
After an 11-week strike, 1,360 UAW members have voted by nearly 90% to ratify a new 3.7 year contract at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network. The agreement will run to May 1, 2027.
The deal secures historic gains for workers including a major reduction of seniority needed to reach the top pay rate reduced from 22 years to five years, significant wage increases, ratification bonuses, inflation protection bonuses, and improved job security language. All workers will receive a minimum 10% wage increase in the first six months of the agreement.
“I’m extremely proud of our members for standing strong for 88 days,” said UAW Secretary-Treasurer Margaret Mock, who also serves as the Director of the Union’s Technical, Office and Professional Departments. “Because of their courage and determination, we were able to win a record contract. This is a huge step in the right direction for our members, and one that we will build on moving forward.”
Workers walked out on strike on September 13 after company negotiators refused to take their demands seriously. The primary issues members wanted addressed during negotiations were ending the multi-tiered wage scale that required workers to acquire twenty-two years of seniority to reach the top pay rate and the company outsourcing jobs to outside contractors.
The UAW was able to make significant improvements on both fronts. The wage scale was shortened to just five years under the new agreement. Union negotiators were also able to secure contractual language that will strengthen the union’s hand in safeguarding worker jobs.
The contract covers UAW members from four local unions: Locals 2500 and 1781 out of Detroit, Region 1, Director LaShawn English, and Locals 2145 (Grand Rapids) and 2256 (Lansing) Region 1D, Director Steve Dawes.
Around 1,400 UAW members at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network are demanding economic justice as contract negotiations kicked off on July 11, 2023, at the VisTaTech Center on the campus of Schoolcraft College in Livonia, Michigan.
Workers are fighting back against stagnant wages, a prolonged wage progression, outsourcing, lack of job security, and insufficient training.
The UAW represents four bargaining units at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan: Local Union 1781 (Region 1), Local Union 2500 (Region 1), Local Union 2145 (Region 1D) and Local Union 2256 (Region 1D).
The UAW represents two bargaining units at Blue Care Network of Michigan, Local Union 1781 (Region 1) and Local Union 2145 (Region 1D).
Workers at BCBSM and BCN are employed in various fields such as Customer Services, Membership and Billing, Claims and Enrollment, Pricing, Analyst, and Maintenance.
UAW Secretary-Treasurer, Margaret Mock, who is the union’s Director of the Technical, Office and Professional (TOP) Department, stated: “As we embark on this historic first-time multi-employer bargaining, our mission is to achieve, significant wages increase, depletion of wage progression, preserve health care, and to bring jobs back to the bargaining unit that have been outsourced and insourced.”
While workers at BCBSM and BCN struggle to make ends meet, BCBSM CEO Daniel Loepp has been paid nearly $45 million in just the last three years alone.
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