United Auto Workers Local 1166 voted Friday against authorizing a strike against Stellantis.
The vote failed with 61% approval. It fell short of authorization by roughly four percentage points, Local 1166 president Dave Willis explained.
Local 685 members are scheduled to vote on authorization Wednesday, according to the organization’s website.
An authorization would not necessarily bring a strike, but would give the International UAW the ability to call for one.
The vote came amid the UAW’s claims Stellantis is backing out of promises made in the contract bargaining agreement signed after the union’s 2023 Stand Up Strike. Namely, the union argues, Stellantis seems to be backing out of reopening the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois and, according to UAW leadership, has announced it will not produce the Dodge Durango in America.
International UAW president Shawn Fain has criticized Stellantis’ CEO Carlos Tavares and has asked union members who work for the company to authorize a strike.
During a Friday interview with the Tribune, while he was in Kokomo to cast his vote as a member of Local 1166, Fain said hits to the Belvedere and Jefferson plants impact Stellantis union members everywhere. For example, transmissions made in Kokomo are installed in vehicles at the two Michigan plants.
“This is about the membership. This is their decision whether we stand up to protect our jobs,” Fain said while voting finished Friday. “This union is done sitting idly by while plants close.”
Stellantis officials have countered the UAW’s claims by saying the reopening of the Belvidere plant is delayed, not canceled.
Spokesperson Jodi Tinson stated in a press release that the 2023 collective bargaining agreement “clearly” states planned investments and timelines weren’t guaranteed and, instead, depended on market conditions and consumer demand. “There is indisputable volatility in the market, especially as the industry transitions to an electrified future,” a press release from the company said. “Over the past year, numerous companies across the industry have announced investment and product delays as well as outright product cancelations.”
The company has asked the federal court to declare the UAW’s actions illegal, and for the right to hold both the International UAW and locals that vote to authorize a strike liable for revenue loss and other damages resulting from lost production if a strike occurs.
Local 1166 has already been served a lawsuit by Stellantis.
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