Canadian workers have picked Ford for a strike should negotiations fail.
The Detroit Free Press reports:
“If negotiations with Canadian autoworkers falter, Ford could face a strike.
Unifor, the union representing Canadian autoworkers, has picked Ford Motor Co. as the company it expects will set the pattern bargaining for the Detroit Three and possibly as a strike target. This does not mean the company will face a strike, but it’s something the union could call, as the UAW did in its 40-day nationwide U.S. strike against General Motors last year.
Contract bargaining in Canada comes as the world grapples with the economic fallout from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, an issue likely to weigh heavily on negotiations, which kicked off in recent months.
Unifor said the expiring collective agreements cover about 17,000 Unifor members at the Detroit Three, although the union actually represents more than 19,000 workers at the companies — 9,000 at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, 6,300 at Ford and 4,100 at GM.
Unifor National President Jerry Dias set a strike deadline of Sept. 21. When asked during a newsconference Tuesday whether he is confident a deal will be reached by then, Dias said, ‘We’ll see.’
In selecting Ford, Dias was clear that he feels the workforce at Ford’s Oakville Assembly is the most vulnerable even though he said other facilities, such as Fiat Chrysler’s Windsor Assembly plant, need additional product. FCA, for instance, cut its third shift at Windsor as the company ended Dodge Grand Caravan production last month.”
For the rest of the story, visit the Detroit Free Press here.
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