Populist slogans are nothing new and know no political affiliation, but if you’re going to talk that way, you better deliver.
Promises made but not kept during collective bargaining will be analyzed and criticized by those who are currently your biggest cheerleaders.
While we wait to see how the negotiations unfold and whether the likely strike materializes, here’s what I can tell you from experience:
- First, there are experienced negotiators on both sides of the border.
The most seasoned negotiator for the UAW is Chuck Browning, the current vice president originally from the shop floor at Ford Motor Co. For Unifor, Shane Wark, the assistant to the president and originally from Ford, will be heavily relied on as the senior officer with the most collective bargaining experience and knowledge of the industry.
The UAW has staff department heads who will lead bargaining with the respective companies. Unifor has rank-and-file leaders to head up bargaining with their employers with energy and determination that can only be attained through shop floor and bargaining experience.
- Second, the macro environment has shifted.
The Detroit 3 have fewer tools in their arsenal than they did in 2003 or even when they last negotiated a deal following a 40-day strike in 2019. Previously, companies used contract negotiations to whipsaw U.S. workers against Canadian workers. There was also always the thinly veiled threat of moving auto jobs to Mexico, where labor standards were much looser.
The USMCA began to fix this mess. I was honored to be a part of the Canadian labor negotiation team and was locked in Ottawa for the critical last 72 hours as the deal was finalized.
During those last three days, the sticking point, and the issue I would not back down on, was automotive. When I buried my feet in cement, I purposefully left myself no wiggle room.
I am proud that now, under the new free trade agreement, 40 to 45 percent of auto parts must be made by workers earning at least $16 an hour, and 75 percent of the content must be North American, up from 62.5 percent. These provisions will save Canadian and American jobs and rob the Detroit 3 of one of the most powerful levers they had.
