Strike averted: Tentative contract deal reached between GM and Unifor

Canadian autoworkers have managed to secure an agreement with giant United States manufacturer General Motors, which will see the firm begin a new four-year contract with its plants in Oshawa and St Catharine’s, Ontario.

About 4,000 workers at the two plants had been poised to go on strike if an agreement hadn’t been reached.

The tentative contract also includes a pay increase and signing bonus, details of which will be presented to union members in the next couple of days, Dias says.

Dias said the only thing the union gave up was a defined benefit pension plan for new hires.

“Oshawa will get a new platform that will be able to be used for a truck or a auto”, said Dias, who said he would provide more details when he presented the complete contract to Unifor members later in the week.

But Unifor president Jerry Dias said the union’s main goal was to “solidify a product for Oshawa and to cement the footprint in our St. Catharines operations”.

Unifor spokesperson Denise Hammond said negotiations continue but the strike deadline remains active. Only GM workers were in a legal strike position on Tuesday.

Dias said the investment will mean Oshawa will be the “first and only plant in North America” to be able to build both cars and trucks.

Unifor has been attempting to organize the Honda and Toyota plants in Ontario for the past two years without success. He said the facility, which employs 2,500 unionized workers, has a bright future.

Dias also said the tentative agreement will see some product coming from Mexico to the plant in St. Catharines.

The agreement is subject to member ratification vote, scheduled for Sunday, the union said.

The auto workers’ contract with the Detroit Big Three, GM, Ford and Chrysler, was to expire at midnight on Monday. GM also said in late 2014 it would invest $5 billion to double the capacity of four plants in Mexico and create 5,600 jobs.

Chris Taylor, president of Unifor Local 200 representing Ford workers in Windsor, hopes Ford will be selected in the next round of bargaining.

Unifor leaders called the new deal with GM a “framework” of an agreement because several disagreements over the language of the contract must still be ironed out.