Joining with their brothers and sisters who work at Ford Motor, Unifor members at General Motors have voted to ratify the pattern agreement by 80.5% yesterday afternoon. The newly ratified three-year collective agreement covers more than 4300 workers at the Oshawa Assembly Plant, St. Catharines Powertrain Plant and Woodstock Parts Distribution Centre. The new contract expires on 20 September 2026. (AutoInformed: Unifor GM Master Bargaining Agreement Voting Underway)
“I am proud of our members at General Motors for their solidarity throughout their brief but decisive strike action and for ratifying this contract that contains life-changing improvements,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “This agreement reflects true collective bargaining. Our goal was to bring more fairness and equity to auto workplaces and to lift everyone up. We did that.”
The ratified agreement with General Motors follows the pattern agreement first negotiated by Unifor with Ford of Canada. The contract cuts the wage progression grid from eight to four years, dramatically reducing the time it takes workers to reach the top rate of pay. This improvement is particularly significant for members at Oshawa Assembly Plant, where the majority of workers were hired since the plant reopened in 2021. Members with one and two years seniority will see their hourly pay increase by between 63% to 73% over the life of the agreement.
Wages for top of scale workers will increase by nearly 20% for production workers and 25% for Skilled Trades. The pattern also includes the reinstatement of a Cost of Living Allowance for the first time since 2008 to help protect workers’ wages from rising inflation and will benefit retirees with a new quarterly Universal Health Allowance.
Over the life of the agreement, hundreds of temporary part-time (TPT) workers across GM facilities in Oshawa, St. Catharines and Woodstock will also be converted to permanent full-time positions.
“On top of getting the pattern in place, we also needed to deal with our own unique challenges at GM. With this contract in place, hundreds of part-time workers will be converted to full-time status immediately and the abuse of the temporary worker program will come to an end,” said Unifor GM Master Bargaining Chair Jason Gale.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
Canadian Unifor Members Approve GM Pattern Agreement
Joining with their brothers and sisters who work at Ford Motor, Unifor members at General Motors have voted to ratify the pattern agreement by 80.5% yesterday afternoon. The newly ratified three-year collective agreement covers more than 4300 workers at the Oshawa Assembly Plant, St. Catharines Powertrain Plant and Woodstock Parts Distribution Centre. The new contract expires on 20 September 2026. (AutoInformed: Unifor GM Master Bargaining Agreement Voting Underway)
“I am proud of our members at General Motors for their solidarity throughout their brief but decisive strike action and for ratifying this contract that contains life-changing improvements,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “This agreement reflects true collective bargaining. Our goal was to bring more fairness and equity to auto workplaces and to lift everyone up. We did that.”
The ratified agreement with General Motors follows the pattern agreement first negotiated by Unifor with Ford of Canada. The contract cuts the wage progression grid from eight to four years, dramatically reducing the time it takes workers to reach the top rate of pay. This improvement is particularly significant for members at Oshawa Assembly Plant, where the majority of workers were hired since the plant reopened in 2021. Members with one and two years seniority will see their hourly pay increase by between 63% to 73% over the life of the agreement.
Wages for top of scale workers will increase by nearly 20% for production workers and 25% for Skilled Trades. The pattern also includes the reinstatement of a Cost of Living Allowance for the first time since 2008 to help protect workers’ wages from rising inflation and will benefit retirees with a new quarterly Universal Health Allowance.
Over the life of the agreement, hundreds of temporary part-time (TPT) workers across GM facilities in Oshawa, St. Catharines and Woodstock will also be converted to permanent full-time positions.
“On top of getting the pattern in place, we also needed to deal with our own unique challenges at GM. With this contract in place, hundreds of part-time workers will be converted to full-time status immediately and the abuse of the temporary worker program will come to an end,” said Unifor GM Master Bargaining Chair Jason Gale.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.