Tag Archives: Lana Payne

Unifor GM Members Ratify New Contract for CAMI Assembly

Unifor members working at the CAMI Assembly and Battery Assembly plants over the past week ratified a new collective agreement with General Motors.* There are pay increases, supporting Unifor’s Detroit Three pattern agreement and eliminates a historic pay lag with counterparts at other Canadian GM facilities. Unifor Local 88 members voted 95.7% in favor to ratify the new two-year agreement, which will expire on September 20, 2026. Local 88 represents more than 1300 members at CAMI Assembly and Battery Assembly who manufacture the Chevrolet BrightDrop EV 600 and EV 400 and Ultium battery modules.

“We are pleased our team members at CAMI Assembly, the manufacturing home of the Chevrolet BrightDrop electric van, have ratified a new agreement that supports our employees and our business. Thank you to the entire Unifor bargaining committee and our GM Canada labor team for your leadership and collaboration,” said Kristian Aquilina, GM Canada President and Managing Director. Continue reading

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Unifor Bargaining Starts for GM CAMI Assembly Plant Workers

Master bargaining between Unifor and General Motors opened today on behalf of Local 88 members employed at the CAMI Assembly plant and Battery Assembly facility in Ingersoll, Ontario. Negotiations at CAMI follow the union’s 2023 bargaining with Ford, General Motors and Stellantis on behalf of 20,000 Detroit Three members, where the pattern agreement was set.* As a result of the different bargaining cycle there is a significant and ongoing delay before CAMI workers receive the same rate of pay as their counterparts at other GM locations.

“Our members at CAMI are on the frontline of the EV transition in Canada, and Unifor will fight to protect the good union jobs and secure future every autoworker was promised,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “These negotiations will focus squarely on securing workers the economic stability our members deserve and that includes aligning CAMI workers with the rest of our GM membership to eliminate the historical lag in wage increases and other negotiated benefits.” Continue reading

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Ford Stumbles on EVs – Two Year Delays on Three-Row Entries

“There will be unexpected setbacks in the transition to EVs, but we fully expect Ford to investigate every available option to support our Oakville members. It is unacceptable, after 120 years of operation in this country, that Ford does not plan to build a single vehicle in Canada for years on end,” said Local 707 Oakville Assembly Complex Chairperson Marc Brennan. Unifor is Canada’s largest union in the private sector and represents 315,000 workers in every major area of the economy. Continue reading

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Unifor Stellantis Agreement Good for All Workers in Transition

“After a short strike throughout the night Unifor has reached now a tentative agreement with Stellantis. The deal came about around 7:00 AM this morning, after bargaining throughout the night. And yes, as you can tell all of those here are tired, but also very, very proud of the work that we’ve done for Canadian auto workers. ” said Unifor National President Lana Payne said late this afternoon at a hotel in Toronto. Continue reading

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Unifor and Stellantis Have Tentative Contract in Canada

“I am proud of our members at every Stellantis facility for their quick and decisive action during this brief and effective strike action,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “This agreement will considerably improve the living standards of every Unifor member at Stellantis.” Continue reading

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Canadian Unifor Members Approve GM Pattern Agreement

“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.” Continue reading

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Unifor GM Master Bargaining Agreement Voting Underway

Under the succinct heading of “A Pattern Worth Fighting For,” Unifor has released to its Canadian autoworker members the GM Master Bargaining Agreement, recommending that the membership vote to approve it this weekend. Significantly, General Motors has committed to a moratorium on facility closures over the life of the collective agreement by amending and renewing the existing Letter of Understanding. Continue reading

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An Awakened GM Agrees to Unifor Pattern Agreement

Unifor working for its Canadian members and General Motors have reached a tentative agreement following today’s strike action at Oshawa Assembly Plant, St. Catharines Powertrain Plant and Woodstock Parts Distribution Center. GM management apparently came to its senses and abandoned a ‘let them eat cake approach’ ~12 hours after refusing to accept the Unifor pattern contract that was agreed to at Ford Motor. The new tentative agreement follows the Ford contract “to the letter” covering ~ 4300 autoworkers at Unifor locals 222, 199 and 636. Strike actions are on hold to allow the membership to vote on the tentative agreement, approval of which is likely because this agreementsignificantly lifts everybody up. Continue reading

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Oh Canada! – GM Rejects Pattern Agreement – Unifor Strikes

“This strike is about General Motors stubbornly refusing to meet the pattern agreement. The company knows our members will never let GM break our pattern – not today – not ever,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “The company continues to fall short on our pension demands, income supports for retired workers, and meaningful steps to transition temporary workers into permanent, full-time jobs.” Continue reading

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Unifor Selects GM as Next Negotiation Target

“We’ve got an incredibly strong pattern agreement at Ford that will serve us well over the coming years. Our job now is to negotiate that pattern in the form of a renewal collective agreement with General Motors and Stellantis,” said Payne. “General Motors will be our next target company. Starting tomorrow Unifor will be at the table with GM.” Continue reading

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Canadian Unifor Workers Ratify Ford Contract

 “This contract will change lives in a profound way. It fundamentally transforms pension plans, provides protections during the EV transition and includes the highest wage increases in the history of Canadian auto bargaining,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. Continue reading

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Unifor Has Provisional Contract Agreement with Ford Motor

The new tentative agreement covers members of Unifor Locals 707, 200, 584, 1087, 240 and 1324 at Ford’s Oakville Assembly Plant, Annex and Essex Engine Plants in Windsor, Ontario in addition to Parts Distribution Centers in Bramalea, Paris and Casselman in Ontario and Leduc, Alberta. Continue reading

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Unifor says Likelihood of Ford Strike at Midnight Increases But at Midnight It then Moved a Day Forward

“As of now a tentative agreement has not been reached. While we remain at the table the likelihood of a strike increases with each passing hour. Unifor has advised more than 5600 members at Ford facilities in Canada to prepare for all scenarios, including strike action,”  said Payne. Continue reading

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UAW on Strike at Select Ford, GM, Stellantis Plants

At all of the US Big Three companies – as of now – their new or slightly revised offers when made public are so far short of the UAW requests that they might as well be non-existent. We will have to wait as things unfold. Big Three executives appear to have thought that business as usual would allow them to continue to do business. Well, not today,,,

Moreover there are signs that a resurgent labor movement in other sectors will support the UAW with selective strikes. Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien said today “The International Brotherhood of Teamsters, including our members in the carhaul industry, stand in solidarity with the United Auto Workers to get the best contract possible from America’s biggest automakers. Just as the Teamsters saw at UPS, record profits at any company must result in record contracts for the workers who make those profits possible…. All UAW members deserve respect at work and dignity in retirement. They deserve strong wages in a new contract that rewards them for everything they do for the Big Three and to keep this country moving. You can be sure there is no division in America’s labor movement today. And you are urged to remember that Teamsters don’t cross picket lines.” Continue reading

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Unifor Picks Ford Motor Company as Detroit Three Target

Unifor National President Lana Payne said, “Ford was selected as the target because we believe that the company is in the best position to reach an agreement that delivers on the needs of our members and sets a strong pattern for Canada’s auto industry. These negotiations are about reaching an agreement that reflects the historic nature of the transition to electric vehicle manufacturing. That means setting the highest possible standards that protect the livelihoods and job security of all autoworkers now and in the future.” Continue reading

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