Click for more.
Master bargaining between Unifor and General Motors opened today for 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, ongoing delay before CAMI workers receive the same 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.”
Battery Assembly facility who manufacture Ultium battery modules. Unifor’s bargaining priorities will center on wages, pensions and job security improvements in negotiations with General Motors. Unifor Local 88 members at CAMI delivered an overwhelming strike mandate, with 97% voting to support strike action if an agreement is not reached before the deadline set for 10:59 p.m. on 17 September 2024.
During the previous round of bargaining in 2021, General Motors committed to invest more than $1 billion to begin large scale production of electric commercial delivery vans at the plant. CAMI autoworkers have been dramatically affected by an eight-month retooling period and lengthy production halts caused by battery shortages since March 2020. Currently CAMI is operating on one shift, with A and B shift workers rotating on layoff every two weeks.
“Our focus remains on obtaining a contract that gives our members a good, predictable income, allows them to retire with dignity and offers opportunity to the next generation of autoworkers,” said Unifor CAMI Plant Chairperson Mike Van Boekel. “CAMI workers are incredibly resilient, dedicated, and hardworking and now we need to get our members back to what they do best: building cutting edge vehicles that will drive us into the future.”
*AutoInformed on
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.
Unifor Bargaining Starts for GM CAMI Assembly Plant Workers
Click for more.
Master bargaining between Unifor and General Motors opened today for 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, ongoing delay before CAMI workers receive the same 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.”
Battery Assembly facility who manufacture Ultium battery modules. Unifor’s bargaining priorities will center on wages, pensions and job security improvements in negotiations with General Motors. Unifor Local 88 members at CAMI delivered an overwhelming strike mandate, with 97% voting to support strike action if an agreement is not reached before the deadline set for 10:59 p.m. on 17 September 2024.
During the previous round of bargaining in 2021, General Motors committed to invest more than $1 billion to begin large scale production of electric commercial delivery vans at the plant. CAMI autoworkers have been dramatically affected by an eight-month retooling period and lengthy production halts caused by battery shortages since March 2020. Currently CAMI is operating on one shift, with A and B shift workers rotating on layoff every two weeks.
“Our focus remains on obtaining a contract that gives our members a good, predictable income, allows them to retire with dignity and offers opportunity to the next generation of autoworkers,” said Unifor CAMI Plant Chairperson Mike Van Boekel. “CAMI workers are incredibly resilient, dedicated, and hardworking and now we need to get our members back to what they do best: building cutting edge vehicles that will drive us into the future.”
*AutoInformed on
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.