UAW deals with Detroit 3 near approval

The UAW’s tentative contract agreements with the Detroit 3 were headed toward approval Wednesday, despite opposition from workers at a majority of General Motors assembly plants.

The GM deal was in doubt before winning the support of 61 percent of workers at the automaker’s SUV plant in Arlington, Texas, and 96 percent of those at a battery plant in Ohio. Including those results, the agreement was passing by a margin of 54 percent to 46 percent, according to the union’s official vote count, with only a few locations yet to report their results.

Meanwhile, more than 66 percent of workers at Ford Motor Co. have voted yes, and more than 72 percent at Stellantis are in favor so far.

Workers at seven of GM’s 11 U.S. assembly plants rejected the deal. But most of the remaining votes are at parts plants and warehouses where workers will receive the largest raises under the proposed contract. Parts workers have overwhelmingly supported the deal so far.

The results from the Arlington plant followed rejections by GM workers in Missouri, Indiana, Tennessee, Kentucky and three plants in Michigan.

At Ford, workers turned down the agreement at just two sites — Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville and a parts distribution center in Florida — out of more than 40 that had reported votes as of Wednesday afternoon.

The Stellantis deal has been rejected by two Mopar parts depots, but more than 20 other sites have voted yes, including Warren Truck Plant and Sterling Heights Assembly Plant near Detroit.

GM has declined to comment while ratification voting is underway. Its deal with the UAW, like those at Ford and Stellantis, increases top wages by 25 percent over the next four and a half years. Including restored cost-of-living adjustments, the UAW said, veteran workers would see their pay rise about 33 percent over the course of the contract to $42.95 an hour.

Workers at the Ultium Cells battery plant in Warren, Ohio, a joint venture with LG Energy Solution, would join the union’s national agreement with GM once the deal is ratified.