Daimler Truck agreed to a new labor contract on Friday with over 7,300 hourly workers represented by the United Auto Workers (UAW) at six facilities in the U.S. South, averting a strike at the 11th hour.
“Our determination and solidarity has delivered,” he said of the tentative deal, which workers still must ratify.
Daimler Truck, which makes Freightliner and Western Star trucks and Thomas Built buses, had faced the possibility of a strike beginning at midnight ET.
Daimler Truck said in a statement: “The UAW members… will now be asked to vote on the new contracts, and we hope to finalize them soon, for the mutual benefit of all parties.”
Fain’s speech on Friday started almost an hour later than scheduled as Daimler Truck made late concessions, Fain explained.
Under Friday’s deal, Daimler Truck workers will receive a minimum 25% general wage increase over the four-year contract, Fain said.
They also will receive cost-of-living adjustments to offset inflation and profit-sharing, both for the first time at Daimler Truck, as well as the end of wage tiers that paid those building buses less than those building heavy trucks, he said.
The lowest paid workers at Thomas Built will see raises of more than $8 an hour and some skilled trades workers at that unit will see increases of more than $17 an hour, Fain said.
On Friday, Daimler Truck and over 7,300 hourly workers at six UAW-represented Daimler Truck facilities in the United States agreed to a new labor contract. S. , preventing an attack at the last minute.
In a late-night YouTube video from Charlotte, North Carolina, where the company has plants, UAW President Shawn Fain stated, “For months, we said that record profits should mean a record contract with no concessions.”.
About the tentative agreement, which employees still need to ratify, he said, “Our determination and solidarity has delivered.”.
A potential strike starting at midnight ET had been looming for Daimler Truck, which manufactures Thomas Built buses, Freightliner and Western Star trucks.
In a statement, Daimler Truck said: “The UAW members. will now be required to cast a vote on the revised contracts, which we hope to complete as soon as possible for the benefit of all parties. “.”.
Three weeks remain before votes at an Alabama Mercedes assembly plant regarding unionization are counted in relation to the agreement at the German truck manufacturer, which was split off from the current Mercedes automaker.
Due to Daimler Truck’s last-minute concessions, Fain’s speech on Friday began nearly an hour later than expected. The fear of a deadline forced the Detroit Three automakers, General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis, to make compromises on multiple occasions during the negotiations with them last fall in order to prevent the strike’s spread.
According to Fain, the agreement reached on Friday will give Daimler Truck employees a minimum general wage increase of 25% over the course of the four-year contract. That is the same as what the Detroit Three’s employees were paid.
Members will get a 10 percent pay increase immediately upon ratification of the agreement, according to Fain, and additional 3 percent raises after six and twelve months.
In addition, he stated that they will no longer be paid less for building heavy trucks than for building buses, and they will receive cost-of-living increases to counteract profit-sharing and inflation for the first time at Daimler Truck.
According to Fain, there will be raises of more than $8 per hour for the lowest paid employees at Thomas Built, and raises of more than $17 per hour for some skilled tradespeople there.
