Striking members and supporters of United Auto Workers attend a speech by Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders at the General Motors Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant on September 25, 2019 in Detroit.
Michael Wayland / CNBC
DETROIT – The United Auto Workers union accuses General Motors’ new joint venture of denying workers access to a preliminary organizational vote.
UAW Vice President Terry Dietz, in a letter to union leaders on Tuesday from CNBC, said leaders of the GM-LG joint venture called Ultium Cells had “flatly rejected” the union’s proposal for a “verification agreement”. cards “organize.
Dites said the agreement would allow union employees to enter the Ohio joint venture’s battery plant to collect organization cards as one of the first steps in establishing UAW representation at the facility.
“This process has been accepted by many employers for the smooth and peaceful recognition of the UAW,” the Dittes letter said. “Ultium categorically rejected these simple basic features of card check recognition that we have proposed.”
UAW did not respond immediately to comment. GM asked a spokesman for Ultium, who confirmed that the company had talked to the UAW about the process, but no agreement had been reached.
“UAW has expressed interest in being part of Ultium Cells’ workforce and we have had initial discussions about a neutrality agreement that could allow a card verification process at our facility in Warren, Ohio,” Ultium spokesman Brooke Wade said in a statement. “We are and have always been in support of the process that allows our people to determine their own status of representation, which is a matter of personal choice.”
The controversy comes amid broader efforts to organize unions across the country as workers from large corporations such as Starbucks and Amazon seek to establish representation.
GM leaders said at the plant’s announcement in 2019 that any organization at the company’s joint venture would depend on workers voting. GM CEO Mary Barra said the positions are expected to pay lower than the highest wages in the carmaker’s plants, but will be “very well paid jobs”.
Ultium Cells announced three facilities in the United States, although none have started. The $ 2.3 billion Lordstown plant is expected to begin production in August. It is expected to create 1,100 jobs in Northeast Ohio. GM closed its nearby assembly plant in Lordstown in 2019, eliminating 1,700 jobs per hour represented by the UAW.
Dites said in a letter to members that the union had begun organizing the facility, but further details “could not be disclosed or made public”.
“We will represent the employees there and at all future Ultium sites that are currently under construction,” Dites said. “We will not be delayed in organizing workers who want to join our union!”
Rechargeable battery facilities for joint ventures are seen as crucial for the union to grow and add members, with carmakers such as GM switching to electric vehicles. The union’s organizational efforts come ahead of the decisive election this summer, as well as next year’s collective bargaining talks with GM, Ford Motor and Stellantis.