By David Shepardson and Ben Klayman
WASHINGTON/DETROIT (Reuters) -Chrysler parent Stellantis said on Monday it has filed eight additional lawsuits against the United Auto Workers and 23 local units, saying the union has violated its contract by threatening to strike over the company’s delays in planned investments.
Stellantis had filed suit on Thursday against the UAW and UAW Local 230 in Los Angeles over the union’s decision to take a strike authorization vote, saying it violates terms of the contract reached last fall.
UAW members at Stellantis’ Los Angeles parts distribution center on Thursday voted to request strike authorization if the company and union can’t settle a grievance over planned company investments.
The Italian-American automaker said the new suits prompted a meeting with the UAW on Saturday that proposed reinstituting a concept called the Jobs Bank, which generally prohibited the Detroit Three automakers from laying off employees. The automaker called it “a contributing factor to the automaker’s bankruptcy in 2009” and rejected the proposal, saying it “would jeopardize the company’s future.”
The UAW did not immediately comment on Monday but UAW President Shawn Fain has argued that the company violated the contract by backing off the investment commitments. The company contends that the investments were always subject to market conditions and that demand for electric vehicles has slowed.
Stellantis agreed in 2023 as part of the UAW contract to invest $1.5 billion in its shuttered Belvidere, Illinois, assembly plant to build new mid-size trucks by 2027 – part of $19 billion in overall investment plans.
Stellantis acknowledged in August delaying some investments because of economic conditions but said it “firmly stands by its commitment.”
The UAW wants to reinstate the Jobs Bank for employees in Belvidere and 900 employees who transferred from Belvidere and are working elsewhere. Under the 2023 contract, employees awaiting resumption of work at Belvidere get 74% of pay and full healthcare benefits, Stellantis said.
Harley Shaiken, a labor professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley, said the protection of the Belvidere plant in last fall’s contract was key for the union.
“Stellantis is really drawing a line in the sand and taking a tough position and intends to fight this aggressively. The cost of that is the relationship with the union, which is heading downhill fast,” Shaiken said.
The Energy Department in July said it plans to award Stellantis $334.8 million to convert the Belvidere Assembly plant to build EVs but that award is still not final.
(Reporting by David Shepardson and Ben Klayman; Editing by Toby Chopra and Mark Porter)
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