TONAWANDA, N.Y. — After six weeks of striking, an end is in sight with the United Auto Workers voting nationwide this week to ratify a tentative contract agreement.
General Motors workers at the Tonawanda engine plant cast their votes Monday, and those from the Lockport components plant will vote Wednesday. The two plants account for over 2,200 members.
Raymond Jensen Jr., the assistant director for UAW Region 9, said he anticipates the vote will pass at those two plants and that it’s the best contract he’s seen in 24 years with the UAW.
While the two plants were not called upon to strike during the six weeks, which ultimately ended when a tentative agreement was reached in late October, they did vote against the last proposed contract in 2019, even though it ultimately passed nationally. However, Jensen Jr. said the new union leadership this time around could help them get a different result.
“I was one of those striking workers in 2019, and I had no idea why we were on strike for 40 days,” he said.
But the support being seen in Western New York for the agreement isn’t being seen universally nationwide. Last week, a GM truck assembly plant in Flint, Mich., voted against the contract by 51.8%. Additionally, the UAW’s GM vote tracker shows only 56% of UAW members nationwide working at GM plants have approved the tentative deal so far.
“When one plant sees it, then suddenly a second plant might be in question,” said Lauren Fix of Car Coach Reports. “You don't want this all to unravel.”
If unraveling did occur, it could have a major effect here in Western New York, Fix said. GM’s tentative deal includes a pledge by the automaker to invest $300 million in the Tonawanda engine plant for drive-unit production for electric vehicles. The investment would create a clear connection between Western New York and GM’s electric vehicle future, as GM aims to build an all-electric fleet by 2035.
“That could be a problem,” Fix said. “That investment could go to another plant, and that will hurt the local workers.”
But Jensen said he doesn’t see that happening, as the current contract language could allow the plant to strike if it does.
“I think we would have the community and the labor movement behind us if we did,” Jensen said.
The results from the Tonawanda plant will be released on Tuesday while the Lockport results will be shared on Thursday. If ratified, the contract would run through April 2028.