“GM and Stellantis’s willful refusal to bargain in good faith is not only insulting and counterproductive, it’s also illegal,” Fain said.
The complaints, which are identical and provide little detail, allege that “during the past six months, the employer has violated the [Labor Relations] Act by refusing to bargain in good faith over mandatory subjects of bargaining including but not limited to wages and benefits.”
A Stellantis spokesperson, in a statement, said it was “shocked” by Fain’s accusation that the company is not bargaining in good faith.
“This is a claim with no basis in fact, and we are disappointed to learn that Mr. Fain is more focused on filing frivolous legal charges than on actual bargaining,” the company said in a statement. “We will vigorously defend this charge when the time comes, but right now we are more focused on continuing to bargain in good faith for a new agreement.”
“We are surprised by and strongly refute the NLRB charge filed by the International UAW,” GM said in a statement attributed to Gerald Johnson, its Executive Vice President, Global Manufacturing. “We believe it has no merit and is an insult to the bargaining committees.
“We have been hyper-focused on negotiating directly and in good faith with the UAW and are making progress. The pace of negotiations is based on how quickly both parties resolve nearly 1,000 UAW demands, including more than 90 presented this week. Our goal remains the same – to achieve an agreement without a disruption that rewards our team members and protects the future of the entire GM team.”
Ford’s proposed wage increase is below what the UAW is asking for, Fain said. Ford has offered to reduce the length of time it takes a new hire to receive top wages from eight years to six, while the UAW wants to eliminate the grow-in period entirely.
Additionally, Fain said Ford wants unlimited use of temporary workers, has refused to reinstitute cost-of-living wage adjustments, will not increase retiree pay and will not agree to the UAW’s demand for a program that that would give workers their normal pay during a layoff.
He said Ford wants to change the current profit-sharing formula, which pays workers $1 for every $1 million in pretax North America profits.
Under Ford’s proposed formula, Fain said, workers would have earned 21 percent less than they did in the past two years.
Fain’s comments Thursday on Facebook echoed similar complaints he had with initial proposals from Stellantis, which he tossed into a trash can during an earlier livestream. He brought the trash can back out Thursday evening.
“Believe me when I say I’m fed up,” Fain said.