General Motors and Stellantis in talks with United Auto Workers to reach deals that mirror Ford's

General Motors and Jeep maker Stellantis are meeting with United Auto Workers bargainers Thursday to see if they can reach a contract agreement that mirrors a deal signed with crosstown rival Ford.

General Motors and Jeep maker Stellantis are meeting with United Auto Workers bargainers Thursday to see if they can reach a contract agreement that mirrors a deal signed with crosstown rival Ford.

Nearly 17,000 striking workers at Ford left the picket lines when the agreement was announced Wednesday night and will return to work shortly. About 57,000 Ford workers still have to vote on the tentative pact.

GM and Stellantis will have to follow the pattern set by Ford or it's likely that UAW President Shawn Fain will add factories to its partial strikes that began on Sept. 15, said Art Wheaton, director of labor studies at Cornell University.

"Fain does not strike me as someone who is going to be willing to concede anything to the other two automakers to break the pattern," Wheaton said.

Additional strikes would be painful to the companies, especially at GM, which has profitable pickup truck plants in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Flint, Michigan, that the union could shut down, Wheaton said.

GM and Stellantis are losing money due to the strikes and they may be eager to bring them to a close, even though it's not certain whether Ford workers will ratify the contract, Wheaton said. GM said Tuesday that it's losing about $200 million per week due to the strike, which this week hit the highly profitable factory in Arlington, Texas, that makes large truck-based SUVs such as the Chevrolet Tahoe.

The Ford deal, if approved by local union leaders and ratified by members, would give top-scale assembly plant workers a 25% raise over the life of the contract. Including cost of living raises, workers would get over 30% in pay increases to over $40 per hour by the time the contract expires on April 30 of 2028. They also won pay raises and a quicker path to full-time for temporary workers, the end of some wage tiers, pension increases, and increased 401(k) contributions for those without them. Members could begin voting next week on the pact.