Workers at Mack Trucks reject tentative contract deal and will go on strike early Monday
CTV
Union workers at Mack Trucks have voted down a tentative five-year contract agreement reached with the company and plan to strike at 7 a.m. Monday, the United Auto Workers union says.
Union workers at Mack Trucks have voted down a tentative five-year contract agreement reached with the company and plan to strike at 7 a.m. Monday, the United Auto Workers union says.
Union president Shawn Fain said in a letter to Mack parent company Volvo Trucks that 73 per cent of workers voted against the deal in results counted on Sunday.
The UAW represents about 4,000 Mack workers in three states. Union leaders had reached a tentative agreement on the deal on Oct. 1.
The deal included a 19 per cent pay raise over the life of the contract with 10 per cent upon ratification. There also was a US$3,500 ratification bonus, no increase in weekly health-care contributions, increased annual lump sum payments for retirees and a US$1,000 annual 401(k) lump sum to offset health-care costs for employees who don't get health insurance after retirement.
Fain said in his letter to Volvo Trucks' head of labour relations that employees working early Monday will exit the factories after performing tasks needed to prevent damage to company equipment.
The workers are in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Florida.
Fain wrote that UAW members and workers across the country are seeking their fair share in wages and benefits. "The union remains committed to exploring all options for reaching an agreement, but we clearly are not there yet."
