Ford Canada reaches tentative deal with Unifor
Mario Cywinski
Business Operations Leadership People and Skills Production Automotive Manufacturing Ford Motor Company of Canada ford of canada labour contract Lana Payne Oakville Assembly Complex ratification vote tentative agreement UNIFOR
Photo: Ford.
Ford Motor Company of Canada and Unifor have come together to reach a tentative agreement on a new three-year labour contract.
“Ford of Canada and Unifor have reached a tentative agreement on a three-year national labour contract covering more than 5,000 unionized employees in Canada,” said Steven Majer, vice president, human resources, Ford Motor Company of Canada, Limited. “The agreement is subject to ratification by Ford-Unifor members. To respect the ratification process, Ford of Canada will not discuss the specifics of the tentative agreement.”
The new agreement covers over 5,600 unionized Unifor members at Ford’s Oakville Assembly Complex; Annex and Essex engine plants in Windsor, Ontario; and part distribution centres in Bramalea, Paris and Casselman, Ont., and Leduc, Alberta.
“We believe that this tentative agreement, endorsed by the entire master bargaining committee, addresses all of the items raised by members in preparation for this round of collective bargaining,” said Lana Payne, national president, Unifor. “We believe that this agreement will solidify the foundations on which we will continue to bargain gains for generations of autoworkers in Canada.”
Ratification meetings will take place for Ford members soon, where details of the agreement will be presented. In late August, Ford was selected as the target company by Unifor for its Detroit Three negotiations.
Photo: Unifor.
“In addition to reaching a master agreement, our members at each Ford location face their own unique set of issues that needed to be resolved by our committees at the bargaining table,” said John D’Agnolo, Ford master bargaining chair, Unifor. “This agreement makes the kind of gains our members need today and adds greater financial security for the future.”
Earlier this year, Ford announced that Oakville Assembly Complex will be transformed into a high-volume electric vehicle manufacturing hub in Canada, after a $1.8 billion investment. The complex will be renamed to Oakville Electric Vehicle Complex and begin the process of retooling and modernization in the second quarter of 2024. Ford will repurpose and transform existing buildings into a facility that leverages its workforce.
Currently, the Oakville site has three body shops, one paint building, and one assembly building. It has 3,000 employees, currently building the Ford Edge and Lincoln Nautilus, and has been operating since 1953.
