Unifor, Canada’s largest private sector union in Canada, has announced that union members have ratified a new three-year collective agreement with Ford of Canada. The new contract includes increased wages and pension improvements, as well as investments for existing Ford production facilities. With the new Ford contract now established, negotiations between Unifor and the two remaining Big Detroit automakers, GM and Stellantis, can proceed, with the new Ford contract to be used as a template in negotiations.
Unifor membership ratified the new agreement by a relatively slim margin, with 54 percent of the 5,600 Ford workers voting in favor.
“Our bargaining team showed exceptional leadership and successfully pushed Ford of Canada on every front,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “This contract will change lives in a profound way. It fundamentally transforms pension plans, provides protections during the EV transition and includes the highest wage increases in the history of Canadian auto bargaining.”
Highlights include a 20-percent base hourly wage increase for production workers and a 25-percent increase for trade workers over the lifetime of the agreement. By the end of the agreement, a top-rate production assembler will be paid CA$44.52 per hour, in addition to a forecasted CA$1.51 COLA. A journeyperson skilled trades worker will be paid CA$55.97 per hour, in addition to a forecasted CA$1.61 COLA. Hourly wages for production workers at Ford of Canada is now CA$11.00 per hour higher than that of comparable U.S. autoworkers at Ford.
In addition, wage progression was reduced from eight to four years, while production workers retiring at 30 years will see their monthly pension increase from CA$3,545 to CA$3,795. Investments will be made at the Essex Engine Plant, and a Special EV Transition measure was negotiated for members at the Oakville assembly plant.
The new Unifor contract will expire on September 20th, 2026.
The contract ratification arrives as members of the United Auto Workers (UAW) labor union in the United States continue to hold strikes against all three of the Big Detroit automakers. The UAW opted not to expand its strike against Ford last week.
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Comments
25% sounds about right. I expect the UAW to get a little bit more.
Before you see the number you may want to become informed about the contract as a whole and not just focus on a number you see in the news .
Of course the total contract matters, but I’m focusing on the pay increase. It’s been a big part of union negotiations and is clearly important to them to be able to sell the contract to its members.
Thats so much money to install parts that take No skills to install……. Complete disgrace to working class people like teachers and police officers and fire fighters……Doing jobs that actually require some kind of skills.
Before you come out guns a blazing , what about the California fast food bill that would see workers get $20 a hour . Simply reading what the news chooses to publish doesn’t make somebody an informed person , just saying . Do some research and actually delve into the contracts as a whole .
I’m not trying to be mean, but I invite you to stand in same spot 40 hours a week. Doing the exact same motion 2 or 3 times a minute. It kills the body.
But with the good money they are making now they can spend st you place of employment to get goods or services that you provide. Also your employer will have to raise you wage and benefits so they don’t loose you to a better paying job that the auto sector is offering.
Just a short version of how this helps everyone.
I retired in 1994 and to date have had very little increases to my $1400.00 a month Pension and after 30 years I still pay back so my wife can get 60% of my pension when I die. I am doing well at 83. It would be nice to know her income would be better.
Everyone is having fits over the Wages and Wage increase, but, remember, the hourly wage and insurance only contribute about 10-15% of the cost of a new vehicle.
What is needed is a COLA for the protected Retirees!