concessions

  • GM’s “Northern Strategy”: Go Non-Union

    The “reinvention” of the “New GM” has begun with the opening of a lithium-ion battery plant in Brownstown, Michigan, near Detroit. The event was remarkable not only because the Brownstown plant signals GM’s return to the production of an electric vehicle but also because, for the first time in about 30 years, GM has opened a non-union plant in the U.S.

  • UAW–Ford 'No' vote still echoes through plants

    October’s national “No” vote on concessions is still ricocheting off shop floors at Ford.

    The scene is the UAW Local 600 Ford Rouge DDMP (vehicle frame) Plant in Dearborn, Michigan. Management “creatively” proposes a shift that would hurt family life even without overtime! But workers beat it back.

  • Asbestos Rains Down on Chilly Delphi Workers, but UAW's in a Deep Freeze

    The slumlord at the GM-owned Delphi plant in Lockport, New York, turns off the heat every day between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. "Little Hitler," as the general foreman is known, thinks his dial-down saves GM money. Hammering pipes and raining asbestos may ring a different tune on the company cash register, but Little Hitler can’t see the dollars wasted for the pennies he’s counting.

  • In a Year of Bad News, Stories of Courage and Resistance
    Labor Notes Staff
    Dec 30 2009 - 11:45am

    After an exuberant opening of 2009, the year brought mostly bad news for workers and the labor movement. As always, though, some soldiered on, creating the stories of courage and resistance to inspire the rest of us.

  • Colorado Grocery Workers Split on Swallowing Big Concessions
    by Amy Rosner and Ric Urrutia
    Dec 15 2009 - 5:11pm

    A Colorado grocery chain received an early holiday present this year: a concession-filled contract, rammed through by UFCW International over local objections.

  • YRC Teamsters in Chicago Vote Down Wage Cuts a Third Time
    by Jane Slaughter
    Dec 9 2009 - 4:18pm

    Despite pressure from Teamsters officials and YRC management, Chicago dock workers rejected a $1.16 per hour wage cut for a third time yesterday. City drivers voted no for the second time.

  • Steelworkers Take Fight at Canadian Mine Global

    Steelworkers at nickel giant Vale Inco’s operations in Sudbury and Voisey Bay in Canada have been on strike since July. After rejecting contracts calling for deep concessions, Steelworkers (USW) members there find themselves in the midst of one of the largest battles in their history.

  • "Irresponsible" Striking

    We’ve known for a while now that the economic crisis has dampened the willingness of workers to head out on strike (with some courageous exceptions). That’s partly due to the business class and the corporate press, who take every opportunity to poison the atmosphere against rank and filers who dare to resist corporate demands.

  • San Francisco Hotel Workers Walk Out
    Catherine-Mercedes B. Judge
    Nov 10 2009 - 4:20pm

    Hotel workers at two San Francisco hotels have announced three-day strikes in the last week. The actions come during a major push at the city's hotels, where union workers are fighting a host of concession demands.

  • Ford Workers Should Be Applauded, Not Ridiculed

    Editor’s note: Ford workers rejected a proposed concessions package last week that included a six-year wage freeze for new hires (who make half of current workers’ pay), combining of skilled trades, and giving up the right to strike for contract improvements. Ford had made some weak assurances of continued work and offered a $1,000 bonus.