Unifor deal with Ford has up to 22% raise, defined benefits, added engine output

Unifor’s tentative deal with Ford Motor Co. of Canada includes immediate wage increases of up to 22 per cent and a commitment to added engine production capacity in Windsor, Ont.

The automaker has also pledged to transfer workers currently on defined contribution pensions plans to the superior defined benefits plan in 2025.

In a summary of bargaining gains shared with members ahead of a planned ratification vote today and tomorrow, Unifor’s master bargaining committee said the agreement delivers on each of the union’s priorities.

“This three-year deal meets the extraordinary moment we are in. It addresses each of our core priorities and provides significant, and in some cases ground-breaking, gains for everyone — active and retired,” Unifor President Lana Payne and other officials wrote in an introductory note.

The tentative deal was unanimously approved by the union’s master bargaining committee late Sept. 19, a day after an initial strike deadline had past and six weeks after the start of bargaining.

VOTING UNDER WAY

But rank-and-file members must still vote to approve the agreement, which, given the labour climate and high expectations created by UAW demands in the United States, is no guarantee.

Unifor’s tentative deal with Ford offers considerable off-the-bat wage increases, pay hikes in each of the second and third years of the agreement and a compression of the previous wage grid.

Wages for starting workers, including a $1.21 cost-of-living allowance fold-in, will jump 22 per cent as of Sept. 25, rising to $29.67 from $24.26 previously. For workers already at the top-end of the pay grid, wages will increase 13 per cent, to $42.39 from $37.33.

Combining both production staff and trades members, Unifor said the immediate general wage increase amounted to 10 per cent, the "single largest negotiated" pay hike in Unifor and CAW history.

Pay for workers at all levels of the wage grid will then rise two and three per cent at the start of the second and third years of the agreement.

The deal also halves the grow-in time for new workers. Under the previous collective agreement, new hires started at 65 per cent of top-end pay and it took eight years to progress to 100 per cent. The new tentative deal gives new hires 70 per cent of high-end pay and shortens the grow-in time to four years.

SIGNING BONUS

Active Ford members will also get a $10,000 “Productivity and Quality” signing bonus.

The tentative deal offers a path back to defined benefits pension plans for workers hired after 2016 as well. Members currently on defined contribution plans will be able to transfer to the more “stable and beneficial” defined benefits plan as of Jan. 1, 2025, according to the master bargaining committee.

A range of other improvements to both sets of pension plans are also included in the tentative deal.

Support for workers during retooling periods was another of Unifor’s key priorities heading into talks. To assist members during shutdowns, the supplemental unemployment base rate increases to 70 from 65 per cent.

Notably, it will remain at that rate through the estimated eight-month retooling period for the Oakville Assembly Complex. That project is scheduled to start next year.

PRODUCTION PROMISES

While the Oakville plant already has a $1.8 billion investment commitment, the tentative deal also includes unquantified spending in Windsor.

Ford has agreed to upgrades that will add additional capacity to build the 7.3-litre engine at the Essex Engine Plant starting in late 2025, Unifor said. Work will run over three years, with tooling installation anticipated in late 2026 and the start of production scheduled for the first quarter of 2028.

Unifor will hold information sessions to walk Ford members through the tentative deal today.

Workers will have roughly 24 hours to vote on whether to approve the tentative agreement. The union plans to share the results of the vote tomorrow.