UAW And Ford Negotiators Reach Agreement On New Contract

The United Auto Workers (UAW) and Ford Motor Company reached agreement Wednesday on a contract that could end the six-week strike by the union, Ford confirmed in a press release.

The UAW and Ford reached the four-year deal that provides a 25% pay increase Wednesday, The New York Times reported. The deal also includes cost-of-living adjustments, according to The Wall Street Journal, which reported that the union confirmed details of the new contract.

Over 18,000 UAW members were striking three Ford plants in Illinois, Michigan and Kentucky, according to the Times. The UAW initially walked off the job at three auto manufacturing plants in Ohio, Michigan and Missouri at midnight on Sept. 15, after failing to reach an agreement with Ford, General Motors and Stellantis (formerly Chrysler), and ratcheted up the strike to include more plants.

Ford confirmed the agreement in a Wednesday evening press release. “We are pleased to have reached a tentative agreement on a new labor contract with the UAW covering our U.S. operations,” the company said. “Ford is proud to assemble the most vehicles in America and employ the most hourly autoworkers. We are focused on restarting Kentucky Truck Plant, Michigan Assembly Plant and Chicago Assembly Plant, calling 20,000 Ford employees back to work and shipping our full lineup to our customers again.”

“The agreement is subject to ratification by Ford’s UAW-represented employees,” Ford said. “Consistent with the ratification process, the UAW will share details with its membership.”