Ford and the United Auto Workers in Kentucky have until the end of the workweek to agree on a contract before thousands of employees could walk off the job.
Last week, UAW leadership announced that around 9,000 workers at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville served strike notices.
While the UAW reached a wide agreement with Ford late last year, some locations have been negotiating contract issues specific to each facility.
At Ford’s Kentucky facility, worker demands mostly center around health and safety issues. The union is demanding mandatory minimum in-plant nurse staffing levels. Workers also want the car giant to stop its efforts to “erode the skilled trades at Kentucky Truck Plant” after the company proposed that skilled maintenance workers should perform multiple tasks across different divisions.
Despite the militant deadline, Ford has remained optimistic about the talks.
“Negotiations continue, and we look forward to reaching an agreement with UAW Local 862 at Kentucky Truck Plant,” the company said in a statement.
The plant is one of Ford’s most important facilities, responsible for at least $25 billion in yearly revenue.
A strike Friday could put a harsh end to a period of relative peace between the UAW and the big three Detroit automakers. After a grueling monthslong strike last year, the union signed historic contracts with Ford, General Motors and Stellantis, securing massive pay and benefit increases for its more than 150,000 members.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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