Italian-American automaker Stellantis filed seven more lawsuits against United Auto Workers this week, accusing the union of violating the contract reached late last year.
Stellantis expanded its legal campaign against UAW with seven additional lawsuits against in Arizona, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Ohio, Oregon and Texas.
Stellantis, whose brands include Chrysler, Dodge, RAM, Fiat and Maserati, says that UAW is violating the terms of its 2023 contract by threatening to strike over the company’s rollout of its promised investments.
The new filings on Monday greatly expand on Stellantis’ original lawsuit that was filed last week against UAW Local 230 in Los Angeles. That suit was filed in response to the union’s strike authorization vote Thursday. The vote gives union leadership strike powers if UAW and Stellantis can not agree on the company’s promised investments.
The terms of the 2023 UAW contract require Stellantis to invest approximately $1.5 billion at a Belvidere, Illinois, assembly plant, which was previously closed by the company. However, Stellantis announced in August that it would delay some of its promised investments due to economic conditions.
For the UAW, Stellantis’ promised investment at Belvidere means the reinstatement of hundreds of employees, who were transferred to other facilities after the plant closed.
Additionally, UAW leadership is pushing for a jobs bank for all workers, which would guarantee workers receive a majority of their wages even if work is not immediately available. Under the terms of the 2023 contract, Belvidere workers waiting for reinstatement receive full health benefits and 74% of their wages.
Stellantis has firmly rejected calls for jobs banks, claiming that the policy contributed to the company’s bankruptcy in 2009. UAW leadership, for its part, rejected the company’s assertion that job banks contributed to the company’s bankruptcy.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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