After an eight-week strike that forced service to be suspended at numerous new vehicle dealerships was ended by a new four-year labor agreement, Chicago auto technicians were scheduled to resume work on Monday.
After the previous labor agreement expired and the union turned down a proposal from the New Car Dealer Committee, a negotiating unit of the Chicago Automobile Trade Association, mechanics decided to strike on August 1.
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What’s causing mechanics to strike?
After electing to reject a proposal for a new contract, the auto mechanics employed by 56 car dealerships in the Chicago area went on strike on Monday.
The workers in question are employed by businesses that are a part of NCDC, or the New Car Dealer Committee of Chicago for 2021. Additionally, they are members of Local 701, a labor organization affiliated with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.
According to Local 701, NCDC presented a contract counterproposal on Saturday following months of negotiations between the two parties. NCDC’s offer was rejected by the union at a meeting on Sunday. A majority of union membersabout 97 percentvoted to reject it, and a majority99 percentvoted to start a strike.
According to a local news release, “withholding labor until fair working terms and conditions are agreed upon is a Union member’s last resort and the decision was not reached lightly.”
Similar contract negotiation conflict between the union and NCDC in 2017 led to a seven-and-a-half-week walkout.
The union listed three main issues it wants fixed in its news release. First, the union requests that NCDC not make it simpler to cut a skilled worker’s weekly guaranteed compensation if such expectations are not being met because of events beyond their control, such as COVID-19 shutdowns.
Second, union members demand that NCDC pay the agreed-upon premiums for health insurance. The union also requests that NCDC stop utilizing language that “undermines the bargaining process by allowing it to cherry-pick items that it perceives as advantageous in prior agreements.”
Additionally, according to Local 701, NCDC has demonstrated a reluctance to fund technician training initiatives and enhance retirement benefits.
NCDC disputed the union’s assessment of the situation, claiming that its counterproposal would address the “few areas of disagreement that remained” and would result in “substantial salary and benefit improvements” for service technicians.
The NCDC said in a statement that the union’s leadership simply decided to attempt to force the NCDC to swallow a one-sided contract without any meaningful compromise rather than addressing those issues as promised and putting their own internal political interests ahead of the membership. “The union’s management failed to promote this contract to its members, and it will once again cost dealers and their service personnel dearly.”
Is the strike of Chicago’s auto mechanics over?
Sept. 28, 2021
According to the Chicago Tribune, a new four-year agreement has been reached that would allow 600 Chicago mechanics from 35 dealerships to resume their jobs.
After an eight-week strike that started on August 1 when the last labor agreement expired and the union rejected a proposal from the New Car Dealer Committee, a negotiating unit of the Chicago Automobile Trade Association, the mechanics in Chicago went back to work on Monday.
According to Ronnie Gonzalez, a spokesman for Carol Stream, Illinois-based Automobile Mechanics’ Local 701, which represents around 6,000 active members, including the striking car mechanics, the membership just barely missed accepting the offer.
Those who voted against the offer were disappointed since they had been on strike for eight weeks during which time more than 120 dealers who were not members of the NCDC association approved essentially the same agreement without going on strike.
More than 800 mechanics from 56 dealerships went on strike, and 21 of those dealerships accepted defector offers to get workers back to their bays. Base wage guarantees for mechanics and dealership contributions to the union’s health and welfare fund were in contention. The agreement negotiated on Sunday, according to Gonzalez, is “a very slight variation of the defector arrangement preferred by the union.
What Chicago automakers are on strike?
The union reported that the mechanics at the above dealerships are now on strike:
- Benefit Chevrolet.
- Chevrolet Bolingbrook is in the lead.
- Buick of Arlington Heights.
- Chicago’s Berman Nissan/Infiniti.
- Subaru of Chicago, Berman.
- Bill Kay GMC and Buick.
- Chevrolet Bill Kay.
As to why Local 701 is on strike,
On August 1, the mechanics at 56 new vehicle dealerships voted 97 percent in favor of rejecting the proposed labor contract and 99 percent in favor of going on strike. The four-year collective bargaining agreement that expired on July 31 was to be replaced by the proposed agreement.
Members of Local 701 expressed concerns about the proposed contract’s failure to address issues like the NCDC’s attempt to make it simpler to reduce a journeyman’s weekly guaranteed pay, a most-favored-nation clause that completely undermines the process of collective bargaining, and a refusal to pay health insurance rates determined by the board of trustees of the Health & Welfare Fund. The dealership committee’s proposal also failed to support attempts to enhance retirement savings plans and further training that would have produced more competent technicians.
“The NCDC had numerous chances to suggest a solid labor agreement with clauses that genuinely demonstrate a commitment to luring and educating talented mechanics. IAM Local 701 Directing Business Representative Sam Cicinelli remarked, “Unfortunately, NCDC has failed to recognize the critical function that these technicians play in maintaining the flow of our region. “Strikes are never taken lightly and are always a final resort. We remain steadfast in our desire for a just contract that places a premium on maintaining and growing the workforce. The NCDC needs to realize that.
“IAM Local 701 members have spoken. According to Steve Galloway, general vice president of the IAM Midwest Territory, these dedicated mechanics merit the respect of a solid labor agreement that recognizes the value of their labor. “I’m happy with these team members. In addition to fair pay and the necessary training to maintain Local 701 auto mechanics at the top of their profession, they are standing their ground and demanding respect on the job.
This is the most recent strike brought on by the NCDC’s failure to offer Local 701 members a robust contract clause. A nearly two-month strike in 2017 was halted by the four-year labor contract that had expired.
What was significant about the trade associations’ mechanics union in 1827?
The Mechanics’ Union of Trade Associations was founded in 1827 as a result of an anonymous pamphlet that was inspired by a terrible winter spent in a debtors’ prison. The organization’s mission is to lobby for better working conditions and to inform city workers. Particularly in the Manayuk neighborhood of the city, textile mills were unforgiving places to work. Many workers’ unions were disbanded during the 18191822 economic crisis, which also saw widespread unemployment. The economy had started to improve by 1823, and union activity had picked back up.
The anonymous brochure urged workers from all crafts and professions to band together. It promoted ten-hour workdays, universal suffrage, free speech, and public access to libraries. The Mechanics’ Union of Trade Associations was established later in 1827. This was the country’s first city-wide union aimed at bringing together tradespeople. The organization established the Mechanics Library Company, which was the publisher of the Mechanics’ Free Press, and had its own constitution. It also promoted greater pay to promote economic growth.
Throughout its brief existence, the union endorsed strikes. During this time, the city saw the emergence of additional unions like the Philadelphia Trades’ Union, and political parties running for government centered their platforms on labor issues. In the city, workers were successful in gaining a ten-hour workday and a raise in pay in 1835.
In 1837, this association declared its own dissolution. In 2004 the Philadelphia Historical Commission erected a marker to recognize the location.
Is working on cars a rewarding career?
If you love working with your hands, are passionate about vehicles, and want to start making money right away, becoming an automotive technician is an excellent career choice. In terms of salary, becoming a mechanic is also rewarding because technicians can make more than $65,000 a year.
Lockheed Martin is what kind of union?
The IAM is one of North America’s largest and most diverse labor organizations, with about 600,000 active and retired members. IAM members can be found in a variety of professions and organizations, including Harley-Davidson, United Airlines, and Lockheed Martin. IAM members expect decency and respect at work. Together, we were able to negotiate for better benefits, greater pay, and more secure employment.