Despite the recent signing of a four-year labor deal, the United Auto Workers union is threatening to strike General Motors’ Fairfax, Kansas production facility.
After failing to come to terms on a new local labor contract, UAW Local 31, which staffs the Fairfax plant, announced that it will seek authorization to strike. The union will hold a vote on the matter on Thursday, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Although the UAW recently inked a new national labor contract with GM, each UAW local must negotiate separate contracts with the automaker for plant-related issues such as work rules and shift schedules. George Ruiz, president of UAW Local 31, decline to identify what issues are causing the hangup, but 66 percent of the plant’s production workers and 58 percent of skilled-trade workers voted against the proposed contract. The plant employs about 3,400 people.
Ruiz says the authorization of a strike is just a normal part of the bargaining process and doesn’t necessarily mean there will be a work stoppage.
Key plant for GM
GM’s Fairfax plant produces the he Chevrolet Malibu and Buick LaCrosse, which are both vital products for the Detroit automaker.
GM is currently launching an all-new version of its Malibu mid-size and can ill-afford any production delays. The Malibu, which just started production last week, was GM’s second best-selling passenger car in 2011.
The LaCrosse is equally important for Buick. The LaCrosse is not only Buick’s flagship vehicle, but also its best-seller.
