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United Auto Workers is threatening to go on a nationwide walkout against Stellantis for allegedly not moving forward with its agreed-upon plan to reopen the closed Belvidere Assembly Plant.
The UAW stated in a news release on Monday that “tens of thousands” of employees from many sizable localities are ready to lodge complaints against Stellantis, so “paving the way” for a walkout.
UAW President Shawn Fain stated in the announcement, “This company made a commitment to autoworkers at Stellantis in our union contract, and we intend to enforce that contract to the fullest extent.”
a component of a deal to terminate the UAW
In November, Stellantis announced plans to invest up to $5 billion to develop an adjacent electric car battery plant, retool the facility to produce new midsize trucks, and establish a “megahub” parts distribution center. The proposal, which is a component of a deal to terminate the UAW’s six-week strike against the Big Three automakers, is anticipated to result in the return of thousands of jobs to Belvidere.
According to the grievance, Stellantis informed the union that it would not open the megahub components center this year or start stamping activities as scheduled for the next year. Moreover, Stellantis stated that it will not begin producing midsize trucks by 2027 as previously planned, per the grievance that UAW locals had not yet filed.
The intended opening of the EV battery factory in 2028 was not mentioned by the UAW.
An inquiry for comment on Monday was not answered by a Stellantis representative.
After stopping manufacture of the Jeep Cherokee due to declining sales, Stellantis lay off its final 1,200 employees and permanently closed the assembly factory in February 2023. Since 2017, the 1965-opened Belvidere facility, operating under the Chrysler brand, has been producing the Cherokee SUV.
As recently as 2019, the facility employed over 5,000 people over three shifts. However, as the demand for the Cherokee decreased, the company’s downsizing intensified. This was due to the fact that the new owner, Stellantis, was founded in January 2021 through the merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) and Peugeot of France.
During the strike discussions with Stellantis, the UAW and Illinois legislators prioritized reopening the facility.
Alongside Fain and a joyful group of autoworkers, President Joe Biden visited Belvidere in November to commemorate the UAW-Stellantis deal to restart the facility. On Monday night, the first night of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, both Biden and Fain were supposed to speak.
In December, Stellantis brought back 165 laid-off workers to work in the distribution of components. However, the corporation said that 130 of those employees had been temporarily laid off in May.
The Biden administration’s proposal to encourage the switch to electric vehicles includes a $334 million subsidy for the Belvidere facility from the US Department of Energy.
The state is still assembling its own financial incentive package for Stellantis in addition to the federal funds; it includes tax breaks for switching to electric vehicle production as well as a $400 million manufacturing relocation closure fund.
I Short of UAW threatens to strike against Stellantis
The United Auto Workers (UAW) is threatening a nationwide walkout against Stellantis for not reopening the closed Belvidere Assembly Plant. The union has stated that “tens of thousands” of employees from many localities are ready to lodge complaints against Stellantis, paving the way for a walkout. Stellantis announced plans to invest up to $5 billion to develop an adjacent electric car battery plant, retool the facility to produce new midsize trucks, and establish a “megahub” parts distribution center.
However, Stellantis informed the union that it would not open the megahub components center this year or start stamping activities as scheduled. The union and Illinois legislators prioritized reopening the facility during the strike discussions. The Biden administration’s proposal to encourage the switch to electric vehicles includes a $334 million subsidy for the Belvidere facility.
