Dearborn, Mich. – United Auto Workers president Ron Gettelfinger said Monday he is “absolutely” committed to maintaining pattern bargaining as contract talks officially get underway with Detroit automakers.
Speaking during a news conference after ceremonial handshakes with the leaders of General Motors and Ford, Gettelfinger also said the UAW wants to stick with a four-year contract term, despite the uncertainty facing the domestic auto industry.
In most contract negotiations, the UAW has designated one automaker as the lead in bargaining. Once an agreement is reached with that company, the union works to get the other two to accept the same terms.
During the last round of national contract talks in 2003, the UAW broke with tradition and bargained with the companies simultaneously.
The ultimate agreements, however, were essentially the same. More recently, the UAW granted concessions on retiree health care to GM and Ford but refused DaimlerChrysler AG’s Chrysler Group.
Last week, Ford’s chief negotiator, Marty Mulloy, said it was unclear whether the UAW would pursue pattern bargaining and said Ford would assume it was the lead until told otherwise.
David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, said the UAW usually picks the healthiest company as the lead.
Monday’s events began at GM, where Gettelfinger shook hands with CEO Rick Wagoner while labor relations chief Diana Tremblay locked hands with UAW vice president Cal Rapson, the union’s top GM negotiator.
Outside, dozens of UAW retirees walked in a circle while carrying picket signs emblazoned with message such as, “We worked hard for the money. No more cuts.” Retiree health care is expected to be a major issue during the negotiations, with all three automakers expected to push for a deal that would transfer responsibility for those benefits to the UAW.
“Health care is the largest single competitive issue we face as a company,” Tremblay said. “For every dollar GM spends on health care, the transplants – Toyota – spends one cent.”
Gettelfinger spoke of concessions already granted to Ford and GM on relaxing factory rules, on job cuts through buyouts and early retirement plans, and on health care expenses for retirees.
Ford labor chief Joe Laymon acknowledged that UAW has helped Ford, which lost $12.6 billion last year, narrow the competitiveness gap but said there is still a long way to go.
But Gettelfinger said automakers also needed to make painful concessions.
“The gap has widened, as far as executive compensation,” he said. “Today it’s 400, 420 times what the average worker makes. You can’t expect sacrifice to come from one side of the table.”
