Canada : General Motors workers will only sign deal that ensures future of Oshawa plant, union says
Dias says the union won’t make the mistakes of the past — such as in 2009, when it signed a collective agreement with GM, and “before the ink was dry,” after
But GM has insisted for the past two years that it won’t make any investment decisions until after it has a labour agreement in place.
“We won’t be in a position to make a competitive investment decision until after we are through the negotiations,” David Paterson, GM Canada’s vice-president of corporate affairs, told reporters.
“We understand that there is a lot of anxiety about Oshawa,” he said, but added that GM is focused on talks that will be mutually beneficial and economically competitive.
Paterson used a hockey analogy, saying it feels like the start of the third period. “We need everybody on the ice to win. And we can’t have people leaving the ice if we’re going to win,” Paterson said, a not-so-subtle reference to strike action.
Paterson emphasized that there is still plenty of time to work out an agreement before Unifor’s contracts with the Big Three automakers expire on Sept. 19.
The union will not name its target company — the one it negotiates with first in hopes of getting the best contract, which will then become a pattern for the other two automakers — until the Tuesday after Labour Day.
While Dias avoided using the strike word altogether, Colin James, president of Unifor Local 222, which represents GM’s workers in Oshawa, was more direct. “Unless we have a product, we will be on strike. It’s do or die for us,” he said in an interview.
He added the company needs to remember who bailed out GM — workers, retirees and the taxpayers of Canada.
“At the end of the day, General Motors are the ones that need to make the right sacrifice.”