Ford Motor Co. and the Canadian auto union Unifor have reached a tentative agreement on a new three-year national labor contract, averting a potential strike that threatened to disrupt North American manufacturing. <\/p>\n
The deal covers more than 5,000 unionized employees across Ford’s Canadian operations. Unifor had intentionally targeted Ford to kick off its master negotiations with Detroit’s “Big Three” automakers\u2014which also include General Motors and Stellantis\u2014praising Ford as the manufacturer most committed to maintaining its footprints in the country. The union is aggressively pushing for higher wages, enhanced job security, and stronger benefits for its 19,000 total members across all three companies, News.Az<\/a> reports, citing Reuters<\/a>.<\/p>\n The early push for a deal comes amid highly turbulent economic conditions for the automotive sector.<\/p>\n Nearly 6,000 auto workers have already faced layoffs across various Canadian<\/a> plants as the Big Three shift production strategies or temporarily pause operations at several facilities. While specific details of the agreement have not yet been publicly disclosed, the contract now moves to union members for a final ratification vote ahead of the looming September 20 expiration deadline.<\/p>\n