UAW and GM Reach Tentative Agreement to End Six-Week Strike

After six weeks of striking, the United Auto Workers (UAW) and General Motors (GM) have reached a tentative agreement on a new labor contract. The agreement comes a day after GM workers expanded their strike by walking out of a company factory in Spring Hill, Tennessee, that employs nearly 4,000.

The deal features a 25% wage increase across a four-and-a-half year deal with cost of living adjustments, the Associated Press reported. This mirrors the tentative agreement UAW leaders reached last week with Ford and Stellantis, which makes Ram, Dodge, and Chrysler vehicles.

The agreement still needs ratification from the union’s national council and a majority of members. If approved, employees will return to work at some point in November. The pacts must be approved by local UAW leaders and then ratified by a simple majority of each automaker’s union-represented workers.

The strike began on September 15th, when GM workers walked off the job in protest of the company’s proposed contract. The strike has cost GM an estimated $2 billion in lost profits and has affected more than 50,000 workers at GM plants across the country.

The agreement between GM and the UAW is a major step forward in ending the strike and getting workers back to work. The details of the agreement have yet to be released, but it is expected to be similar to the agreements reached with Ford and Stellantis.