Ford and its joint venture partner SKOn will raise wages at two planned electric vehicle battery plants in Kentucky and Tennessee to appease striking autoworkers, but the offer may not be enough for strike organizers.
The joint venture, called BlueOvalSK, said it offers higher wages for maintenance technicians and associate maintenance technicians, ranging from $24 to $37.50 an hour, depending on experience. The jobs are now available at BlueOvalSK's battery facilities in Stanton, Tennessee, and Glendale, Kentucky. BlueOvalSK said it conducted a salary and benefits benchmarking study to determine employee wages and benefits. BlueOvalSK also said hourly employees will be eligible for regular raises every six months and will be eligible for a 5% annual bonus based on position and performance.
"These new, higher salaries are more competitive and in line with the current market," BlueOvalSK Human Resources said.
Plant President Neva McGruder Burke said in a statement: The UAW is close to an agreement with automakers General Motors, Ford and Stellantis to increase wages by 20% to 23%, guarantee a living standard and even provide temporary employees with a faster path to full-time status - which is key.
The United Auto Workers on Monday expanded the strike to include Ford's Kentucky truck plant after saying the automaker "came to the bargaining table with the same offer that it submitted to us two weeks ago. This was an unacceptable move that prompted an immediate backlash."
One of the last remaining issues holding up a deal is a big one: The four-year master agreement the UAW hopes to strike with the automakers includes current and future joint venture electric vehicle battery plants.
That's a concession the UAW has already won from GM. UAW President Shawn Fain announced last week that General Motors agreed to include electric vehicle battery production work in the text of the union's general agreement with the company.
"We've been told for months this is impossible. We've been told the future of electric vehicles has to be a race to the bottom. We called their bluff." Fein said in a video broadcast on Facebook Live on October 6. "What this means for us UAW members cannot be understated. The plan is to cut engine and transmission plants and permanently replace them with low-wage battery jobs. We have different plans, and our plan is winning at GM. We expect it to be winning at Ford and Stellantis as well."