Daimler Truck faces imminent strike of more than 7,300 workers in US By Reuters

Nathan Gomez

(Reuters) – Daimler (OTC:) Truck must reach a new labor agreement by the end of Friday with more than 7,300 hourly workers at six plants in the southern United States or face a possible strike by members of the United Auto Workers (UAW).

Workers are demanding higher wages, cost-of-living adjustments and greater job security from the heavy-duty truck maker, UAW President Sean Fein said during an online appearance earlier this week.

“Worker wages at Daimler are not being kept up,” he said on Tuesday. “The workers are going to get their fair share. In the new UAW, we make no concessions. We raise standards for everyone and fight for what we deserve, and we’re not afraid to strike to get it.”

Daimler said Friday it is currently negotiating a collective bargaining agreement with the UAW for a new contract that will benefit all parties.

Fein is scheduled to hold a press conference at 10:00 pm ET, ahead of the strike deadline at midnight ET, during which he is expected to announce whether the strike will go ahead.

The UAW, under Fein’s leadership, aggressively pressed companies for larger raises and other concessions for their members. Last fall, the UAW won large payouts, including 25% wage increases over the life of new deals, with three Detroit automakers – General Motors (NYSE:), Ford (NYSE:) and Stellantis (NYSE:).

At Daimler Truck, which makes Freightliner and Western Star trucks and Thomasbuilt buses, about 96% of workers at four plants in North Carolina and parts warehouses in Georgia and Tennessee voted in March to authorize a strike.

The union filed unfair labor practice charges against the company with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), citing violations of workers’ rights and federal labor laws, as well as a failure to negotiate in good faith.

After striking deals with the Detroit Three last fall, the UAW turned its efforts to organizing the nonunion U.S. plants of more than a dozen automakers.

Last week, the UAW won a historic victory at the Volkswagen (ETR:) plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and workers at the Mercedes plant in Vance, Alabama, are set to vote on whether to join the union during the week of May 13th.