An earlier version of this story misidentified the speaker at the UBS Auto and Auto Tech Conference. The speaker was Dauch Corp. Chief Financial Officer Chris May.
The negotiation process with the United Auto Workers over its strike at the auto components plant in Three Rivers run by the Detroit-based company formerly known as American Axle is “very active,” its chief financial officer said Wednesday.
But the Detroit-based union says the parties haven’t returned to the bargaining table since the strike began, and it’s still waiting on a response from Dauch Corp. to its comprehensive proposal issued Sunday.
Roughly 1,000 employees at the plant that supplies driveline parts for several types of General Motors Co. pickups, as well as some parts that go into the Chrysler Pacifica minivan and to a different auto supplier, have been on strike since early Monday. It’s Dauch’s largest unionized driveline facility with revenues of $20 million to $25 million per week, and there isn’t an alternative site for which to supply parts GM needs, especially for its heavy-duty pickups, said Chris May, the company’s chief financial officer.
Following a $1.44 billion cash-and-stock acquisition of competitor Dowlais plc, Dauch needs to raise wages and improve compensation of it workers, according to the union. Workers at the plant are represented by UAW Local 2093.
“Currently our workforce at our Three Rivers facility is out on work stoppage,” May said during the UBS Auto and Auto Tech Conference. “But it’s a very active negotiation at this point in time, so there’s not a lot I can say, and of course, our goal, along with their goal, is to reach a mutually beneficial agreement that both parties can be successful on a go-forward basis. But at this point in time, negotiations are very active. (There’s) not a lot we can say in terms of I would say current status, other than they’re ongoing at this point.”
As of Wednesday morning, however, the two sides hadn’t returned to the bargaining table since the strike began, union spokesperson Diana Hussein said.
Dauch spokesperson Chris Son in an email said May couldn’t provide comment on active negotiations — that talks are “active in reference to the negotiation process. He was not characterizing the negotiations as ‘active.'”
Proposals can take time to evaluate, crunch numbers and put together a counter.
Josh Jager, Local 2093’s bargaining chair, told The News this week that the union had passed the company a comprehensive proposal on Sunday that included growing wages up to $30 an hour by 2030, maintaining current health benefit costs and improving work-life balance protections. The company had previously proposed a top rate of $25.75 per hour by the end of the contract and increasing worker health insurance costs, he said.
Union officials and workers believe Dauch has an approximately two-week stockpile of axles it can tap to supply GM while the plant’s production is reduced because of the strike. The union said more than 200 salaried nonunion workers have continued running limited production in the building since the strike began. Officials said no UAW members had crossed the picket line.
During the fireside chat at the conference, May wasn’t asked about efforts to continue running production at the site.
The company has a mix of nonunion and unionized plants, and each that is organized has its own contract. Most of the sites Dauch acquired from Dowlais are nonunionized. The company now lists more than 40 facilities across its combined U.S. footprint, with most in the Midwest.
The Dowlais deal nearly doubled the size of the former American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. The economies of scale, a rounded, powertrain-agnostic portfolio, customer diversification and a more balanced geographic footprint will benefit both companies, CEO and Chairman David Dauch has said, though he’s noted the combination won’t be without plant closures and displacements. He’s said he expects greater clarity on the company’s footprint moving forward in the second half of the year.
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This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Dauch CFO cites ‘active negotiation’; UAW says no meeting since strike start
Reporting by Breana Noble and Luke Ramseth, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Breana Noble and Luke Ramseth, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
