Stellantis Canada Union Votes in Favor of Strike Action

Unionized workers at Jeep parent Stellantis NV voted 97.3% in favor of strike action, if necessary, at the company’s Canadian plants.

A collective agreement between Stellantis and Unifor, which represents about 9,000 unionized employees at the factories, expired in September. The two parties stopped negotiating after armored-vehicle maker Roshel Inc. said it had signed a memo that outlines steps toward buying an idled Toronto-area plant from Stellantis. Unifor opposes the transaction.

“Unifor members at Stellantis understand how difficult negotiations with the company have been and gave an overwhelming mandate to support their bargaining committee,” Unifor National President Lana Payne said in a statement. “Our members are united in their determination to reach a fair agreement with Stellantis that protects jobs for Canadian autoworkers.”

The automaker’s facility in Brampton, Ontario, has not produced vehicles since late 2023. Stellantis told workers in September that it sees “no long-term business case” for making vehicles there.

The company has also canceled production at its assembly plant in Windsor, Ontario, for three weeks through the week of Nov. 2, according to a notice from the local union posted on X.

“Stellantis remains committed to bargaining in good faith and is prepared to continue discussions toward a negotiated agreement that recognizes the contributions of our employees while supporting the long-term competitiveness of our Canadian operations,” spokesperson LouAnn Gosselin said in an email.

The Canadian government, which has given hundreds of millions of dollars in financial help to Stellantis in return for production promises, had been encouraging the two sides to return to the bargaining table after the September impasse.

Read More: Stellantis, Union Urged to Resume Talks by Canada’s Joly

“Our position is clear: we will bring back production to Brampton. These are well-paid jobs, here in Ontario, and we will make certain that Stellantis honors its commitments to Canadians,” Industry Minister Melanie Joly said on Friday at an event in Toronto.

The strike authorization vote was held Oct. 17 and 18. The union is not yet in a legal strike position.