iStock(NEW YORK) — More than a month after nearly 50,000 workers walked off their jobs, General Motors and the United Auto Workers union have reached a tentative deal to end the nationwide strike against the manufacturing giant, the union confirmed to ABC News.
“The number one priority of the national negotiation team has been to secure a strong and fair contract that our members deserve,” UAW vice president Terry Dittes said in a statement Wednesday.
“We are extremely grateful to the thousands of Americans who donated goods and helped our striking workers and their families. As we await the Council’s decision, please know that the outpouring of community and national support will be etched in the memories of all of us at the UAW for years to come,” Dittes added.
The UAW GM National council will meet and review the details of the tentative deal on Thursday, and then vote whether to recommend it for full ratification, according to the union. The strike will continue until the vote and approval.
Approximately 49,000 union workers walked off their jobs on Sept. 16, starting a nationwide strike at General Motors after a previous labor contract expired and negotiations over a new one fell apart.
Union leaders had argued that GM workers deserved a bigger slice of the company’s profits, which they say have totaled $35 billion in North America over the last three years. As the strike continued, UAW claims that for every $1 a GM employee made, CEO Mary Barra made $281.
The strike came nearly a year after GM announced it was laying off 15% of its salaried workers and shuttering five plants in North America.
The five-week strike has garnered national attention, and a handful of 2020 presidential candidates have joined the picket lines over the past weeks, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass, and former Vice President Joe Biden.
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