Brent Snavely

Detroit Free Press

General Motors plans to invest $554 million in Canadian dollars over the next four years and pay workers a $6,000 signing bonus under a proposed new contract with Unifor ratified by union members Sunday.

In total, members will receive $12,000 in bonus payments over the next four years along with 2% raises this year and in 2019.

Unifor, Canada's largest private-sector union, reached a tentative agreement with the automaker Sept. 19 but did not release details about bonuses, raises or product commitments until it briefed its members about the contract during meetings Sunday.

About 4,000 members of Unifor who work for GM voted on the four-year contract. Of those who voted, 64.7% favored the agreement.

The agreement is viewed as a breakthrough for Unifor because it helps to keep existing plants open and helps to slow a loss of automotive investment from Canada to Mexico. It is also notable that Unifor achieved its other goals, which were to win a raise for its members and changes to the 10-year wage progression for newly hired workers.

The largest plant that was at risk of closure in this year's contract talks was GM's assembly plant in Oshawa, Ontario, near Toronto. The contract includes a commitment from GM to invest $400 million in Canadian dollars in the plant so that it can build both new cars and trucks.

"The workers in Oshawa especially felt vulnerable because they knew there was no product allocated after 2019 for their plant," Unifor President Jerry Dias told the Free Press. "So the fact that we were able to not only solidify product but transform the plant into an operation that can build cars and trucks has really given people a feeling of comfort."

GM, in a statement Sunday, said: "This mutually beneficial new agreement will enable new product, technology and process investments that will preserve jobs and place our Canadian operations at the forefront of advanced manufacturing flexibility, innovation and environmental sustainability."

Unifor will now use the GM contract as a pattern as it turns its attention to Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, where it is trying to win new investments and product commitments for the automaker's plant in Brampton, Ontario. Unifor has set a strike deadline of 11:59 p.m. Oct. 10 for those discussions.

"FCA knows our priority is investment," Dias said. "I am really looking to lock in our existing products."

Unifor's contract talks with GM, Ford and FCA have been closely watched in Michigan because any strike against the Detroit Three would quickly hurt their finances and a lack of new investment by the automakers in Canada could also hurt Michigan suppliers.

Why Canadian auto labor talks matter for Michigan workers

"Heading into these negotiations we faced the closure of Oshawa, and an uncertain future in St. Catharines and Woodstock," Dias said in a summary of the contract provided to members. "I am so proud to announce that we have reversed that direction, and solidified the footprint of the industry in Canada far into the future."

Here are the details of the investment, which is worth $410 million in U.S. dollars, promised by GM as well as other key terms of the contract:

Oshawa Assembly Plant: $400 million in Canadian dollars for capital for facilities, tools, and machinery and equipment to install a new flexible assembly line that gives the plant "the ability to meet unmet demand in a critical market segment." The Globe & Mail reported Sunday that GM plans to build about 80,000 Chevrolet Silverado pickups annually in Oshawa to keep up with demand. GM will continue to produce the majority of the Silverado at its plant in Ft. Wayne, Ind. On Sunday, Dias confirmed that the product is "a hot-selling pickup truck." GM also will continue to build an updated version of the Cadillac XTS in Oshawa and will extend production of the Chevrolet Impala at the plant.

$400 million in Canadian dollars for capital for facilities, tools, and machinery and equipment to install a new flexible assembly line that gives the plant "the ability to meet unmet demand in a critical market segment." The Globe & Mail reported Sunday that GM plans to build about 80,000 Chevrolet Silverado pickups annually in Oshawa to keep up with demand. GM will continue to produce the majority of the Silverado at its plant in Ft. Wayne, Ind. On Sunday, Dias confirmed that the product is "a hot-selling pickup truck." GM also will continue to build an updated version of the Cadillac XTS in Oshawa and will extend production of the Chevrolet Impala at the plant. St. Catharines: GM plans to invest $150 million in Canadian dollars to upgrade its engine and transmission plant and so it can build a new version of an engine currently made in Mexico.

GM plans to invest $150 million in Canadian dollars to upgrade its engine and transmission plant and so it can build a new version of an engine currently made in Mexico. Woodstock parts depot: $4 million in Canadian dollars to reconfigure how parts are processed.

While GM has confirmed the investment plans outlined by Unifor, it also has said those plans depend on some level of financial support from the Canadian and Ontario governments.

Signing bonus and annual bonuses: All members will receive a one-time, $6,000 ratification bonus before taxes. Workers also will get $2,000 annual lump-sum payments each December each year of the contract starting in December 2017. That's a total of $12,000 in lump-sum payments over the life of the contract.

All members will receive a one-time, $6,000 ratification bonus before taxes. Workers also will get $2,000 annual lump-sum payments each December each year of the contract starting in December 2017. That's a total of $12,000 in lump-sum payments over the life of the contract. Raises: Base rates will rise by 2% upon ratification of the agreement and again by 2% in September 2019. An assembly line worker earning $34.41 per hour today in Canadian dollars would see wages rise 68 cents per hour to $35.09 per hour. A skilled-trades worker earning $40.84 per hour today would see wages rise 81 cents to $41.65 per hour.

Base rates will rise by 2% upon ratification of the agreement and again by 2% in September 2019. An assembly line worker earning $34.41 per hour today in Canadian dollars would see wages rise 68 cents per hour to $35.09 per hour. A skilled-trades worker earning $40.84 per hour today would see wages rise 81 cents to $41.65 per hour. Revised wage scale for new and recently hired workers: Under the current contract, newly hired workers start at $20.49 per hour and get annual raises for 10 years until they are paid $34.15 per hour. Under the new contract, newly hired workers would start at $20.92 per hour and each raise over the next 10 years is at a slightly higher level than the existing progression. Also, all workers who are in the middle of that progression would immediately be bumped up to the higher wage that corresponds with the number of years they have worked for GM.

Under the current contract, newly hired workers start at $20.49 per hour and get annual raises for 10 years until they are paid $34.15 per hour. Under the new contract, newly hired workers would start at $20.92 per hour and each raise over the next 10 years is at a slightly higher level than the existing progression. Also, all workers who are in the middle of that progression would immediately be bumped up to the higher wage that corresponds with the number of years they have worked for GM. No more temporary workers: GM agreed to change the status of 700 supplemental, or temporary, workers to permanent full-status workers. Dias said GM had refused to move any new workers that were brought into its Canadian plants to permanent status in recent years because the automaker wanted to put them on defined contribution pension plan rather than the existing pension plan. Under the contract the union agreed to four years ago, newly hired employees were to be put into a pension plan that combined defined benefits and defined contributions by the company and employees.

GM agreed to change the status of 700 supplemental, or temporary, workers to permanent full-status workers. Dias said GM had refused to move any new workers that were brought into its Canadian plants to permanent status in recent years because the automaker wanted to put them on defined contribution pension plan rather than the existing pension plan. Under the contract the union agreed to four years ago, newly hired employees were to be put into a pension plan that combined defined benefits and defined contributions by the company and employees. Revised pension plan for new hires: Under the new contract, all Unifor members hired or converted to full-time status after ratification of the contract will join a new defined contribution pension plan instead of a traditional pension, or defined benefit plan. The new plan will require a mandatory contribution of 4% of earnings from both the member and the company. If members elect to contribute an additional 1%, the company will provide another 2%.

Contact Brent Snavely: 313-222-6512 or bsnavely@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrentSnavely.