Volvo Mack Truck strike ends
By Martha Grevatt posted on July 21, 2021
Striking Volvo Mack Truck workers, Dublin, Va.
Members of United Auto Workers Local 2069 are returning to work after striking Volvo Mack Truck on-and-off since April 17. The 2,900 workers in the small town of Dublin, Va., had voted to reject three unacceptable contracts, twice with 90% voting no and the third time with 60% against.
After rejecting the most recent tentative agreement July 9, they were given the same contract as “last, best offer” for a second vote July 14, when it passed by only 17 votes.
Volvo’s truck division has made record profits, and workers wanted to get back some of what they gave up in previous contracts. They wanted to uphold the basic principle of “equal pay for equal work” and eliminate two-tier pay. This onerous system, widespread in UAW plants, means lower seniority workers make less money and/or receive inferior benefits compared to higher seniority workers doing t