Windsor Unifor President John D'Agnolo expressed optimism as Ford Motor Company was chosen to lead this year's Detroit Three contract negotiations, citing the automaker's sustained investment in Canadian manufacturing as a key factor.
Ford Selected as Pattern Setter
Unifor announced Monday that any agreement reached with Ford will set the framework for subsequent talks with General Motors and Stellantis. The union's traditional approach involves selecting the company best positioned for productive negotiations.
“How it always works is we look at the three companies and see who’s best established when it comes to going to the table,” said D'Agnolo, president of Unifor Local 200, in an interview with the Windsor Star. “We recognize Ford has done a lot of work to invest in Canada. The other two companies stepped back.”
He emphasized the urgency of early bargaining amid economic uncertainties. “We wanted to get ahead of bargaining because everything going on: the instability in the economy, the CUSMA talks, tariffs, the gas prices, it just goes on and on and on. You just don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Timeline and Local Talks
Local negotiations in Windsor will commence within the next couple of weeks, ahead of national master bargaining committees convening on June 22. These talks fall within the 90-day window leading up to the September 19 deadline.
“We’re looking to put ourselves in a situation where we have some type of stability when it comes to our programs that are here in Canada,” D'Agnolo stated. “That’s the message that needs to be sent, because Ford Motor Company has done everything they can to continue to invest here in Canada. They recognize that Canadians buy their vehicles, and they want to support Canadians.”
Ford's Canadian Investments
Ford was selected due to its demonstrated commitment to expanding operations in Canada. Later this year, the company will begin producing its F-Series Super Duty pickup truck at the Oakville Assembly Complex, after abandoning earlier plans to manufacture electric vehicles there. The transition is supported by nearly $500 million in federal funding to retool the facility. Additionally, Ford's Windsor engine plant has added a production line to support the new truck program.
D'Agnolo noted that Ford has hired several hundred workers in Windsor as preparations accelerate. “There’s a lot on the line when it comes to our future,” he said. “We want to make sure that the transition of the new programs coming in are smooth. So, that is the reason why we wanted to start bargaining early.”
Job Security as Top Priority
With Canada's auto sector facing pressures from U.S. tariffs on Canadian-made vehicles, shifts in EV policy, and rising competition from Chinese automakers, D'Agnolo emphasized that protecting jobs is his primary focus during bargaining. “Job security is always number one,” he said. “You can negotiate all the bells and whistles, but if you’re not at work, you don’t get any of it. We’ve seen that at Brampton Assembly Plant. We’ve watched the Oakville plant, that’s been down for quite a long time. They didn’t get the opportunity to celebrate the increases we got in the last set of bargaining. And then we have the CAMI plant in the same situation. So, our goal is always job security. And then, we always look at the pensions and the wages and the benefits and so on. But right now, security of the work is so important, especially today.”
