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Feb. 17 (UPI) -- The United Auto Workers are threatening strike at Ford's largest and most profitable plant next week after five months of stalled negotiations. The UAW on Friday issued a statement that 9,000 UAW Local 862 members could strike on Feb. 23 at Ford's Kentucky Truck Plant if local contract issues are not resolved.
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The core issues on the table are "health and safety in the plant, including minimum in-plant nurse staffing levels and ergonomic issues, as well as Ford's continued attempts to erode the skilled trades at Kentucky Truck Plant," the statement read.
According to the UAW, Ford Motor Company failed to reach an agreement with UAW Local 862 more than five months past the contract deadline.
Local contracts differ from UAW national contracts and focus on plant-specific issues at each facility, according to the union.
The UAW in 2023 ratified national contracts in 2023 with Ford, General Motors and Chrysler parent Stellantis.
There are 19 other open local agreements with Ford, including at the Kentucky Truck Plant.
The Kentucky plant produces Ford Super Duty pickups, Ford Expedition full-sized SuVs and Lincoln Navigator SUVs.
Ford told CNBC it looks "forward to reaching an agreement with UAW Local 862 at Kentucky Truck Plant."
The strike deadline comes a day after UAW President Shawn Fain criticized Ford CEO Jim Farley for suggesting the company could change its footprint in response to changing market conditions and tense negotiations that resulted in six weeks of strikes in 2023.
The Kentucky plant was the first plant to shut down during those targeted strikes.
Farley at Wolfe Research investor conference Thursday said "clearly our relationship has changed" regarding the strikes.
"As we look at this EV transition and [internal combustion engine] lasting longer and our truck business being more profitable, we have to think carefully about our footprint," he said.
Fain, a historically combative union leader, responded by suggesting Ford should depose Farley and find a CEO who is committed to American workers.
"Maybe Ford doesn't need to move factories to find the cheapest labor on Earth," he said. "Maybe it needs to recommit to American workers and find a CEO who's interested in the future of this country's auto industry."
Local 862 President Todd Dunn told the Detroit News Farley's comment "doesn't have any bearing" on the union's intent to strike, and workers threatening to walkout "has happened before."
"It's an oddity, or rarity," he said. "I've never seen or experienced a local contract strike. My job as president is to facilitate and execute that plan if necessary. [Last year] we saw what we were able to do, and the leverage we had."
Ford reported a $4.3 billion net income on $176.2 billion in revenue in 2023. The company has said the Kentucky plant generates about $25 billion a year. The UAW strike last year cost the company $1.7 billion in profit.
