‘It’s embarrassing’: GM bargaining chairman blasts leadership for shifting senior workers

ALLEN COUNTY, Ind. (WANE) —The  UAW local 2209 bargaining chairman Rich LeTourneau is doing everything he can to avert a strike.

This time around it’s not about pay for the 4,000 GM workers who produce 1,500 GMC Sierras every day at the Roanoke plant.

It’s about senior workers, shift scrambles and leadership shenanigans, according to LeTourneau.

“Every week, 253 of my senior people are playing musical chairs to fill the openings. They’re switching senior workers around to take care of the slots that were filled by the temporary workers,” LeTourneau explained.

These senior workers have been working first shift for years and are now working “outside their classifications.”

The order came from the local GM leadership. “It violates our agreement and quite frankly, it affects the welfare of these people immediately because they’re not young people. These people are 55, 60 years old.

“I’ve never seen it happen and I’ve been here since the inception in 1997,” said LeTourneau, referring to senior workers getting moved to work other shifts. Team leaders, some of whom have 25 to 30 years at the plant, have paid their dues.

“There is a fundamental difference of opinion on what an open job is and an open job isn’t with this leadership,” LeTourneau said Thursday in an exclusive interview with WANE. “And quite frankly, this isn’t about temps. It’s about the open jobs we’ve been trying to get filled for months and if you fill these jobs, we don’t have the issues.”

LeTourneau says 253 temporary workers, some of whom have been working at GM for a year and a half, were terminated Sept. 30. They were hired to cover vacations and absences.

LeTourneau and his committee have been asking leadership to fill 95 positions that would keep senior workers in place in the shifts they’ve earned.

“We have a choice. Extend the temp letters and that way, neither of us are violating the agreement,” LeTourneau said.

At the plant, there’s a 40-hour work week, but the temps worked 32 hours a week. If the temps were taken on to work 40 hours a week, they would still have to wait nine months before they are “hired.”

LeTourneau said there’s not been a strike at the plant since1997.

“That’s why it’s embarrassing to even talk about this. We’ve never had this situation. I don’t advocate striking first. I try to fix the situation. But this issue has been going on for months. This temporary letter was signed three months ago. “

To set the situation right, the leadership is going to need to hire some people to fill these openings, LeTourneau said.

“We’ve told them to fill these openings for months. The temporary workers were filling some of those positions, but only at 32 hours a week.

“Right now, 21 (senior workers) got shifted to second and third shift and they weren’t prepared for that.”

Asked what problems have arisen, LeTourneau said sleep patterns, for one thing.

“That’s a big thing for third shifters. Unless you’re used to that, you’re not used to that. If you get forced to third shift, it’s a culture shock and that’s my concern. It affects the welfare of these people immediately,” he said.

The plant will continue to produce 1,500 trucks, he said.

“But they’re going to do it with my team leaders, my ROs (replacement operators) and, sometimes, management, on the line which is unacceptable to me, unacceptable to my membership, unacceptable to my senior people. It’s time the senior people get recognized in this UAW and General Motors, not just temporary workers, not just part time workers. That seems to be the focus in every contract, not the people who paid their dues.

“Yeah, we love our temps, but you know what, they aren’t the priority,” LeTourneau said. “There’s an avenue under the national agreement to take some of the temporary or part-time workers and make them 40 hours.  Per the national contract, they have to be 40 hours for nine months before they can get hired.”

The shenanigans come in because the management has allegedly said if they were forced to work them for 40 hours, they would switch them back to 32 hours before the nine months was up. “It’s dangling a carrot out there, giving them false hopes they’re getting hired.”

As far as LeTourneau is aware, two other plants are facing similar situations. Those are the Corvette plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky and another in Tonawanda, New York.

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