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UAW Local 933 Rolls-Royce Unit

Information and Resources

for RR UAW Represented Employees

UAW Local 933 Rolls-Royce Unit

Information and Resources

for RR UAW Represented Employees

2023 Special Bargaining Convention

Day 1

The first-ever directly-elected International Executive Board was introduced as they took their places on the stage for Convention proceedings.

Newly-elected President Shawn Fain gave a rousing speech to the hundreds of delegates in attendance, where he outlined a vision for the union moving forward. “We’re here to come together to ready ourselves for the war against our one and only true enemy: multibillion dollar corporations and employers that refuse to give our members their fair share.”

Guest speakers for the day included Michigan Senator Gary Peters, Senator Debbie Stabenow (by video), and Unifor President Lana Payne. Payne spoke about a shared vision with President Fain and the UAW, stating that the two unions will “do great things together” and that she looked forward to “taking on global corporations.”

One of the core issues of debate on Monday was the subject of cost of living adjustments (COLA), with delegates discussing how to approach bargaining strategy for COLA. A number of delegates spoke in favor of including more comprehensive language in the proposed resolution. Other delegates felt that if the language was too specific, it could hamper UAW negotiators at the bargaining table.

As President Fain noted to the delegates, reflecting on the writings of Dr. Martin Luther King: “As Dr. King took stock of the civil rights movement, he noted: ‘Every revolutionary movement has its peaks of united activity and its valleys of debate.’ So brothers and sisters, let us debate the future of our union. Let that debate be spirited and forceful. And let us emerge from this valley of debate to our highest peak yet. And then let us move forward together.”

Day two of the Special Bargaining Convention will convene at 9 a.m.

UAW.org

Day 2

The second day of the Special Bargaining Convention was a busy one for those in attendance.

Wages, profit-sharing, healthcare, work schedules, health and safety, organizing, higher education, and support for veterans were among the issues discussed and debated by delegates on the Convention floor, as they continued to fine-tune their vision for the union’s bargaining strategy moving forward.

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer addressed the delegates, hailing the UAW for its support of the state’s recent repeal of so-called “right to work.”

“We have shown the world that here in Michigan we have each others’ backs,” Whitmer said to a cheering crowd. “That’s what being in a union is all about.”

UAW Vice President Rich Boyer gave an impassioned speech about Stellantis’s recent decision to idle its Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois. Boyer expressed the need for all UAW members to stand together to stop the Big Three from arbitrarily closing US plants despite record profits.

“I’m going to make one commitment to everybody in this room,” Boyer said. “If you’re in trouble, we’re coming. We’re coming to your side. We’re going to walk the line with you. We’re going to do whatever we’ve got to do to make sure you survive.”

The final day of the Special Bargaining Convention will convene at 9 am tomorrow.

UAW.org

Day 3

The UAW concluded its Special Bargaining Convention today, with members taking up issues of work schedules, the contractual right to honor other unions’ picket lines, and more.

UAW Vice President Chuck Browning gave rousing remarks about the unity of the newly-elected International Executive Board. “There is only one agenda on this board,” Browning said. “It is the membership’s agenda.”

He then issued a warning to corporate America: “To our enemies, who are not in this room; to the rich and powerful that want to attack labor; to the employers that want to make profits at our expense and through the exploitation of workers; let the world hear, we’re united when it comes to our enemies and our bargaining. We’re sticking together and taking on the boss.”

Browning’s comments were met with raucous cheers from delegates, and chants of “U-A-W!”

In his closing remarks, President Shawn Fain echoed the message of power through unity: “If we stand together, they will not break us. Our power is in our members. It’s not who’s up on this stage. It’s in you all.”

Proceedings ended with a standing ovation from delegates and our union’s anthem,“Solidarity Forever.”

UAW.org