TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WIVB) — Members of United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 774 will be holding a rally Wednesday, in solidarity with auto workers across the country.
This follows a practice picket by Local 686, which took place across from the General Motors (GM) plant in Lockport Tuesday afternoon.
Bargaining on a new contract is taking place between the UAW and three major vehicle makers — Ford, GM and Stellantis. Elsewhere in the country, a strike began after an agreement on a new contract was not reached by Friday morning, but not all UAW members are striking.
Instead, UAW President Shawn Fain said “stand up” strikes are part of the plan. This essentially means that only some workers will go on strike at a time, but more could be added as days pass in the negotiations.
Local 686 President Michael DeLucas says “We’ve been in preparation for the last 11 weeks. Put a strike committee together and we’re ready to go if need be. Nobody really wants to strike. We will strike if need be.”
Last week around this time, Fain said the two sides were “still very far apart on [their] key priorities.”
Wednesday’s event is set to take place at Local 774’s union hall (2939 Niagara St., Tonawanda) from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Evan Anstey is an Associated Press Award, JANY Award and Emmy-nominated digital producer who has been part of the News 4 team since 2015. See more of his work here and follow him on Twitter.
