UAW members turn down Fiat Chrysler tentative agreement, move a step closer to strike position

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) workers are a step closer to going on strike after members of the United Auto Workers (UAW) union turned down the automaker’s latest contract offer.

Nearly two-thirds of FCA’s unionized employees voted against the tentative agreement, sending the two sides back to the bargaining table to look for common ground.

In a statement, FCA said it is “disappointed that UAW members voted not to ratify the tentative agreement. The bargaining teams on both sides worked hard, for many days and nights, to craft a transformational agreement that would adequately reward the commitment of our workforce while ensuring the Company’s continued success and competitiveness.”

The statement referenced the company’s near-collapse in the wake of the 2009 financial downturn, and that “those memories continuously reinforce the FCA leadership’s resolve to never let those events repeat.”

UAW President Dennis Williams said he doesn’t consider the ‘no’ vote a setback, calling it “a part of the process we respect.”