Hundred of workers walked out of the Lear Corp. factory Saturday, after the seat plant failed to find a compromise over the new contract.
About 700 members of United Auto Workers Local 2335 joined the picket line outside the factory demanding higher wages. The workers said that they've been working without a contract for a month after their contract signed in 2009 expired.
The plant shut down Saturday after all of its workers walked out of their jobs.
To help the company get out of bankruptcy, the employees agreed in the 2009 contract negotiation on the capped $16 per hour wage for new hires. But now that the finances have been better for the company, the workers demand for the factory to be fair. Early reports said that the company offered the employees the same terms in the contract.
Lorenzo Jones, a 29-year-old employee who has worked for the plant for six years, said it's a two-way street and it's the company's turn to give back to the employees. He said that the $13 per hour he earns is no longer enough to support his family.
The UAW Local 2335 posted on their Facebook page, "The Company is pushing and proposing demands on the Union, and not substantiating those demands with the proper information."
The union workers want the two-tier employees paid as much as the one-tier works because they do the same work but receive less salary and receive no vision insurance.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the factory shut down can affect the Ford assembly plant in Chicago since they operate on a "just-in-time basis," where they receive parts just hours before the assembly instead of stocking up on supplies. Thousand other workers may be affected with the strike since several other plants depend on the Indiana factory.
The works said they're willing to reach a compromise, and the Lears Corp. are ready to resume negotiations.
