UAW's rift with Stellantis raises fear that some US auto jobs could vanish

To Ruth Breeden, who assembles Ram trucks in this Detroit suburb, a simmering dispute between the United Auto Workers and Stellantis isn't merely about whether her employer will reopen a distant factory in Illinois. To her, the standoff is a danger sign for all UAW workers.

Stellantis had pledged to reopen the factory in Belvidere, Illinois, under a contract it forged last year with the union. But the feopening was delayed given what the company calls unfavorable “market conditions."

Stellantis says it will eventually reopen the plant. But no date has been given to restart it or open a new battery plant and a parts warehouse, both of which were also promised in the contract that ended the UAW's strike against Stellantis last year. At stake are over 2,700 jobs.

Breeden and other union members fear that Stellantis will break other commitments, jeopardizing their jobs.

“It’s the whole company,” she said at a union rally last month near her factory. “Who knows which plant is next?”

Union leaders have threatened to strike, a move that could extend beyond Stellantis. Labor experts say its two Detroit-area rivals, Ford and General Motors, are watching as they consider strategies that include whether to move future production out of the U.S.

Detroit automakers have been expanding production in Mexico for years. And after last fall's strikes shut down a Ford truck plant, its CEO warned the company would rethink where it builds new vehicles.

“There's plenty of history of the U.S. manufacturing sector moving its operations to low-wage countries," said Bob Bruno, a labor and employment relations professor at the University of Illinois. “It seems reasonable to me for the UAW to be concerned about not opening here, not investing