Employees at a joint GM and LG plant voted 710 to 16 to approve unionization. The process was closely watched because battery plants are crucial to the transition to electric vehicles.
Workers at an Ohio plant that makes batteries for General Motors voted to unionize the first plant originally built for electrical vehicles and components.
Employees at Ultium Cells, a joint venture of GM and LG Energy Solution in Warren, Ohio, voted 710 to 16 to join the United Auto Workers (UAW) according to the National Labor Relations Board.
The vote was closely watched as battery plants are seen as crucial for automakers to transition from traditional internal combustion engine vehicles to fully electric cars and trucks.
That gives the powerful union a foothold amid historic clean energy investments pushed by President Joe Biden’s administration.
Less salaries and employees
Union officials have been concerned about the future of the labor movement as automakers turn their attention to zero-emission vehicles.
New facilities need fewer workers, because electric vehicles generally require far fewer parts than vehicles with internal combustion engines. That translates to 40% less labor, according to Ford CEO Jim Farley.
Labor officials have said that could pose an existential threat to the self-employed and their union. A 2018 UAW study found that the mass adoption of electric vehicles put 35,000 jobs at risk.
Jobs in electric vehicle manufacturing pay $15 to $16 an hour, far less than Detroit autoworkers’ rates of $30 an hour.
GM CEO Mary Barra has said her company supports the union drive.
In a post-election statement, GM said it hoped Ultium and the UAW “can successfully establish a competitive and flexible labor agreement that will help ensure the future success of the Ultium Cells business.”
LG said it would accept the result of the vote. “LG Energy Solution respects Ultium Cells’ decision to give its workers the freedom to choose union representation that complies with the National Labor Relations Act,” the company said.
Ultium spokeswoman Brooke Waid said Friday that the company “expects a positive working relationship with the UAW.”
The company refused to recognize UAW representation voluntarily over the summer, prompting a formal vote.
The union needed a simple majority of voters for victory. The plant has approximately 900 workers.