Unifor outlines vision for collective bargaining with Toyota

Union to focus on fairness, wages and job security

Following its application to be the bargaining agent for team members at Toyota, Unifor has released a charter outlining its plan to address workers’ concerns.

“Unifor is committed to working with Toyota team members to create a made-for-Toyota agreement,” said Unifor’s national president Jerry Dias. “The charter is intended to reflect some of the priorities identified by team members and other information about what joining Unifor could mean. We want Toyota team members to be well-informed when they are voting next week.”

Thousands of team members were consulted in the creation of the charter Building a made-for-Toyota-agreement. Through conversations with team members and a recent online survey Unifor found workers’ primary concerns include fairness, wages, job security and pensions.

“We will create a made-for-Toyota contract that builds on your existing conditions, balancing the industry pattern and standards with a measure of independence to reflect the specific situation and concerns at Toyota,” the charter reads.

The charter is not a bargaining proposal, the union said, but does give Toyota team members an idea of how Unifor could impact their lives.

“The charter is a vision of what we hope to achieve, over time, through the collective bargaining process,” said Toyota team member Lee Sperduti. “Toyota is a good company — however, we need to create positive change in our workplace and the only way to create this change is with the leadership of team members and the support of Unifor.”

If successful, Unifor would be the first union to represent Toyota team members in North America.

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