JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Dozens of Jacksonville United Auto Workers are on strike, demanding increased pay and changes to the company’s pension plan.
The North Florida Central Labor Council picketed alongside employees Friday afternoon outside the distribution center on the city’s west side.
With picket signs in the air, the group chanted: "What do we want? Fair contract. When do we want it? Now."
The union’s been negotiating since September and hit a wall when the union rejected an offer from Volvo group subsidy Mack.
Workers haven’t seen a pay increase since 2019 and say wages have not kept up with inflation.
They walked out Monday morning and don't plan to go back until it's settled.
Twenty-seven Jacksonville United Autoworkers joined thousands across Florida, Pennsylvania and Maryland on the picket line.
Anthony Jackson is a warehouse associate at Volvo of North Florida. He said it’s time for a change.
“We live in America. We have families,” Jackson said. “With the cost of living going up every year, it's impossible for us to keep up and to support our families."
Mack officials said their offer included a ten percent general wage increase in year one and a 20% increase over five years.
Plus, guaranteed stable health insurance premiums through the contract's end.
Jackson said it wasn't enough.
"We're looking at trying to do away with the tier program where it takes you six years to get to top pay,” Jackson said. “We're looking at trying to get it back down to three, and those demands were not met by the company."
North Florida Central Labor Council President Russell Harper said participating shows corporations their employees aren't alone.
"We support them, just moral support, but it also lets the company see that it's not just their own workers that are concerned about them,” Harper said. “It's the general public or a lot of the general public."
Jackson said they’ll be on strike until the two parties can come to an agreement.
"We feel like the company should be willing to give us fair wages to be able to take care of our families and meet our needs from healthcare, schooling, or whatever it may be in life," Jackson said.
In a statement, Mack President Stephen Roy said: “We are surprised and disappointed that the UAW has chosen to strike, which we feel is unnecessary. We clearly demonstrated our commitment to good faith bargaining by arriving at a tentative agreement that was endorsed by both the International UAW and the UAW Mack Truck Council.
“The UAW called our tentative agreement ‘a record contract for the Heavy Truck industry,’ and we trust that other stakeholders also appreciate that our market, business, and competitive set are very different from those of the passenger car makers.
“Mack Trucks is part of the only heavy-truck manufacturing group that assembles all of its trucks and engines for the North American market here in the United States, and continues to compete against products built in lower-cost countries. We have invested more than $435 million in our plants and logistics network over the last 10 years, and are now in the process of investing more than $1 billion in new Mack products.
“We are committed to the collective bargaining process, and remain confident that we will be able to arrive at an agreement that delivers competitive wages and benefits for our employees and their families, while safeguarding our future as a competitive company and stable long-term employer. We look forward to returning to negotiations as soon as possible.”