ONTARIO — Unifor members at Stellantis are scheduled to vote October 17 and 18 on giving their bargaining committee a strike mandate as Canadian contract talks remain unresolved.

The union's October 6 notice says results will be announced Monday, October 19. An affirmative vote would authorize the committee to call a strike if needed; it would not automatically trigger a walkout.

Job security remains a disputed issue

Unifor says the unresolved issues include the future of Brampton Assembly and job security across Stellantis's Canadian operations. The union describes strike action as a last resort while it seeks an agreement.

Friday's Canadian Press report carried by CHCH says the talks cover more than 9,000 workers and that the previous contract expired September 20 without a replacement tentative deal.

Stellantis spokesperson Lou Ann Gosselin told The Canadian Press this week that the company was bargaining in good faith and seeking a deal recognizing employees' contributions while supporting the competitiveness of its Canadian operations.

The immediate development is the membership vote, not a confirmed strike date or a final settlement. The announced timetable puts the result after the weekend's ballots.

Sources: Unifor's voting notice; The Canadian Press via CHCH, October 16.

Lead image: Windsor Assembly Plant, October 2006 file photograph by Decimal10, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. Resized and converted to WebP under the same licence. Historical automotive context; not Brampton, a current plant view or the strike vote.