Solidarity Works for JCI Workers

For years, workers at Johnson Controls Inc. (JCI) plants and other automotive suppliers have struggled against ferocious employer hostility to union representation. Despite setbacks at JCI, workers have courageously stood up again and again, exercising their right to organize. In a tremendous show of UAW solidarity, workers at JCI plants in four states went on strike June 12, 2002, protesting unfair labor practices. The strike's impact reverberated throughout the company and also idled two General Motors and three DaimlerChrysler plants before ending June 14.

In the span of just a few days, workers at three of the plants (Oklahoma City, Okla., Earth City, Mo., and Shreveport, La.) got contracts that improved wages, benefits and working conditions so much that each work force ratified them without a single no vote. The fourth plant, in Northwood, Ohio, won recognition and a fast track to collective bargaining.

In another historic breakthrough, JCI agreed to a national neutrality and card-check agreement that covers 26 JCI plants in the U.S. and more than 8,000 workers. One of those facilities - in Dayton, N.J. - had held a card check before, but fierce anti-union tactics by the company that included bribes and other methods of coercion resulted in a no vote.

"The first time out, (management) had people trying to persuade us not to vote for the UAW," said Peter Stopinski, a production team member at the Dayton facility. "During the campaign, management brought in a slide show showing where JCI plants were ranked, and New Jersey was at the top, but they said that maybe next year that wouldn't be the case, implying that if we unionized we would put the plant in jeopardy. But it was just scare tactics," Stopinski said.

Since the June strike and subsequent neutrality agreement, the workers have had a second card-check - this time with the majority voting yes.

"The second time, there were a lot of people who had been against the UAW who got laid off. Some of them weren't very happy," Stopinski said. "And everyone has a different issue. Some people were angry about the vacation policy, others were concerned about pay and changes in the medical plan. Management would change their policies and rules day to day, and we didn't have any input."

For his part, Stopinski, a member of the bargaining committee negotiating a first contract, believes being part of the UAW will address the inconsistency in management practices. "I think now, we will have more input into those things," he said. "All of it comes down to us having a say."

If you are interested in organizing your workplace with the UAW, contact our Organizing Department or call 1-800 2GET-UAW (1-800-243-8829). You'll be connected to (or get a call back from) a UAW organizer who can answer questions and tell you what it takes to organize a union at your workplace.

If you're in Canada, call 1-800-387-0538 to reach UAW Local 251, a Canadian UAW local union that helps Canadian workers organize.

"Because management held all the cards, and they were always changing things — our medical plan, disability plan, work rules. Some people were getting special treatment. I think the UAW can make the road straight for everybody, so the same rules apply to everybody."

— Peter Stopinski, Johnson Controls Inc., Dayton, N.J