CAW resists two-tiered wage system at plastic plant

A Windsor, Ont.-based plastic automotive part manufacturer’s decision to emulate the new contract between General Motors Corp. and United Auto Workers has raised the ire of the Canadian Auto Workers union.

According to media reports, Emrick Plastics has proposed a two-tiered wage system in its recent negotiations with the CAW. The company would like to pay new employees $14 an hour — that’s $6 less than the current starting rate at Emrick — and keep the wages at the lower level on a permanent basis.

A two-tiered wage system was one of the key components of the GM/UAW deal, and the agreement made some industry analysts wonder if Canada can remain competitive.

However, Canadian Auto Workers expressed resistance to concessions like these at unionized Canadian auto plants.

“They are starting some trends that are very troubling,” CAW president Buzz Hargrove told The Globe and Mail. “We are not going to let them come to Canada.”

Emrick Plastics is a division of the Windsor Mold Group, and currently employs approximately 60 people.