Local 444 Unifor

Brothers and Sisters With a great deal of pride, excitement and sadness I wish to inform you as of January 24th, 2021, I will be resigning from my position as the TRW/ZF plant chair. I have been privileged and honoured to serve and represent this membership for over a decade. I am proud of the battles we have won and the improvements we have made together through bargaining and standing together in solidarity. ... I have been offered and accepted a job as a National Service Representative with Unifor. I will be covering Northern Ontario, mainly Sudbury, which means I will need a warmer coat, maybe some snowshoes and will have to move out of Windsor. Local 444 has been very good to me, the members of my facility, the community where I have lived, and they continue to be the sword in the fight for collective justice. If there is anything I have learned from my involvement it is this- the more you put into your local, the more you will get out of it. The local 444 leadership has done a hell of a job fighting for their members and maybe equally as important bringing this local back to its members. (Stealing one of Dave’s lines) There is a place for you here, Brothers and Sisters, this could not be truer of local 444, find your place, get involved and make a difference. YOU ARE THE UNION. In Solidarity Jerry Logan

**Attention of Local 444 Retirees*** We want to connect with YOU! Please click the link and follow the simple instructions so we can have you registered.... Click here https://tinyurl.com/y4oy9wp5 ***Only register ONE TIME*** Once you are registered we will be able to keep you updated on a number of issues. As well in the near future we will be able to connect you to our Retiree meetings where you can watch live and ask questions through your computer in the comfort of your very own home. We are making it VERY easy. The first step is to follow this link. https://tinyurl.com/y4oy9wp5 Put your email Choose retired Pick your workplace Your name **Your master # Your phone number Your address Then you are all done https://tinyurl.com/y4oy9wp5 Any questions or concerns please call the Retirees Chapter President Peter Pellerito at (519) 300-4268 Or Jeremy Glajch at the local 226-787-8359 Do not come to the local as we are closed do due Covid lock down. ****Please Share********

VP Darryl Desjarlais with a little extra help in the office today Edie (Edith)

Put your trust in Pacifica. ~Consumer Reports #builtwindsor , #builtright

Let’s lighten things up a bit.... A big question for 2020 Beard or No Beard ... Please vote -

***Post of the Day*** What. A. Day. Grateful is an understatement. The efforts & support will never be forgotten by this crew of 60+. I’m sure we’ll pull together and do what needs to be done to find our way in these still somewhat uncertain times. ... Today we breathe a small sigh of relief in this next step afforded to us by our strong union representatives and their ability to go at our situation from every angle and come out with the best possible solution to work toward. Our union officers & their staff never once took their foot off the gas as our situation twisted and turned. The unending and encouraging support from Unifor 444 & locals citywide & across the country, the workers inside Windsor Assembly and all of it’s feeder plants was incredible and kept our hope afloat (the Penalty Box chicken delights, the donated pizzas, Koolini’s soups, Stiemar donuts, the McDonald’s burgers and hot coffee were also helpful) Onward and upward as we move forward in our fight against the race to the bottom. Delanie Campbell Pace (AWC)

Attention Windsor Assembly Members Tomorrow at the gates, we will be collecting non-perishable items and monetary donations for all those who are going hungry in our community. Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much. Helen Keller... #uni444comunity

We have A Resilient Workforce (December 444 News) I want to start by commending all of our members for being resilient in the face of a pandemic. The way we knew has significantly changed in the workplace, but this has not stopped us from being the best at what we do inside our facilities....Continue reading

Let’s take a quick look back at few events from 2020. January Started off with our Junior Men’s Hockey team winning Gold ... Saw the start of AWC Bargaining and Uni444 Solidarity Soldiers were sent to Regina beach to help hold the co-op strike line- Windsor Style! Jan 15th Dave meets with Federal associate finance Liberal Minister Mona Fortier- Jobs jobs jobs January- Supporting teachers on the picket line. No if’s no But’s No educa-tional cuts! February 13th Dave and James visit with the federal Labour Minister Filomena Tassi- Invest in our industries! February 17th Solidarity Night Basketball Game! MTS bargaining February 24th Dave is a guest in Ottawa for a standing committee on Industry and Science Technology on Parliament Hill- The need to invest in the auto industry! February 27th announcement of third shift at WAP March 15th OLG closes all Casinos in the Province- Covid March 18th WAP and feeders close- Covid April 20th Nova Scotia Strong- (country’s worst killing spree) April- Hiram Walker hand sanitizer deliveries begin April 24th /May 2nd /May 5th Solidarity drive thru- Signs May 16th Hamper handout Essex May 19th WAP starts back up June 22nd Local 594 members ratified (Co-op refineries) Northstar contract ratified uni444 July 11th last day of Midnight shift at WAP July 30th Chatham casinos open August 12th Official Detroit 3 handoff. bargaining begins August 13th Dave meets with the Premier- Province need to open our Casinos, and need to support the auto industry August 22nd Presteve foods ratified uni444 August 30th strike authorization vote for FCA Extended ElringKlinger contract October 8th Caesars Windsor opens 50 people/ as well as Gateway October 10th Cascades Chatham opens September 20th Walk for Suicide Awareness September 25th ETNA foods ratified uni444 September 28th Ford ratifies September 30th headed up to Toronto FCA Bargaining August 21st LAST Dodge Caravan as we know it rolls off the line October 6th Sterling Fuels ratified uni444 October 6th Dave Meets again with the Premier to help with our FCA contract October 15th FCA tentative agreement October 19th FCA we have a deal uni444 October 30th TransAlta deal ratified uni444 November 8th Integram deal ratified uni444 November 8th Alex Trebek succumbs to Cancer- RIP November 9th GM deal- Oshawa rises again November 30th Caesars closes again- Covid December 6th Local 444 Violence Against Women Memorial December 7th Southgate Residence Kingsville get a deal December 10th Windsor Assembly Food Drive- $15,000 and 7,350 lbs of non-perishable food for the needy. December 17th Great Gaming Holiday package drive-thru!- Over 1000 cars show up! December 21st Great Gaming Holiday package drive-thru take 2 December 23rd Windsor Assembly Plant Christmas Shutdown

Join the thousands getting up to date news & information about our local and the area where we live on our Twitter page @local444unifor

Please join us in wishing a very Happy Birthday to your 3rd Vice President Darryl Desjarlais!!! #uni444vp3

#uni444committees

New retirees taking advantage of the open door policy! #OpenDoorPolicy, #uni444retirees, #uni444prez

Ensuring Our Long-term Success (December 444 News) FCA Bargaining As we went into bargaining this year, the one thing that was heavy on our minds was the loss of the third shift at the Windsor Assembly Plant and our laid-off members from WAP and along with our feeder plants. We were also determined not to allow the D3 companies to dictate a platform of "take backs" due to the current Covid-19 pandemic, just as they attempted to do so. ... We knew our members demanded improvements and certainly deserved them. As we went into bargaining our FCA master bargaining committee wanted to lead the way. We wanted to make sure we had resolutions to the above problems, and the best way to do that was to lead the way and set the pattern. As we got into the fray with the companies, we realized rather quickly that Ford was signalling they may be open to a significant transformational investment resolving the problem we were facing with no future product beyond 2024 at the Oakville Assembly. FCA and GM showed little signs of life in the earliest days of bargaining. We focused on Ford collectively with the idea that we could leverage both FCA and GM to make significant investments if we were successful at Ford. Our WAP members desperately needed a substantial commitment with the same type of transformational investment if we were going to find a way to give our most junior and laid-off members the long-term hope and job security they deserved. Once it was clear that we were very close with Ford on their Oakville investment, it was an easy decision to make Ford the target and move towards setting a pattern that included pay increases, lump-sum payments, benefit increases and significant improvements to the grow-in program. This strategy paid off in a big way in our bargaining with FCA. Ford being the target allowed us to set the tone with FCA that we weren't going to leave the bargaining table without Ford's economic package, and we would also demand that our plant receive the same type of commitment to our future. As a result, our investment at WAP will be a generational change. It will take us a little bit of time to get there due to the enormous infrastructural planning that needs to be done. Still, our plant will be the first in North America that will have the ability to build a truck, a van a SUV or a car that can be powered by either a combustible engine, a hybrid electric drive, or a full battery-powered vehicle on two completely different platforms. This will lead to the return of the third shift at WAP and the ultimate return of our laid-off members and will even lead to many new FCA employees here in Windsor. Our plant will truly be considered flexible and allow FCA to put any vehicle they need into our production mix, ensuring our long-term success. James Stewart Financial Secretary Local 444 #uni444finsec

We Have A Deal!! Our uni444 members from Southgate Residence in Kingsville voted overwhelmingly (*100%) for a new 3-year contract with key gains that put our members in line with and in some regards surpassing, similar workers in the industry. (Ratification meeting and vote were held outside at lakeside park....thanks Covid .)... #uni444bargaining

Our uni444 Like & Share Toque winners are..... Tamara Hunter-Brissette Trisha Maree... Marty Lesperance Congratulations ! #uni444swag, #uni444toque

In just over the past 35 days Bargaining FCA contract Toronto Sept 30- Oct 19 Meeting with the Premier... Strike mandate vote with TransAlta Held Strike Mandate vote with Integram Bargaining Sterling Fuels Tentative and Ratification Sterling Fuels-Deal FCA Tentative *achieved FCA Ratification- Deal First Day home from Toronto Opened up Bargaining TransAlata Opened up Bargaining Integram. **************************** Volunteered at the Bob Probert ride met with the Retirees executive TransAlta Tentative *Achieved TransAlta Ratification- Deal Local 444 action center prep. Gateway Bargaining prep Southgate Bargaining prep Integram Tentative *Achieved Sunday - Integram Ratification VOTE

Oh no, not SNOW ! Lucky for us, our order of 444 toques just came in! *Like and *Share this picture, and you will be entered to win your very own #444toque (cuffed or skull cap)... The winner is chosen Monday at high noon! Or? *Buy your own $12 Toque from the local 9-4 Mon-Friday while supplies last Great stocking stuffer! #uni444toque, #uni444swag, #uni444likeNshare

Incredibly Challenging Year (December 444 News) Unfortunately, at the time of this writing, Doug Ford announced that our region is moving into the red zone. The red zone restriction caps the number of customers in a casino at 10. Due to this restriction, the casino announced they would be closing again. In the green, yellow and orange zone, we have been restricted to 50 customers at a time in our entire facility. This restriction makes no sense to me at all. Not whe...Continue reading

A proud fairly new retiree reliving his past glory! 2001 Charlie Brooks Men’s low net winner! Mr. Dino Scrignaro... #uni444retirees See more

Attention Windsor Assembly Plant members

"So God Made a Farmer" was a speech given by a very famous radio broadcaster Paul Harvey in 1978. The speech was later used by Dodge for a Super Bowl commercial a few years ago 2013. Which inspired this speech -... *So God Made an Autoworker* And on the 8th day, God looked down on his planned paradise and said, "I need an assembler " So God made an autoworker. God said, "I need somebody willing to work all hours of the day and night to put steering columns on, to weld down floor pans, untangle wire harnesses, screw-in door panels, tighten stabilizers, install windshields, paint, test and assemble it all with great care. So God made an autoworker God said, "I need somebody with arms strong enough to lift a muffler 80 times an hour and yet kind-hearted enough to give the most to their community! Someone who takes their HARD earned dollars and uses them to help kids baseball, hockey and soccer teams, to build parks, handicap ramps or whatever the community requires" So God made an Autoworker. God said, "I need somebody willing to stand all night in the rain and cold with a sign in their hands by a warming barrel as they hold the line for JUSTICE and FAIRNESS, I need somebody who cares more about their brother and sister than they do about their very own job! someone who will sit down or walk out in the name of SOLIDARITY, and when it calls for it, look the very hand that feeds them in the eye and tell them HELL NO! -- and mean it." So God made an autoworker. Someone willing to work in an industry where the only people who understand their worth and sacrifice will be their families and those that toil with them on the line. He needed someone willing to FIGHT for every cent they earn time and time again, So God made an autoworker. God said, "I need somebody strong enough to shut down a plant, yet gentle enough to mourn our veterans, skate with our kids, collect money in a jar for a brother or sister's cause. To bake, walk, ride, and paddle against the diseases killing their loved ones. Somebody willing to risk their bodies for none will end their tenure in a plant without SOME reminder of their stay. So God made an autoworker. Somebody to organize a union, tame cantankerous machinery, deal with dimwitted supervision and tools that don't work or parts that don't fit and at the end of the day a TOP quality vehicle needs to be assembled." So God made an autoworker. Dave Cassidy (2013)

Our Van vs Toyota .....it’s not even close The Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid takes home the gold. The Pacifica still has the mojo that got our attention when it first came out. It keeps families entertained while delivering a peaceful ride and a fancy cabinall while delivering terrific fuel economy MotorTrend... #builtwindsor, #builtright

All coats will need to be purchased by the referred youth/family, so the Unemployed Help Centre is looking for monetary donations to make this year’s program successful. Donations can be made online here~ https://www.uhc.ca/donate

Help support Hiatus House Windsor this Friday from 8-4 at local 444. See you there! ***Please share ***

November 4, 2020 ***Attention all Caesars Windsor Members ***** Update on Bumping ...Continue reading

Help support Hiatus House Windsor and shine the light on women's abuse. At the local today!!

INTRODUCING Coping with COVID: An interactive, live webcast conversation from Windsor Regional Hospital Its a new series of interactive webcasts to give those coping with COVID-19 a forum to share their stories, ask questions and get answers from experts, in real time. The idea for the project began when local 444’s good friend and CEO of the Unemployed Help Center June Muir was one of the *first individuals with a confirmed case of COVID-19 in the region.... June shares here story here. https://www.wrh.on.ca/newsroom?newsid=2672

June Muir and the Unemployed Help Center kick off the much-needed Coats for Kids campaign! Our Uni444 retirees strong supporters of the campaign donated a generous check for $2000.00 present by the retiree's chapter chair, the dashing Mr. Pellerito! #coats4kids #uni444retirees... #uni444community See more

Canada's Unifor: General Motors to Reopen Oshawa, Ontario, Assembly Plant; Hiring to Begin in August, 2021; Assembly to Start in 2022; GM to Invest C$1.3B to Refurbish Oshawa Plant

***Tentative Deal reached with Integram***** Ratification will take place on Sunday November 8th! ****Important******... You only have until Friday at 12 noon to register for the upcoming ratification vote that will take place on Sunday November 8th. There will be NO NEW registrations after Friday November 6th at 12 noon, *no exceptions. DO NOT REGISTER AGAIN IF YOU ALREADY HAVE OR IF YOU VOTED IN THE STRIKE AUTHORIZATION, ONLY IF YOU HAVE NOT YET VOTED OR REGISTERED. The Process: 1) You will receive an email on Friday evening or Saturday morning that will contain vital information for you, including the links and passwords you will need to watch the zoom ratification meeting and the link and your personal voting password. 2) Sunday November 8th - 7 am - Ratification documents will be uploaded to a site that will be in the email. You will be able to view online and/or download the document. 3) Sunday November 8th - 9 am - Zoom ratification meeting online will commence. Instructions on how to access this meeting, the password needed etc. will be in the aforementioned email. 4) Sunday November 8th - 10 am - Voting opens for the ratification of the proposed tentative agreement. 5) Sunday November 8th - 4 pm - Voting closes for the ratification of the proposed agreement. 6) The email you receive Friday or Saturday will contain names and contact information should you experience technical difficulties. Please register at the link below ONLY IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY REGISTERED. If you voted in the Strike Authorization then you are already captured. VOTING LINK https://tinyurl.com/y47tsumg *****Please Share*****

***Tentative Deal reached with Integram***** Ratification will take place on Sunday November 8th stay tuned for details. #uni444Integram... *******Please Share*******

****Attention Integram members ***** We are continuing to work past the deadline in our ongoing efforts to bring back a contract our members deserve. Thank you for the continued support.... We will keep you posted

Bringing in the Battleship to this fight! #uni444prez

***ATTENTION Integram Members***** You only have until Friday at 12 noon to register for the upcoming ratification vote that will take place on Sunday November 8th as long as we get a tentative agreement before then. There will be NO NEW registrations after Friday November 6th at 12 noon, no exceptions. DO NOT REGISTER AGAIN IF YOU ALREADY HAVE OR IF YOU VOTED IN THE STRIKE AUTHORIZATION, ONLY IF YOU HAVE NOT YET VOTED OR REGISTERED.... The Process: As long as there is a tentative agreement between Magna/Integram Windsor Seating and Local 444 Unifor then: 1) You will receive an email on Friday evening or Saturday morning that will contain vital information for you, including the links and passwords you will need to watch the zoom ratification meeting and the link and your personal voting password. 2) Sunday November 8th - 7 am - Ratification documents will be uploaded to a site that will be in the email. You will be able to view online and/or download the document. 3) Sunday November 8th - 9 am - Zoom ratification meeting online will commence. Instructions on how to access this meeting, the password needed etc. will be in the aforementioned email. 4) Sunday November 8th - 10 am - Voting opens for the ratification of the proposed tentative agreement. 5) Sunday November 8th - 4 pm - Voting closes for the ratification of the proposed agreement. 6) The email you receive Friday or Saturday will contain names and contact information should you experience technical difficulties. Please register at the link below ONLY IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY REGISTERED. If you voted in the Strike Authorization then you are already captured. VOTING LINK https://tinyurl.com/y47tsumg

As the 11:59 pm, Integram deadline fast approaches, the bargaining table is busy. Tic Toc #uni444integram, #uni444bargaining

November 4, 2020 GM Bargaining Update Unifor members With the bargaining deadline set for **11:59 p.m. today** the GM Master and Local Bargaining Committees continue to work diligently on reaching a tentative settlement.... Negotiations over the past week have progressed slowly, with master table and subcommittee discussions accelerating in the last 24 hours. As the deadline looms, our Union is committed to securing with GM the pattern settlement reached at both Ford and FCA, as well as making facility-specific gains at our Local tables. Unfortunately, on certain fronts, GM continues to fall short on matching the pattern with various matters still outstanding. Negotiations will continue over the course of the day. In addition, Unifor leadership and GM executives continue to engage in high-level discussions on product commitments and investment allocations. Company executives arrived in Canada earlier this week to conduct face-to-face talks with the Union on this front. These discussions are proving to be challenging, as they always are, but progressing nonetheless. The Union’s objective in these investment talks is two-fold: stabilize the Canadian production footprint, including volumes, and work to expand the footprint however possible, for the future. It is the Union’s view that historic product commitments at both Ford and FCA in the past month prove that Canada remains a prime location to build vehicles, powertrains and other critical component parts. Our *aim in GM talks is to build on the success in these earlier rounds of bargaining. At this point, GM has offered *no concrete commitments on future product plans as of yet, but discussions are ongoing. Next steps The Union is encouraging members to be prepared if strike action becomes necessary. If a tentative settlement is reached, information will be posted at www.unifor.org/AutoTalks2020 Please continue to check that web page regularly for updates throughout the day. A virtual news conference is set for 10:00 a.m. EST on November 5, where Unifor President Jerry Dias will provide an update on the status of talks. Information on that news conference, and how to attend, can be found at www.unifor.org. Plans remain in place for online ratification/information meetings to take place on : Sunday November 8, 2020. Further information will be sent directly to members with respect to registration and online voting, so please stay tuned. The Union will continue to report on progress of talks with members, and will relay as much information on the status of talks as possible. Our objective is to be as open and transparent with members as possible, without undermining the integrity of the bargaining process. Please stay tuned for further