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IAM Automotive covers over 35,000 members in a wide range of industries, including power systems, buses, trucking, vehicle delivery services, auto, truck, vehicle repair, and dealerships.258 Across the country, extreme weather poses escalating hazards to workers in non-climate controlled workplaces, including automotive shops, trucking and other equipment repair facilities. “[Members are] working in unairconditioned shops, or in the yard in extreme heat, extreme cold, and in rainy and sloppy conditions,” notes Midwest Territory General Vice President Sam Cicinelli.259 “Normally, garages are not air conditioned,” says Gary R. Allen, adding that “there’s been a real uptick in people having problems with heat.”260
Climate change is also changing the nature of work in the automotive sector. As consumer preferences and the regulatory environment change, employers are prioritizing the development of electric vehicles and sustainable fuels. These shifts may present a challenge for IAM members who work in automotive repair as electric vehicles have far fewer mechanical parts and a large-scale introduction to EVs may reduce work for mechanics.261 Electric and alternative fuel cars, buses, and trucks will also require different maintenance skills and training. In trucking for example, unions will have to ensure that companies develop standardized certifications for working with hydrogen fuels.262 Even as they demand new skills from workers, some companies do not want to pay for safety training or higher wage rates.263 “Our folks have a real fear of the danger of working with pressurized hydrogen, and their concerns are minimized,” Allen says.264
Despite the legitimate challenges facing automotive workers, surging demand for EVs could also create new jobs and organizing opportunities for the IAM. The U.S. Postal Service, for example, has secured funding to transition its fleet to zero emissions vehicles.265 Change is coming at every step of the automobile supply chain. Emerging technologies and new employers present opportunities for the IAM to secure more work and better conditions for members.
258 International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, “IAM Automotive.”
261 Sullivan, “Cheaper and Cleaner: Electric Vehicle Owners Save Thousands.”
263 Allen.
264 Allen.
265 CALSTART, “Summary of Clean Transportation Provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act.”
In June 2024, nearly 300 workers who assemble electric buses and trucks at Lion Electric Company’s facility in Saint-Jerome, Quebec, won their unionization drive.266 In a preview of what it will take to organize the EV sector, workers defeated the company’s vigorous anti-union campaign. The IAM is also engaged in an organizing campaign at another Lion Electric facility in Joliet, Illinois. Workers in Joliet complain of favoritism, unsafe conditions, low wages, and inadequate training.267
The newly unionized Canadian IAM members plan to assist other organizing workers however possible. “Our goal is to unionize all Lion Electric plants in North America,” said David Chartrand, the IAM Canadian General Vice-President. “Why choose to remain divided when we can be stronger together?”268 The multi-site, cross-border campaign at Lion Electric shows promise for IAM automotive workers.