UAW John Deere members struck at midnight October 14, after the company failed to present an agreement that met our members’ demands and needs.
“Our members at John Deere strike for the ability to earn a decent living, retire with dignity and establish fair work rules,” said Chuck Browning, Vice President and director of the UAW’s Agricultural Implement Department. “We stay committed to bargaining until our members’ goals are achieved.”
UAW President Ray Curry, said “The almost one million UAW retirees and active members stand in solidarity with the striking UAW members at John Deere.”
Curry noted that, “UAW John Deere members have worked through the pandemic after the company deemed them essential, to produce the equipment that feeds America, builds America and powers the American economy. These essential UAW workers are showing us all that through the power of a strong united union voice on the picket line they can make a difference for working families here and throughout the country.”
Over 10,000 members at John Deere locations set up pickets. ”Pickets have been set up and our members are organized and ready to hold out and fight for a contract they believe meets their needs,” said Ron McInroy, director of UAW Region 4. “Our members and their families appreciate the community support they have already gotten. Strikes are not easy, but some things are worth fighting for.” “These are skilled, tedious jobs that UAW members take pride in every day,” said Mitchell Smith, UAW Region 8 director. “Strikes are never easy on workers or their families but John Deere workers believe they deserve a better share of the pie, a safer workplace, and adequate benefits.”
Multiple News Agencies reported that the John Deere strike has farmers worried that a long strike could affect the food supply chain and their bottom lines as they already face equipment and parts shortages.
According to NBC News, many farmers and experts said that quality farm equipment is getting hard to find amid the supply chain shortage and its scarcity is driving up prices and raising questions about whether farmers’ harvests and next year’s planting season could be affected.
“It’s got us worried for sure,” said Eric Hopkins, the senior vice president of Hundley Farms, which boasts 20,000 acres of mostly vegetables in central Florida. “They’re already low on inventory and parts right now. A strike is only going to exacerbate things, make it worse. If it lasts for a while, not only will they not have new tractors, but when you have a breakdown and there’s no parts, your tractor is just going to sit there not being able to harvest or plant a crop.”
Feelings among farmers about the John Deere strike are mixed. Many said that they supported the workers’ desire for a better deal but that they are worried about the effect of a strike that lasts weeks or months.
A long strike could hamper the country’s food supply chain, which has suffered shortages since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, which further delayed John Deere’s ability to deliver products and parts in a timely manner. Farmers also worry that a delay could affect their increasingly thin margins.
Crops can be damaged if they are planted or harvested late, and the insurance provided by the Agriculture Department requires that seeds are put in the ground and produce is pulled by a particular date to be fully insured.
It’s uncertain how long the strike could last and to what degree John Deere will be further slowed. It said it had a continuity plan in place, bringing in salaried nonunion workers to maintain some level of production.
Talks between Deere and 10,000 workers on strike have resumed, with the agricultural equipment giant saying it was “fully committed to the collective bargaining process and resolving the strike.” The last strike against Deere by UAW lasted 163 days in 1986.