Thanks to new contracts recently signed between the United Auto Workers (UAW) and Detroit’s Big Three carmakers, the American arm of Japan’s Nissan Motor is set to raise the pay of its workers by 10% early next year.
According to a statement made on Monday, November 20th, the pay rise for top-scale workers like maintenance teams, production technicians, as well as tool-and-die technicians takes effect on January 8, 2024.
As non-top-scale workers will also receive higher wages, the pay hike will cover approximately 9,000 Nissan employees in the United States.
No More Wage Tiers
In the same announcement, Nissan US also made it clear that it would no longer impose wage tiers for its workers in the country. The company added that the upcoming wage hike is part of its commitment to the welfare of its employees and a move towards making the firm more competitive.
Nissan has increased the salaries of its US employees by up to 18.5% since 2020. It has also decreased the amount of time spent to get to the top pay scale from eight years to just four, added two more paid holidays to its schedule, and considerably extended its employees’ paid parental leaves.
What Did UAW and the Big Three Agree On?
The deals struck between the automakers’ union with Ford Motor, General Motors, and Chrysler’s parent company Stellantis involve a 25% increase in basic pay which will run till around 2028. An 11% pay hike will be implemented immediately, while the top wage will be raised by as high as 33%. Cost of living adjustments, on the other hand, are to be set at more than $42 per hour.
These agreements are a victory for UAW which has unsuccessfully tried to unionize factories working for overseas automotive firms. More recently, President Biden has thrown his support behind the UAW’s establishment of unions in the local arms of foreign firms.
