GM to be targeted by UAW for talks

Any deal with company to set pattern for other Detroit automakers.

DETROIT — The United Auto Workers union has picked General Motors as the target company for this year’s contract talks with Detroit’s three automakers.

The move announced Tuesday means that GM will be the focus of bargaining, and any deal with the company will set the pattern for Ford and Fiat Chrysler. It also means that if the union decides to go on strike, it’ll be against GM.

Contracts between the union representing about 152,000 workers and GM, Ford and Fiat Chrysler expire at 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 14.

Earlier Tuesday the union announced that over 96% of its members voted to authorize strikes against the companies.

The strike authorization vote is a normal part of the bargaining process, and it doesn’t mean that there will be a work stoppage. But tensions are high in contract talks this year because the automakers are making billions in profits and workers want a bigger slice. The companies, though, want to get closer to parity with foreign automakers with U.S. factories that are mainly in the South.

In a statement, the union said 96.4% of workers at General Motors voted to autho- rize a strike, while it was 95.98% at Ford and 96% at Fiat Chrysler.

Picking GM as the target is no surprise because it’s the most profitable of the three companies, and it also has announced plans to shutter four factories in Ohio, Michi- gan and Maryland. The union has pledged to fight the clo- sures at two Detroit-area fac- tories, in Lordstown, Ohio, and near Baltimore. Produc- tion already has stopped in Lordstown, Baltimore and one in the Detroit area.

“We are focused. We are prepared and we are all ready to stand up for our members, our communities and our manufacturing future,” union President Gary Jones said in a statement Tuesday.

GM said it looks forward to “constructive discussions” with the union to build a strong future for employees and its business.