Canadian employees of General Motors (NYSE:GM) have approved a new labor agreement that secures production of a next-generation heavy-duty GMC Sierra truck at the automaker’s Oshawa, Ontario, plant, despite escalating U.S.-Canada trade tensions.
The deal, unveiled by the Canadian union Unifor on Saturday, includes a commitment from GM to invest C$144 million ($103.63 million) in the Oshawa plant. Furthermore, GM has also committed to keeping its CAMI Assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ontario, open for the duration of the agreement.
The automaker’s promise of over C$1 billion ($720 million) in investment in Canadian plants includes a C$691 million ($497.30 million) commitment to support the production of new V8 engines in Ontario, announced earlier in April. Unifor, representing 4,600 GM workers in the province, confirmed these details.
As part of the deal, Canadian workers are set to receive a 3% yearly wage increase over three years. GM Canada President Jack Uppal told the publication that the new agreements improve wages, benefits, and job security, recognize employees’ contributions, and support well-paying automotive jobs in Canada.
According to Barclays research, Canada accounts for approximately 17% of General Motors’ Chevrolet Silverado pickup-truck production, the automaker’s best-selling model.
