UAW leaders and members gathered in Belvidere, IL, to demand Stellantis honor its commitment to reopen the Belvidere Assembly plant, a promise made during the 2023 contract negotiations. The rally, held Aug. 22, included speeches from UAW President Shawn Fain, Region 4 Director Brandon Campbell and Local 1268 President Matt Frantzen, who all emphasized the critical importance of preserving American jobs and upholding the union contract.
“This isn’t just a local fight or just a union fight,” said Campbell. “This is a fight for the dignity of work in America. Union or not, from Belvidere or not. If we don’t Stand Up now, when will we?”
The rally follows a series of grievances filed by UAW locals on Aug. 19 against Stellantis, accusing the company of failing to "Keep the Promise" made during the previous year’s negotiations. The grievances could lead to a strike if the issue is not resolved through the national contract's grievance procedure.
Fain expressed frustration over Stellantis’s reasons for delaying the plant’s reopening, citing “market conditions” as the rationale. He criticized the company for using market conditions as an excuse to avoid fulfilling its obligations to workers while continuing to increase executive pay.
“I find a pathetic irony in the fact that Stellantis is now, for the first time, citing ‘market conditions’ as their reason for attempting to break their promises to Belvidere and autoworkers across America,” Fain said. “It’s always ‘market conditions’ when they have to stiff an autoworker or close a plant. It’s never ‘market conditions’ when they want to raise CEO pay by 56%.”
Fain warned Stellantis's actions set a dangerous precedent for the future of American autoworkers, questioning what other commitments the company might backtrack on if they succeed in delaying the plant's reopening. He underscored the union's readiness to take action to ensure Stellantis keeps its promises.
Stellantis idled the Belvidere plant in February 2023. It last produced the Jeep Cherokee.
In July, the U.S. Department of Energy announced Stellantis will receive $334 million in Domestic Manufacturing Auto Conversion Grants, funded through the Inflation Reduction Act, to convert Belvidere Assembly for future EV production. The automaker is also receiving another $250 million in grants for its planned EV drive module plant in Indiana.
