Ford battery plant workers push to unionize at new Glendale plant

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Workers at the massive Ford battery plants under construction in Glendale, Kentucky, launched a public campaign Wednesday to unionize.

A supermajority of workers at the BlueOval SK plants said they signed authorization cards to join the United Auto Workers, UAW said in a news release Wednesday.

"Just like Ford workers, we are standing up for good, safe, union jobs," a worker said in a UAW video posted on YouTube announcing the campaign.

UAW said in a news release Wednesday that hourly pay for BlueOval SK workers currently starts at $21 an hour, whereas UAW production workers at other Ford plants start at $26.32. After three years, that number jumps to more than $42 an hour.

Earlier this year, Gov. Andy Beshear said on "Face the Nation on CBS" that workers at the Glendale plants wouldn't be part of a union, citing an agreement between Ford and the UAW. He said it means that Ford's more than 10,000 UAW workers in other facilities in Kentucky got better wages and benefits but the agreement is an outcome both sides are happy about.

"We want to see companies continue to invest because we need them, but we want them to be good jobs that support our families," Beshear said on Face the Nation. "And I think that's the outcome we got here."

The governor said Thursday that while union labor at those plants was not part of that agreement at the time, "that doesn't prevent the normal process, which is going on here."

He called the workers' actions "the normal process of potential unionization."

BlueOval SK HR Director Neva Burke responded via email to a request for comment Wednesday by simply saying "We want to maintain a direct relationship with our employees."

"BOSK workers are joining together to ensure that they achieve UAW autoworkers standards," UAW said in a news release Wednesday. "The movement led by BOSK and Ultium workers is setting strong standards for the rapidly expanding EV battery industry."

BlueOval SK's first battery plant is on track to open in 2025, but equipment, hiring and production are indefinitely delayed at the second factory. However, Kentucky's deal gives BlueOval SK until the end of 2030 to reach the full 5,000-job target for the battery campus.

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This story has been updated to include Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear's comments on Thursday.