According to a press release from UAW, by a vote of 61% to 39%, UAW John Deere members have ratified the latest tentative agreement from John Deere. The agreement includes an $8,500 signing bonus; 20% increase in wages over the lifetime of the contract with 10% this year; return of Cost of Living adjustments; three 3% lump sum payments; enhanced options for retirement and enhanced CIPP performance benefits. Healthcare remains the same for the life of the agreement. 

The agreement covers more than 10,000 workers at 14 facilities across the United States. 

Operations will resume on third shift Nov. 17, 2021. 

“I’m very glad that our highly skilled employees are back to work building and supporting the industry-leading products that will make our customers more profitable and sustainable,” said John C. May, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for Deere. “John Deere’s success depends on the success of our people. Through our new collective bargaining agreements, we’re giving employees the opportunity to earn wages and benefits that are the best in our industries and are groundbreaking in many ways. We have faith that, in return, our employees will find new and better ways to improve our competitiveness and transform the way our customers do their work. Together, our future is bright.”

UAW President Ray Curry, on behalf of the International Executive Board, thanked the members and families of UAW John Deere for their willingness to sacrifice. “UAW John Deere members did not just unite themselves, they seemed to unite the nation in a struggle for fairness in the workplace. We could not be more proud of these UAW members and their families.”

Editor's Note: Additional coverage and ongoing updates to this story can be found on Ag Equipment Intelligence.