News

IUE-CWA Members at New Flyer in Alabama Ratify First Contract

23 May, 2024

IUE-CWA Local 83700 members at New Flyer's Anniston, Ala., facility overwhelmingly ratified their first union contract last week, with an astounding 99.39% of members voting in favor. New Flyer is the largest transit bus manufacturer in North America.

The new contract includes pay raises ranging from 15% to 38% by 2026, restrictions on forced overtime, expanded vacation and paid time off, improved parental leave, the addition of Juneteenth as a holiday, guaranteed cost-of-living adjustments, and enhanced retirement benefits.

IUE-CWA Local 83700 member Shannon Franks, an assembly worker at New Flyer, highlighted the transformative impact of the contract, remarking, "The new contract means better pay, and now that there are improved retirement contributions from the company, I will have a better future. It's truly a blessing." Franks emphasized the significance of the victory, stating, "Our union and the hard-fought pay increase will help improve our lives here in Alabama. All Alabama workers deserve the same benefits and a safe work environment."

The successful negotiations received widespread media coverage as an example of a resurgent Southern labor movement.

Workers at New Flyer were able to freely form their union under a neutrality agreement negotiated between the company and CWA in 2022. In the past few years, more than 1,150 New Flyer employees have formed unions with IUE-CWA at facilities in Anniston, Ala.; Shepherdsville, Ky.; and Jamestown, N.Y., joining the 1,200 employees already represented by CWA at New Flyer’s St. Cloud and Crookston, Minn., assembly plants.

Read more from the New Flyer workers about the impact of the new contract here.

Members of the IUE-CWA Local 83700 New Flyer bargaining team in Anniston, Ala., celebrate their first union contract.