Mack Trucks, union reach temporary contract extension as negotiations continue

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Jon Harris, The Morning Call  /  October 2, 2019

Tuesday night’s deadline came and went, but Mack Trucks and the union representing much of the company’s Lehigh Valley workforce remain at the table trying to hammer out a new contract.

After the three-year labor agreement expired at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, the United Auto Workers Local 677 said Wednesday evening that its negotiating team and Mack agreed to a temporary contract extension through Sunday.

“All union brothers and sisters should continue to report for their scheduled shifts through Sunday,” the union said Wednesday. “Updates will continue to be communicated as soon as they are available. Stay United!”

Similarly, earlier in the day Wednesday, Mack spokesman Christopher Heffner said the two sides “have agreed to continue operating under the terms of the existing agreement, and negotiations are ongoing.”

The union or Mack has not provided comment about what topics are the sticking points. But union members voted Sept. 20 to authorize a strike if necessary. Heffner has said the strike authorization vote is a “standard part of the UAW’s process and is not a reflection on the tone of the negotiations.”

The last contract was reached Oct. 2, 2016, less than a day after the previous agreement expired. The agreement reached in 2016 covered 2,601 employees in three states, including Local 677 members in Allentown, Lower Macungie Township and Middletown, Dauphin County, in addition to other UAW local members in Hagerstown, Maryland; Baltimore; and Jacksonville, Florida.

Back then, the company’s Lower Macungie assembly plant employed about 1,500 people.

The plant’s payroll now numbers about 2,400, after employment boomed amid a strong heavy-duty truck market in North America. The plant’s workers have been working through an order backlog this year, but the market is starting to soften.

To meet lower demand, Heffner confirmed last month that Mack was planning to put the Lower Macungie plant on temporary layoff for two weeks during the fourth quarter.