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The UAW's 'record contract' hinges on pensions, battery plants

DETROIT - After nearly four weeks of disruptive strikes and hard bargaining, the United Auto Workers and the Detroit Three automakers have edged closer to a deal that could offer record-setting wage gains for nearly 150,000 U.S. workers. General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis have all agreed to raise base wages by between 20% and 23% over a four-year deal, according to union and company statements. Ford and Stellantis have agreed to reinstate cost-of-living adjustments, or COLA. The companies have offered to boost pay for temporary workers and give them a faster path to full-time, full-wage status. All three have proposed slashing the time it takes a new hire to get to the top UAW pay rate. The progress in contract talks follows the first-ever simultaneous strike by the UAW against Detroit's Big Three automakers. The union began the strike on Sept. 15 in hopes of forcing a better deal from each major automaker. But coming close to a deal is not the same thing as reaching a deal. Big obstacles remain on at least two major UAW demands: restoring the retirement security provided by pre-2007 defined benefit pension plans, and covering present and future joint- venture electric vehicle battery plants under the union's master contracts with the automakers. On retirement, none of the automakers has agreed to restore pre-2007 defined-benefit pension plans for workers hired after 2007. Doing so could force the automakers to again burden their balance sheets with multibillion-dollar liabilities. GM and the former Chrysler unloaded most of those liabilities in their 2009 bankruptcies. The union and automakers have explored an approach to providing more income security by offering annuities as an investment option in their company-sponsored 401(k) savings plans, people familiar with the discussions said. Stellantis referred to an annuity option as part of a more generous 401(k) proposal on Sept. 22. Annuities or similar instruments could give UAW retirees assurance of fixed, predictable payouts less dependent on stock market ups and downs, experts said. Recent changes in federal law have removed obstacles to including annuities as a feature of corporate 401(k) plans, said Olivia Mitchell, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School and an expert on pensions and retirement. "Retirees want a way to be assured they won't run out of money," Mitchell said.

2023 GMC Sierra HD MSRP up at least $1,000

Once Chevrolet bumped up the 2023 Silverado and Silverado HD MSRPs by $1,000, there was no reason to think luxury cousin GMC wouldn't do the same. The proof is here, pricing for the 2023 GMC Sierra HD up on its configurator with premiums of at least $1,000 over 2022 models. As we mentioned of the Silverado, the Sierras have also tracked with the price increases we mentioned in reference to the Chevrolets; the 2022 Sierra 1500 has run up $4,700 over its cost last October, the 2022 Sierra HD is $4,100 more than it was when it hit lots last summer. That puts a 2023 Sierra HD 2500 Regular Cab long bed with two-wheel drive and the 6.6-liter V8 gas engine at a starting price of $42,995 after the $1,795 destination charge, $1,000 beyond the 2022 pickup. At the top, a Crew Cab long bed Denali with four-wheel drive and the 6.6-liter Duramax V8 starts at $83,845, which is $1,250 more than the same rig from the 2022 model year. Moving up a weight class to the Sierra 3500, the price of entry starts $1,000 more than before at $44,195. The big bad boy 3500 Denali 4WD dually starts $1,200 more than before, at $86,245. The situation's a bit cloudier when we step down two classes to the 1500. GM Authority got the price sheet for the 2023 Sierra 1500 and reports that prices are up $1,000 on most trims, but $900 up on the Denali Ultimate and $1,900 up on the AT4. GMC hasn't uploaded the configurator for the 2023 trucks yet, and GMA's price sheet is hard to parse against prices on the 2022 configurator because the end of the model year and supply chain issues have translated into mandatory discounts that can't be accounted for. For instance, the 2022 Sierra 1500 Regular Cab standard box in entry-level Pro trim has an MSRP of $40,000, yet the configurator shows the total vehicle and options price as $39,950. After the $1,795 destination charge, that comes to $41,745. Then there's a mandatory package discount of $1,500, taking the final price before any other fees to $40,245. Meanwhile, GMA's paperwork shows the 2023 price starting at $40,020 after destination, which isn't $1,000 more than any figure on the configurator. At the top end, the 2022 Denali with the Crew Cab, standard box, 4WD, and 6.2-liter V8 comes out to $71,695, only because the front and rear park assist and steering column lock aren't fitted, resulting in a $100 discount.

GM claims it's first to sell million 30+ mpg vehicles

As we continue to put together all the data for the year-end edition of By The Numbers, General Motors has announced that it sold more than a million vehicles in the US last year that achieved at least 30 miles per gallon on the highway. More impressively, GM managed this feat using multiple strategies including small vehicle size, turbocharged engines and hybrid or plug-in technologies across four brands (Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC) accounting for 13 separate models. This number will grow even more in 2013 thanks to cars like the all-electric Spark, the diesel Cruze, the range-extended Cadillac ELR and the Buick Encore compact CUV.
GM's small car sales were up 39 percent last year helping to attain this million-sales mark for 30-mpg models, and almost 40 percent of all GM sales consisted of cars with fuel-efficient I4 engines. In regards to more advanced means of improving fuel economy, GM says that it plans on having 500,000 vehicles with "some form of electrification" on the road by 2017.
Scroll down for the full list of GM's million 30+ mpg cars as well as an informative press release.