More than 4,600 unionized General Motors workers across four Ontario facilities overwhelmingly ratified a new three-year collective agreement with the automaker yesterday.
The deal will bring production of the GMC Sierra HD pickup to Ontario. It also secures over $1 billion in fresh and ongoing capital investments across GM's Canadian manufacturing footprint, even as the domestic auto industry faces mounting trade friction and tariff threats from the U.S. administration.
Union members voted over 80 percent in favour across facilities in Oshawa, St. Catharines, and Woodstock; members at the idled CAMI Assembly plant in Ingersoll were even more united, approving the contract by 96.5 percent.
The agreement mirrors the pattern-setting deal reached between Unifor and Ford in July, granting 3 percent annual wage increases that will see full-rate production workers’ hourly wages rise to $50.20 by the end of the contract. Skilled trades rates will reach $62.71 per hour. Additional financial highlights include the reinstatement of a cost-of-living allowance, a $10,000 productivity and quality bonus and a $2,000 December bonus.
The next Sierra HD
At the Oshawa Assembly plant, GM committed an additional $144 million to build the next-generation GMC Sierra HD pickup. This brings total recent investments at the facility to $487 million, cementing its place as a key truck production hub alongside current Chevrolet Silverado HD assembly.
However, the night shift eliminated last winter will not return, and questions remain regarding the long-term future of light-duty Silverado 1500 production at the site.
In St. Catharines, a new $215 million commitment designates the propulsion facility as the sole global source for a next-generation transmission starting in 2029. Combined with $691 million previously allocated for sixth-generation V8 engine production, total funding for St. Catharines now exceeds $900 million.
The agreement also addresses the idling of the CAMI plant in Ingersoll, where commercial production of Chevrolet BrightDrop electric vans was halted in October 2025 despite a previous $1 billion overhaul. GM has committed not to sell or close the plant, extending income protection and layoff benefits for workers through May 2028. The automaker has also designated CAMI as the primary site of consideration for potential Canadian Armed Forces defence manufacturing contracts.
Unifor National President Lana Payne and GM Canada President Jack Uppal both had predictably positive things to say about the outcome of the talks, which led to an agreement long before the deadline imposed prior to negotiations. Payne praised the investments as a critical show of support for Canadian workers during a period of trade turbulence, noting that U.S. tariffs on Canadian-built vehicles could rise from the current 25 percent to 50 percent in January 2027. Uppal added that the ratified deal provides a “solid foundation for GM's future in Canada.”