Auto union says it has tentative deal with Ford raising hopes of end to strike

More than 40,000 union members have been on Big Three picket lines across the US since September

The United Auto Workers union says that it has reached a tentative agreement with Ford Motor Co over what it calls a record new deal for its members.

The agreement could see an end to the six-week strike with the Big Three automaker but will need to be ratified by UAW members who have walked off the job at Ford Factories across the US.

The agreement includes a 25 per cent pay rise over the life of a 4.5-year contract with Ford and the elimination of lower pay tiers in some areas of the company.

The UAW said in a statement that the deal saw gains valued at four times larger than the last UAW contract in 2019.

The deal will now be put to local union members from around the country who sit on the UAW National Ford Council. They will travel to Detroit to ratify the deal and send it to members to vote on.

Those members were called off the picket lines on Wednesday and returned to work as the agreement goes through ratification.

United Auto Workers signs for a strike are shown at the Stellantis Sterling Heights Assembly Plant, in Sterling Heights, Michigan (AP)

Around 13,000 UAW members went on strike on 15 September, impacting Ford, General Motors and Stellantis, which owns Chrysler and Dodge. It was the first time the union had taken action against all three automakers at the same time.

Eventually, more than 40,000 workers joined the strikes, including at each of the company’s largest manufacturing sites.

Joe Biden also made history when he became the first sitting president to join a picket line when he met with UAW workers in Belleville, Michigan.

The strike was costing around $200m a week, according to GM.