On Wednesday, November 20, the United Autoworkers union announced that a “supermajority” of workers at the BlueOval SK battery plant in Glendale, Kentucky had signed union cards indicating their support for joining the UAW. The electric-vehicle battery plant, formed by a joint venture between Ford Motor Co. and Korean battery manufacturer SK On, would be the latest EV battery plant unionized by the UAW after it won the right to represent both Ultium Cells LLC locations.
In a video release announcing the campaign, UAW supporters noted that BOSK is “right up the road” from Louisville, Kentucky, where Ford workers won significant concessions in 2023 following a UAW strike.
Despite naming a “supermajority” of support, the union did not specify how many people at the plant have signed union cards.
Last week, on November 14, the local Louisville Courier Journal reported that battery production at the factory is likely to begin in the first quarter of 2025 and employ 2,500 workers at wages between $21 an hour to $37.50, depending on experience. In its announcement of the union-forming campaign, the UAW noted that Ford workers under UAW contract make significantly more.
“Starting pay for a BOSK production worker is just $21 an hour,” the union said. “UAW production workers at Ford start at $26.32, and after three years will make over $42 an hour.”
The push to unionize BOSK matches two of the UAW’s current strategic paths: unionizing electric-vehicle battery plants, and unionizing automotive factories in the South. So far, the UAW has had mixed results in the latter arena: While an April election to unionize Volkswagen USA’s Chattanooga, Tennessee location provided the union with a win in the South, a follow-up election in May at Mercedes-Benz’s Vance, Alabama plant saw workers reject UAW representation.
At the same time, though, the push to unionize BOSK mirrors the UAW’s previous successful push to unionize both existing Ultium Cells LLC electric vehicle battery plants, one in Lordstown, Ohio, and the other in Spring Hil, Tennessee. Ultium Cells workers at both plants now work under the same terms as UAW’s contract with General Motors after the Lordstown location voted 98% in favor of unionizing and Ultium Cells voluntarily recognized the UAW in Spring Hill without calling for a formal vote.
