Sunset Hills, MO – Machinists Lodge 777 members settled their strike at Sunset Ford, returning to work Nov. 22 after approving a third contract proposal from the company.
“We won,” said Dave Weaver, directing business manager of Machinists District 9. “They stepped up and gave them wage increases and kept the benefits they were promised.”
Lodge 777 members at Sunset Ford voted to approve the contract proposal Sunday, Nov. 21, with 23 of the 25 striking members voting by 65 percent to accept the offer.
Dwight Terry, District 9 business representative for the area, said two members were unable to vote because one had tested positive for COVID-19 and another was sick.
Both Weaver and Terry said the support of other unions and the community were key in helping to settle the three-week strike.
Laborers Local 110 invited the striking members to use their union hall, located directly across the street from Sunset Ford, for logistics. Members of other unions and community activists also turned out to join Lodge 777 members on the strike line.
On Nov. 12, Missouri Jobs with Justice joined workers on the strike line, pledging to stand in solidarity with them and boycott the dealership until a contract was reached. They were joined by state Senator Doug Beck (D-Affton); Representative Trish Gunby (D-Ballwin), who is running to unseat Rep. Ann Wagner in 2022; former Senator Scott Sifton, who’s running for the Democratic nomination to fill the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by the retirement of Republican Sen. Roy Blunt; and two other Democrats running for Senate.
About 50 people attended the rally at Sunset Ford at 11700 Gravois Road, at the corner of Lindbergh Blvd., and were met with honking horns and waves of support from passing drivers.
“The support from the other unions really helped us,” Terry said.
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