Fort Wayne GM worker alleges UAW-management collusion in unjust termination

 

Fort Wayne GM worker alleges UAW-management collusion in unjust termination

By
Shannon Jones

10 November 2018

Workers at the General Motors Fort Wayne, Indiana Assembly plant are up in arms over the firing of a veteran worker as an apparent result of union-management collusion.

Ami Reveal was fired at the end of September from her job at the giant Fort Wayne facility that builds the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra. The worker had only recently been recalled to the plant after being off for four years.

Ami Reveal, terminated Fort Wayne GM worker

Reveal, who is approaching 49, had been placed on one of the most physically difficult jobs in the plant despite her age. Struggling to keep up on her job, she approached the United Auto Workers because she felt she was being harassed by management and needed another job assignment more conducive to her abilities.

According to workers familiar with her situation there were hundreds of other open jobs at the facility, which employs an enormous number of temporary part-time workers, 800 by one estimate. These workers are brutally exploited, making as little as one-half the pay of legacy workers with no contract protections and few benefits.

Ami reached out to her immediate UAW representative for help about being moved to another job. However, after several weeks of getting no help she decided to approach the shop chairman of UAW Local 2209, Rich Letourneau, and started a conversation via text message. In her texts she pleaded for help saying she was afraid of losing her job. In reply Letourneau sent her a text message, apparently meant for someone else, likely in management, saying “are you going to fire her or what your killing me lol.”

Indeed, several days later she was terminated. Her life quickly spiraled downhill and…

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