August 1986
On Saturday, August 23, 1986, at 12:01 a.m., a selective/partial strike of about 4,300 unionized Deere & Company employees (reflecting the respective sum of 565, 3,033, and 715 of the UAW Locals 838, 94, and 74) began striking at Waterloo (foundry) and Dubuque, Iowa (industrial equipment production) and Milan, Illinois (parts distribution), respectively. UAW Vice President Bill Casstevens, one of the contract negotiators, speaking of the motivations for the strike said, "The major issues are still job security, adequate improvements in the pension and the company's attempt to emasculate our cost-of-living provisions." Casstevens stated the three plants were selected "for strategic reasons". Deere workers represented by 11 other Locals totaling around 8,000 were told to still report to work despite an expired, extended contract. Bob Shoup, spokesman for Deere, spoke of the strike saying "Deere and Co. is very disappointed that the union chose to strike, especially after so many months of attempting to arrive at an equitable new labor agreement".[7][8][9]
On Monday, August 25, Deere & Company stopped production at the 11 other facilities covered under the union contract. Deere spokesman Bob Shoup said "Deere & Company considers the union's decision to strike three of its facilities as a strike against all Deere factories under the U.A.W. master agreement". The UAW released a statement declaring the company's action a lockout saying "If the members arrive at work and the company locks them out, the U.A.W. will consider this a lockout and the members are then instructed to apply for unemployment benefits." Shoup stated Deere did not consider the action a lockout.[10] Deere employees who were salaried or wage employees for other/no unions continued to work after the shutdown.[11]
Following the lockout, the UAW instructed the 8,000 workers who weren't part of the original 4300 authorized to strike to file for unemployment benefits. The 4,300 workers authorized to strike received weekly strike pay from the UAW of $100 .[9] The 8,000 workers were offered $100 interest-free loans from the UAW in lieu of strike pay. All workers were asked to contribute to a newspaper advertising campaign in support of workers. UAW Local 434 President Bob Bowling stated the campaign was a reaction designed to counter Deere's press appearances regarding the dispute.[12]
September 1986
On Tuesday, September 2, the UAW alleged that Deere was delaying negotiations to allow itself to sell off inventory saying "Management's approach to these negotiations appears to have been designed to avoid reaching an agreement and forcing us into a protracted strike, all in a misguided effort not only to pressure your union into accepting a substandard agreement but to reduce swollen inventories of unsold equipment ... something which management has repeatedly assured us it would not do." Deere denied the allegation. The same day, Deere also did not allow 850 Ottumwa Works employees, who had been temporarily laid-off on a routine summer production shutdown, to return to work.[13] On Wednesday, September 3, the UAW authorized 48 members of the UAW Local 1710 working at a Deere parts distributor in East Moline, Illinois to strike as well, however did not authorize 1710 members assigned to other Deere facilities.[14]
On Tuesday, September 23, unemployment officials in Iowa and Illinois sided with Deere's position to consider all 8000 workers as striking for the purposes of unemployment and denied their claims. Deere spokesman Bob Shoup made a statement saying "The company regrets the circumstance, mainly the unnecessary strike. The employment compensation agency really had no other choice". The UAW made no comment on the decision.[15] Unemployment coverage for the UAW workers was an issue which affected the 1986 Illinois gubernatorial election.
October 1986
By the week of October 5, the seventh week of strike, communication between the UAW and Deere had been minimal. Winston Williams, writing for The New York Times, saw Deere's behavior as part of a pattern of corporate lockouts to "force further concessions from giveback-weary unions" citing lockouts and lockout threats affecting previously implacable unions such as the United Steelworkers, the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers International Union, Transport Workers Union of America, and the International Longshoremen's Association around the same time period. Williams also saw the UAW as surprised by Deere's "newfound feistiness", quoting UAW Vice President, Administration John Collins saying, "What do you do? You can't control the actions of management."[18]
At 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, October 28, UAW and Deere representatives reopened negotiations after discussing rules and scheduling the previous day. There had been no communication or negotiation since the strike began. Karl Mantyla, a UAW official, stated information about negotiations would be minimal saying "In terms of substantive information from the negotiating sessions, there just won't be any, I think both sides are going to try to confine activities to the bargaining table".[19]
November 1986
On Friday, November 21, the UAW indefinitely recessed negotiations with Deere citing a complete lack of understanding by the company in the 26 days. UAW official Bill Casstevens said the union found "no meaningful progress toward an equitable settlement", and accused the company of bad-faith negotiations saying "It is now apparent that Deere's request to resume negotiations, and a recent letter sent to Deere employees, amounted to nothing more than a cruel public relations ploy by the company". Deere spokesman Bob Shoup said "'Deere & Co. deeply regrets the union decision to end negotiations for a new contract. In the end, the stumbling block was the cost to the company of the union's current demands." Deere had also proposed a further contract extension to February 27, 1987, which the union rejected.[20]
On Wednesday, November 26, Deere proposed reopening negotiations with the UAW by the beginning of December. The company offered what Deere spokesman Bob Shoup called a "comprehensive new contract proposal", and wished the union to review it. The UAW first learned of the new proposal through the news media, a fact Jim Hecker, UAW representative and negotiator, lamented saying "I don't appreciate that" but despite that the union was "ready, willing and able to meet with (the company) all weekend if that's what it takes".[21] That Friday, November 28, the UAW stated they would examine the proposal before agreeing to talks. The UAW's Jim Hecker stated, "A settlement needs to be within the perimeters of the most recent settlement with Caterpillar, and the company has stated its willing to do that. This proposal does not show that interest on their part, so I don't know what the company's up to".
December 1986
A two-hour negotiation session on Wednesday, December 3 between the UAW and Deere resulted in another suspension of negotiations as both sides found the other immovable: Deere saying the UAW's proposal was "totally incomprehensible" and the UAW, in the words of Bill Casstevens, called Deere's proposal "woefully inadequate to meet the needs of our members".[23]
The next day on Thursday, December 4, an estimated 700 striking UAW members held a peaceful mock funeral at Deere company headquarters in Moline, Illinois. One worker's sign epitomized the mood of the event reading, "Your trust was buried here today. Your team work is a flop. If your ship is sinking, it's because it is leaking from the top". UAW Local 94 (Dubuque, Iowa) president Pat Dillon told the assembled workers "The mutual relationship between Deere and Company and the union has been non-existent the last four months. They reap what they sow". The demonstration involved a hearse, coffin, pallbearers, the bugling of Taps, headstone reading "RIP UAW-JD team work", and a Christmas tree covered in worker's John Deere hats. Upon laying the symbolic coffin to rest, workers proceeded to burn the coffin and tree, loudly crying, "the winning team has just gone up in smoke", before planting fourteen white crosses representing the elapsed weeks of conflict. The Rock Island County deputy sheriffs and Illinois State Police observed alongside Deere's private security without interacting.[24][25]
Early 1987 and strike end
On Monday, January 26, 1987, a state court ordered the resumption of negotiations between the UAW and Deere. The following day, a tentative agreement was announced after a seven-hour mediated session of negotiations. The agreement had potential to end the strike pending ratification by a union member vote, which was scheduled to take place the following weekend. Deere spokesman Bob Shoup stated the company was "very pleased" with the agreement, but that the strike had injured company-union relations, which he said would require "a little time to heal, and they will".[28][29]
On Sunday, February 1, the tentative agreement, a 20-month contract, was ratified with the support of 84 percent of the 10,651 UAW member votes ending the strike. only being rejected by UAW Locals 434 and 1710 in Moline and Milan, Illinois, respectively, who felt the job security provisions were substandard and allowed for slower, gradual job loss through consolidation or deprecation. The contract, based on a UAW contract with Caterpillar Inc., included job security for 90 percent of employees, health and life insurance, retirement pension, profit sharing, maintained cost-of-living adjustments, and a one-time payment of $735. However, it did not change general wage rates.[30]
