One of the Big Three Detroit automakers is accusing another in a wide-reaching corruption probe involving the United Auto Workers (UAW).
The Detroit Free Press reported Wednesday that General Motors filed a lawsuit against Fiat-Chrysler, claiming the latter targeted GM in a pattern of inappropriate behaviour and allegedly interfered with the implementation of American labour contracts going back to 2009.
The lawsuit is related to a corruption scandal affecting the UAW. Thirteen criminal charges have already been filed against current or former executives with North America's largest auto union.
Among those named in the lawsuit, according to the Free Press, were former FCA executives Al Iacobelli, Jerome Durden, and Michael Brown. Former Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne is also named in the suit, despite having died in July 2018.
Iacobelli had been in charge of FCA's negotiations with the UAW. Durden was a financial analyst for the automaker and Brown was FCA's director of employee relations.
"FCA was the clear sponsor of pervasive wrongdoing, paying millions of dollars in bribes to obtain benefits, concessions, and advantages in the negotiation, implementation, and administration of labour agreements over time," according to a media release provided by GM.
Craig Glidden, GM's executive vice-president and general counsel, said the lawsuit is only to draw attention to accountability on FCA's part.
"We have alleged in the complaint that Mr. Marchionne is responsible for conceiving, executing and sponsoring the alleged wrongdoing," Glidden told the Free Press. "We have no present intent to pursue the UAW. Our focus is on FCA. We believe the responsibility firmly rests on the orchestrater of the wrongdoing, and we plan to hold FCA responsible."
GM is planning to take any damages it is awarded through this lawsuit and use the money to help create jobs for its American workforce. The automaker has denied timing the filing of the suit with the UAW's upcoming contract negotiations with Chrysler.
Fiat-Chrysler has not yet publicly responded to the lawsuit.
