Ford Motor Co. is tapping a new leader of labor affairs who brings labor and legal experience from The Boeing Co., Microsoft and Dow Jones to the job.
On Thursday, Sept. 25, Ford appointed Mike Fitzsimmons to be the company’s vice president of Global Labor, succeeding Kevin Legel, who worked at Ford for 32 years before his retirement, spending the last six years atop labor affairs at the company.
Fitzsimmons has worked in labor relations and employment law for more than two decades, according to Ford. He recently managed new contracts with 60,000 union-represented employees at Boeing.
Fitzsimmons’ new title, vice president of global labor, differs slightly from his predecessor, Legel, who served as vice president of labor affairs at Ford.
A spokesperson at Ford said the change in title will not impact Fitzsimmons’ role leading Ford labor relations.
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Ford Chief People and Employee Experience Officer Jen Waldo said in a press release that the company is “pleased to welcome Mike to our team and look forward to having his deep knowledge of labor relations at Ford.”
Fitzsimmons will be tasked with managing the United Auto Workers’ next contract, which is set to expire in 2028 in tandem with the union’s contracts at cross-town rivals Stellantis and General Motors.
UAW President Shawn Fain recently promised that the UAW would fight for pensions and retirement health care for all members of the union — benefits that were sacrificed at automakers during the Great Recession.
The UAW did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Liam Rappleye covers Stellantis and the UAW for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him: LRappleye@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: New Ford labor lead brings experience from Boeing, Microsoft