TORONTO (NEWSnet/AP) — Auto workers walked off the job at three General Motors facilities in Canada early Tuesday after failing to reach a contract agreement with the automaker.

Their union, Unifor, represents more than 4,200 workers at the plants. They had warned they would begin a strike if no agreement was struck with GM by midnight local time.

A fourth GM facility in Ingersoll, Ontario, remains at work because a separate bargaining agreement is in place there.

“We made some progress throughout the day, but sadly not enough,” Unifor President Lana Payne told reporters. She said the union was still speaking with the company, but there was “a lot of ground that needed to be covered to reach a tentative agreement.”

The action came after Unifor workers ratified a new three-year labor contract with Ford late last month. They are seeking a similar agreement with GM. The discussion points include pensions, support for retired workers and steps to transition temporary workers to permanent, full-time jobs.

“We are not there yet, so as a result we are on picket lines,” Payne said.

General Motors Corp. said that while “very positive progress” had been made, the company was disappointed not to be able to win an agreement.

Unifor is Canada's largest private sector union, with 315,000 workers in many industries. Its U.S. counterpart, the United Auto Workers, started a targeted strike Sept. 15 against the Detroit Three automakers: Ford, General Motors and Stellantis; but does not have a contract with any of those companies yet.

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