“Cummins and union officials didn’t immediately respond to messages.”
That’s how Indiana Public Media summed up the latest development out of Columbus, Indiana – Cummins’ own backyard – where workers just voted 97% against a proposed contract. The result? A strike authorisation vote is now underway. And Cummins? Silent. Again.
We’ve heard this tune before. Strategic silence when the heat rises. No statement, no leader fronting the storm, just a communications void. And in that void: unrest. It’s not just Columbus now. Go back a few weeks, 500 miles northwest, and you’ll find a sidewalk soaked in rain and resilience.
High Avenue Hostage – The First Fracture
Since March 18, 2025, roughly 90 members of UAW Local 291 have picketed outside Cummins’ Drivetrain & Braking Systems plant in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Their contract expired on January 29, and negotiations stalled after just one meeting. Welders, machinists, veterans of the assembly floor – all walked out, demanding pay that reflects inflation, affordable healthcare, and a shot at work-life balance in a plant overrun with temporary hires.
“They talk about work-life balance, then they take our Saturdays like it’s nothing,”
– Ryan Compton, President, UAW Local 291
Cummins, raking in $34 billion in revenue, paid $1.675 billion to settle diesel emissions charges in the U.S. last year – no admission of fault, of course. But when it comes to paying workers fairly, they’ve been tight-lipped and tight-fisted.
“Powering a better world,” reads the Cummins slogan. It’s hard to square that with soaked picketers outside a facility Cummins can’t seem to acknowledge.
Columbus – Headquarters, Hypocrisy, and a 97% Rejection
Now Columbus, the company’s HQ, is catching the same fire. A staggering 97% of union workers rejected a proposed contract last month. If that level of dissent isn’t a boardroom red alert, it should be. Instead, the response?
Nothing.
No comment from Cummins.
No leadership presence.
And notably, no word from Katie Moreau, Cummins’ Executive Director of Corporate Communications, the recent communications hero rolled out for a PR stunt.
The same Katie Moreau who remained silent when Cummins faced antisemitism allegations. The same corporate PR machine that glossed over the diesel scandal, the layoffs, the DEI hypocrisy. Now, with strikes looming at their HQ, they’re still ducking the mic.
The Pattern – Unrest Is Not Isolated
What’s happening in Oshkosh and Columbus is not coincidence – it’s consequence.
- Consequence of ignoring workers’ voices.
- Consequence of prioritising shareholder polish over internal reality.
- Consequence of a comms department more focused on LinkedIn graphics than lived experience.
Whether it’s a picket line in Wisconsin or a strike ballot in Indiana, the underlying message is the same: people are fed up.
And investors should take note. With OMERS, Tidal Investments, and others quietly trimming their stakes in Cummins, the market smells smoke. Labour unrest, reputational decay, and executive silence aren’t just a PR issue – they’re a risk vector.
What Happens Next?
For Cummins, this is a reckoning. Two fronts of industrial action. A battered brand. A growing digital campaign watching every move.
This could be the moment to turn the tide – to act, to engage, to show a modicum of the “inclusive leadership” they endlessly preach.
Or they can keep hiding. Keep sending silence as their only statement.
But the cracks are spreading.
And the world is watching.
Lee Thompson
Founder, The Cummins Accountability Project