(WXYZ) — The stakes are high to clean up the UAW convention ahead of negotiating new contracts with Detroit's Big 3 automakers next year.
The UAW convention is held every four years and this quadrennial event is set to take place this week starting Monday until Thursday.
One thousand UAW delegates will be in town for the event but this year's convention will be unlike any other.
What's driving the reform? Distrust.
The organization is facing 17 other federal corruption cases in federal court including two from former UAW president . This has prompted a new voting system for UAW leaders.
Delegates will now be nominating candidates for the top jobs including UAW president with a new one-vote one-member system
UAW members will cast their votes directly for the candidates by mail later this year.
UAW's current president, Ray Curry says the organization is still working on building trust but a dark cloud hangs over the UAW as they are still under a federal consent decree and new financial corruption problems.
"Trust has to be earned and we're gonna see more of this," UAW member Mike Giguiseppe said. "It's gonna get harder before it gets better. Let's be honest here. We have a monitor that's going to be micro analyzing everything."
That process was put together with the former U.S. attorney in Detroit.
"It's kind of a two-strikes and you're out," former U.S. attorney Matthew Schneider said. "They've been warned you have to cooperate and that was their one chance. And if they decide that they don't want to cooperate again, I think you'll see the justice department going back to the courtroom and back to the table and this whole thing could blow up."
