Buying Union! How to be sure you're buying USW-made tires.

Do Buy Union Tires

The U.S. Department of Transportation requires that all tires sold in the United States carry a code which shows, among other things, the company and plant that made the tire. The code would look like this:

DOT BE XX XXX XXX

The two symbols (either two letters or a letter and a number) which follow “DOT” indicate the company and the plant where a tire was manufactured. For example, the above code indicates a tire made by B. F. Goodrich in Tuscaloosa, AL. The following is a listing of U.S. unionized tire plants and their DOT codes. By comparing this list to the code on the tire you are buying, you can be certain you are getting a USW-made tire.

United States
Code Company/Location
(Parent Company)
USW Local Union No.
BE B. F. Goodrich, Tuscaloosa, AL
(Michelin)
351L
BF B. F. Goodrich, Woodburn, IN
(Michelin)
715L
AN B. F. Goodrich, Opelika, AL
(Michelin)
753L
VE/YE/YU/8B Bridgestone/Firestone, Des Moines, IA
(Bridgestone)
310L
2M/3M Bridgestone/Firestone, Bloomington, IL
(Bridgestone)
787L
D2/E3/W1/Y7 Bridgestone/Firestone, Lavergne, TN
(Bridgestone)
1055L
2C/4D/5D Bridgestone/Firestone, Morrison, TN
(Bridgestone)
1155L
UP Cooper, Findlay, OH 207L
UT Cooper, Texarkana, AR 752L
DY Denman, Warren, OH
(Penslar Capital)
98L
DA Dunlop, Buffalo, NY
(Goodyear)
135L
JJ/MD/PU Goodyear, Gadsden, AL 12L
JN/MJ/PY Goodyear, Topeka, KS 307L
JE/MC/PT Goodyear, Danville, VA 831L
JT/MK/TA Goodyear, Union City, TN 878L
JP/MP/PL Kelly-Springfield, Tyler, TX
(Goodyear)
746L
JF/MM/PJ Kelly-Springfield, Fayetteville, NC
(Goodyear)
959L
CC Yokohama Tire, Salem, VA
(Yokohama)
1023L
Canada
Code Company/Location
(Parent Company)
USW Local Union No.
JU/PC/UK Goodyear, Medicine Hat, Alberta 628L

In addition to company brands, these codes will also appear on “Associate Brand” and “Private Brand” tires manufactured at the above plants. The key, then, to being sure of getting a USW-made tire is the DOT code. Be sure and check it with this listing.

United Steelworkers