The workers at Ford's Louisville Assembly plant elected Gettelfinger to represent them as committeeperson, bargaining chair and president.

On March 19, 2009, Gettelfinger announced he intended to retire at the end of his term and would not run for reelection in 2010.

[1] Gettelfinger is an outspoken advocate for national single-payer health care in the United States.

Under Gettelfinger's leadership, the UAW lobbied for fair trade agreements that included provisions for workers' rights and environmental provisions; and the union loudly criticized what it calls "the corporate global chase for the lowest wage which creates a race to the bottom that no workers, in any country, can win".

[3] Described in 2010 as one of the most influential figures in the auto industry at the time, Gettelfinger was known as "the chaplain" for his abstinence from alcohol and smoking.