Thousands of employees at Detroit’s Big Three have downed tools after the automakers failed to reach a deal with the United Auto Workers union. Labor contracts expired on Thursday night and the UAW called the strike because it claims the car giants haven’t come up with suitable offers for their members.
The strike started at midnight eastern time at GM’s Wentzville, Missouri truck plant, Ford’s Michigan facility responsible for Bronco production and the Stellantis Jeep plant in Toledo. Other sites will carry on as normal for now, though the UAW hasn’t ruled out the possibility of the strike expanding to include more areas of the carmakers’ operations. Around 12,700 workers are said to be involved in the strike and will be paid $500 per week from a UAW fund.
UAW leaders have been asking for major improvements to pay and working arrangements that include a 40 percent pay increase over four years, more paid time off work, including a four-day working week, and the return of automatic inflation-linked pay increases. The UAW was also trying to secure pension benefits for all workers, the right to strike over plant closures and limits on automakers’ ability to class workers as temporary for long periods, which means those workers don’t receive union benefits.
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A whopping 97 percent of the UAW’s 140,000 members voted in favor of strike action last month, but the Big Three say the union’s demands are unrealistic and unaffordable. Ford has so far offered a 20 percent pay increase over 4.5 years, while GM and Stellantis have come up with 18 percent and 17.5 percent over four years. The UAW says the 40 percent increase it wants merely matches the increases awarded to senior management.
Ford, GM and Stellantis all issued statements saying they were disappointed at the UAW’s decision to call a strike and its unwillingness to accept the deals being offered. Industry analysts say the shutdowns could throw the carmakers’ plans out of whack if the strike action continues for several weeks, not to mention cost them millions of dollars.