UAW President Shawn Fain has used his Friday livestream to announce the union is mixing things up and keeping automakers on their toes.
According to Fain, they’re “entering a new phase of this fight” and “it demands a new approach.” He went on to say, “We’re done waiting until Fridays to escalate our strike.”
While Fain didn’t expand the strike today, he warned automakers the union is prepared, at anytime, to call on more locals to stand up and walk out. He went on to note the strikes have been going on for more than four weeks and will continue as long as necessary.
More: UAW Ramps Up Strike Action, Shuts Ford’s Biggest Plant
The new, more unpredictable, move was previewed earlier this week when the UAW announced it was expanding their strike at Ford to include the Kentucky Truck Plant. The facility is vital to the Blue Oval as it builds the profitable Ford F-Series Super Duty and Expedition as well as the Lincoln Navigator.
At the time, the union said 8,700 members walked off their job after “Ford refused to make further movement in bargaining.” Fain himself stated, “We have been crystal clear, and we have waited long enough, but Ford has not gotten the message.”
This prompted a fiery response from the automaker, which called the expansion “grossly irresponsible but unsurprising given the union leadership’s stated strategy of keeping the Detroit 3 wounded for months through ‘reputational damage’ and ‘industrial chaos.’”
The automaker went on to say they made an “outstanding offer that would make a meaningful positive difference in the quality of life for our 57,000 UAW-represented workers, who are already among the best compensated hourly manufacturing workers anywhere in the world.” They added the union’s decision to reject the record offer “carries serious consequences for our workforce, suppliers, dealers and commercial customers.” In particular, Ford noted “painful aftershocks – including putting at risk approximately a dozen additional Ford operations and many more supplier operations that together employ well over 100,000 people.”
Besides striking at the Kentucky Truck Plant, union members have walked off the line at GM’s Wentzville Assembly, Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant, and Stellantis’ Toledo Assembly Complex. After that initial hit, the union expanded the strike to parts distribution facilities as well as GM’s Lansing Delta Township Assembly and Ford’s Chicago Assembly.
These facilities build popular SUVs including the Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse as well as the Ford Explorer / Police Interceptor Utility and Lincoln Aviator. Other models impacted by the strike include the Ford Bronco and Ranger, Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon, and the Jeep Gladiator and Wrangler.