The president of the United Auto Workers (UAW) said Friday that the union would expand its strike against major automakers with strikes at 38 General Motors and Stellantis plants in 20 states.
Posted at 10:47 am Updated at 10:57 am
David Koenig Associated Press
Ford was spared the new strikes because the automaker met some of the union’s demands during negotiations last week, UAW President Shawn Fain said.
The union highlights the huge profits recently made by the companies and demands wage increases of 36% over four years. The companies offered a little more than half that amount.
The UAW has other demands, including a 32-hour work week for 40 hours of pay and the restoration of traditional pension plans for new workers.
The companies say they can’t afford to meet the union’s demands because they must invest their profits in a costly transition from gasoline cars to electric vehicles.
The UAW’s contract with automakers expired at midnight on Sept. 14, and workers walked out at a Ford assembly plant near Detroit, a GM plant in Wentzville, Missouri, and a Jeep plant run by Stellantis in Toledo. , Ohio. This initial strike involved approximately 13,000 of the union’s 146,000 members.
