Thousands of workers represented by the United Auto Workers union went on strike Friday at three major US assembly plants after the two sides failed to reach a new contract.
About 13,000 unionized workers from a General Motors assembly plant in Wentzville, Mo., a Ford plant in Wayne, Mich., and a Jeep Stellantis plant in Toledo, Ohio, walked off the job as the UAW pressed the so-called Big Three for wages and offers better benefits for employees.
It was the first time in the union’s 88-year history that it had simultaneously struck all three companies.
Contracts for 146,000 auto workers expire at 11:59 p.m. Thursday, but workers at all other plants will continue to work — at least for now.
UAW President Shawn Fain warned that more layoffs could be scheduled if the company does not continue bargaining.
The striking United Auto Workers picket at the Ford Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Mich., just after midnight on Sept. 15. 2023.AP
United Auto Workers union president Shawn Fain joins UAW members on strike at the Ford Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Mich., September 15, 2023. REUTERS
United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain walks with striking union members at Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Mich., on Sept. 15. 2023.AP
Once the contract ends, many workers holding pro-union signs and chanting “We are a union! Mighty Mighty Union! All trade unions! Union that kicks ass!” outside the plant.
When the strike began, Fain joined workers at the entrance to the Ford assembly plant that manufactures the Bronco SUV and Ranger medium pickup truck and employs 3,300 people who will be on strike.
“Enough is enough. It’s time to decide what kind of world we want to live in. And it’s time to decide what we’re willing to do to get there,” Fain told striking union members at Ford.
UAW members hold a sign outside the UAW Local 900 headquarters across the street from the Ford Assembly Plant in Wayne, Mich., on September 15, 2023. AFP via Getty Images
Supporters cheer as members of the United Auto Workers go on strike at the Ford Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Michigan, on Sept. 15. 2023.Getty Images
Workers at all other factories remain on the job as their fellow workers lead the charge for better wages, but Fain warned that there will be more walkouts if manufacturers don’t move closer to union demands.
“They could double our raise and not raise the price of the car and still make millions of dollars in profit,” he said. “We are not the problem. Corporate greed is the problem.”
The union boss said the company could afford to pay its workers more to make up for concessions made starting in 2007 to help the automaker through tough times. Manufacturers have made billions in profits since then and spend only 4% to 5% of the vehicle’s cost on labor.
UAW President Shawn Fain said Thursday night that more factories could be added to the strike list if negotiations do not go the union’s way.AFP via Getty Images
The UAW has asked the three companies for a 36% wage increase over four years, an end to various pay levels for workers, increased pensions for retirees, a return to defined-benefit pensions for new workers instead of just 401(k) and 32 plans. working hours per week without salary deductions.
Ford and GM recently offered 20% pay increases and Stellantis, formerly known as Fiat Chrysler, was last known to offer a 17.5% pay increase.
The companies have dismissed the union’s demands as unreasonable and said the UAW has not responded to their latest offer – which Ford says is “historically generous.”
Ford Motor President and CEO Jim Farley attends the press day of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Mich., on Sept. 13. 2023. Reuters
Members of the United Auto Workers walk out of the plant and go on strike at the Ford Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Mich., on September 5, 2023. Getty Images
“If implemented, the proposal would more than double Ford’s current UAW-related labor costs, which are already significantly higher than the labor costs of Tesla, Toyota and other foreign-owned automakers in the United States that use non-union labor,” Ford said in a statement late Thursday.
GM manufacturing chief Gerald Johnson said the union’s initial demands would cost more than $100 billion.
“That is not reasonable,” he said in a video statement posted Thursday night. “It’s more than twice the value of all of General Motors and it’s impossible to absorb and still compete in today’s automotive market.”
With Postal wire
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
