United Auto Workers members at the Ford Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Michigan, were among the … [+]
The United Auto Workers union said Friday that it may expand its strike against General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis at any time.
“This week we entered a new phase,” union president Shawn Fain said on a livestream. “We’re not messing around.”
The Detroit-based union went on strike against some plants at all three automakers after its contract expired at 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 14. It has added operations affected by the walkout during livestreams on Fridays.
That changed this week when 8,700 UAW members went on strike Wednesday at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville. The factory produces Super Duty pickups and other vehicles that generate $25 billion in annual revenue.
That action occurred after a short meeting between the bargaining committees of the union and Ford at the automaker’s Dearborn, Michigan, headquarters.
Fain, during Friday’s livestream, said Ford “tried to give us the same deal we rejected two weeks ago.” After the Wednesday meeting, “we didn’t wait a minute” to add Kentucky Truck Plant to the roster of operations affected by the strike, he added.
Ford, in a Wednesday statement, called the Kentucky Truck Plant walkout “grossly irresponsible” and said it “carries serious consequences for our workforce, suppliers, dealers and commercial customers.” In a conference call on Thursday, Kumar Galhotra, head of Ford’s combustion vehicle unit, said the company “is at the limit” of what it can offer union members in higher wages and improved benefits, according to Reuters.
The union president did not add any additional plants to the strike during this Friday’s livestream. But he said the automakers have been waiting until Fridays to boost their contract offers.
Now, Fain said, additional plants may go on strike with little warning.
“We changed the rules,” Fain said. “Now there’s only one rule—pony up.” He also said Stellantis was bargaining with the union on Friday at the union headquarters. Stellantis includes the former Chrysler Corp.
The UAW is seeking higher wages, cost-of-living increases and eliminating two-tier wage systems, in which newer workers are paid substantially less than experienced ones. The union cites automaker profits of the past decade.
GM, Ford and Stellantis say they’re having to balance improving worker pay and the need for investment in new electric vehicles. The automakers are relying on profits from large pickups and SUVs to help finance their ramp-up of EVs.
