UAW strike enters fourth day amid negotiations with General Motors, Ford, Stellantis
Written by ABC AUDIO on September 18, 2023
(DETROIT) — A labor strike against the three largest motor vehicle manufacturers in the United States carried into a fourth day on Monday amid ongoing negotiations to reach a deal.
The United Auto Workers, which represents nearly 150,000 American autoworkers, launched a strike early Friday against General Motors, Ford and Stellantis — the so-called Big Three. Almost 13,000 workers walked out of three auto plants in Michigan, Missouri and Ohio. The union is utilizing a “stand-up” strike method to target specific plants and add to the list if a deal isn’t reached.
The UAW held talks with Ford on Saturday, GM on Sunday and plans to meet with Stellantis on Monday, a union source told ABC News. The conversations with Ford were “reasonably productive,” the source said.
Sticking points in negotiations were wage increases and the length of the workweek. The UAW demanded a 46% pay increase combined over the four-year duration of a new contract, as well as a 32-hour workweek at 40-hour pay. GM and Ford put forward proposals last Thursday that offered workers a 20% pay over the life of the agreement, while Stellantis’ proposal included a total 17.5% pay increase. The offers from all three of the Detroit-based companies preserved a 40-hour workweek.
After the unprecedented strike began on Friday, Ford laid off 600 workers who assemble cars at a plant in Michigan. Workers in the paint department at a nearby plant are out on strike, leaving the assembly workers without adequate parts, since the parts require paint before they can be put together into cars, a company spokesperson told ABC News.
President Joe Biden said Friday he is deploying acting Labor Secretary Julie Su and White House senior adviser Gene Sperling to Detroit to offer their support for the parties in reaching an agreement.
Economists previously told ABC News that a strike could result in billions of dollars in losses, disruption to the supply chain and other financial consequences.
ABC News’ Meredith Deliso and Max Zahn contributed to this report.
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