by Will Kessler
The United Auto Workers (UAW) announced on Friday that more workers will go on strike as the union and automakers continue to be unable to reach a deal.
The union announced that 38 new plants across the U.S. will join the partial strike at noon against the Big Three automakers as negotiations continue to fail to produce a new contract for the 146,000 workers, with strikes expanding against GM and Stellantis but not Ford, as the company has cooperated more than the others, according to the UAW announcement. The UAW first announced its partial strike on Sept. 14, striking at three plants: GM’s plant in Wentzville, Missouri; Ford’s plant in Wayne, Michigan; and Stellantis’ Jeep plant in Toledo, Ohio.
“So, today at noon Eastern time, all of the parts distribution centers at General Motors and Stellantis will be called to stand up and strike,” Shawn Fain (pictured above), president of the UAW, said in the announcement. “We will be striking 38 locations across 20 states, across all 9 regions of the UAW.”
In negotiations, Ford has offered to reinstate cost-living-of-allowance benefits, given the right to strike over plant closures, job security for up to two years in the event of an indefinite layoff, enhanced profit sharing and the conversion of temporary employees into full-time, according to the announcement. General Motors and Stellantis had reportedly not offered the same benefits, resulting in the expanded strike.
“We are focused on moving the companies at the bargaining table,” Fain said in the announcement. “That means managing our flexibility and our leverage as we need to. We can and will go all out if our national leadership decides the companies aren’t willing to move. Right now, we think we can get there. Stellantis and GM are going to need some serious pushing.”
“Ford is working diligently with the UAW to reach a deal that rewards our workforce and enables Ford to invest in a vibrant and growing future,” Ford said in a statement to the Daily Caller News Foundation. “Although we are making progress in some areas, we still have significant gaps to close on the key economic issues. In the end, the issues are interconnected and must work within an overall agreement that supports our mutual success.”
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Will Kessler is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
Photo “Shawn Fain” by UAW International Union.
