(Daily Caller) The United Auto Workers union (UAW) announced a strike against Detroit’s Big Three automakers on Thursday, saying that members would not be showing up for work at three plants on Friday.
This is the first time in history that the 146,000-member union has simultaneously gone on strike against Ford, General Motors(GM) and Stellantis, according to Reuters. UAW President Shawn Fain announced that the strike would begin on Friday at GM’s midsize truck and full-size van plant in Wentzville, Missouri; Ford’s Ranger midsize pickup and Bronco SUV plant in Wayne, Michigan; and Stellantis’ Jeep plant in Toledo, Ohio, while not yet committing to a complete strike for all its members.
“For the first time in our history, we will strike all three of the ‘Big Three’ at once,” Fain said Thursday in live remarks streamed on X, formerly known as Twitter. “We are using a new strategy, the ‘stand-up’ strike. We will call on select facilities, locals or units to stand up and go on strike.”Then as now, we face massive inequality across our society,” the UAW said in a statement on Wednesday. “Then as now, our industry is rapidly changing and workers are being left behind. Then as now, our labor movement is redefining itself. This is a strike that grows over time, giving our national negotiators maximum leverage and maximum flexibility to win a record contract.”
Stand Up Announcement. Join #UAW President Shawn Fain tonight on Facebook Live at 10 pm ET.#StandUp #SolidaritySeason #1u #StrikeReady pic.twitter.com/2HbI0ZYf6m
— UAW (@UAW) September 14, 2023
The union initially demanded a 46% increase in wages over five years, and to only work a 32-hour work week while getting paid for a 40-hour work week, a return to traditional pensions and retiree health care plans, cost-of-living adjustments and job assurances as the Big Three has sought to expand its electric vehicle (EV) operations, according to Bloomberg.
