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17 min ago

Just catching up on the UAW strike? Here's what you need to know

From CNN's Chris Isidore, Vanessa Yurkevich and Elisabeth Buchwald

Time has run out to avert a strike at America’s unionized automakers.

The United Auto Workers contracts expired at 11:59 pm ET on Thursday. The contracts covered 145,000 UAW members at the three companies: General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, which builds vehicles under the Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler brands for North America.

With no deal reached by the contract expiration, the union said it has started targeted strikes against three facilities – one at each company.

Here’s what to know now that the strike has begun:

Where have workers walked off the job?

UAW President Shawn Fain announced that workers at a GM plant in Wentzville, Missouri; a Stellantis plant in Toledo, Ohio; and a Ford plant in Wayne, Michigan, would go on strike. Workers walked off the job there, picketing outside the plants Friday morning.

It might not take much to virtually shut down the output from all the companies. They operate a complex network of plants that depend on getting parts from different facilities.

Slowing or stopping the production of a few engine or transmission plants at each company could be as effective at stopping operations as a full strike at all plants, according to industry experts.

Key numbers motivating the UAW members:

$32.32: The hourly wage for most of the UAW members at GM, Ford and Stellantis 

$18: The starting wage of a UAW worker 

$15: The starting wage for temporary workers

Those wages haven't adjusted for inflation, which rose significantly over the past two years.

Will the automakers negotiate?

Based on their latest reports, Ford and GM are now offering a 20% raise during the life of the contract, and Stellantis is offering 17.5%. The union started with a demand for an immediate 20%, and four additional raises of 5% each over the course of a four-year deal.

GM CEO Mary Barra sent a letter to employees Thursday saying the company’s latest offer now includes a 20% raise, with an immediate 10% pay hike. The lower-paid temporary employees would get $20 an hour, which represents at 20% raise from current $16.67 an hour they receive.

Ford CEO Jim Farley told CNN that an offer from Ford of a 20% raise over the life of the contract is the most lucrative offer the company has made to the union in the 80 years it has been there. But he said meeting the union’s demands of close to a 40% raise, along with a four-day work week and other benefit improvements, would have been unaffordable.

Farley blamed the union for the lack of progress in negotiations. But the union has blamed the companies for waiting until the end of August or early September to make their first counteroffers.

Anger is mounting with Stellantis:

Stellantis is making greater use of lower-paid temporary workers than the other automakers. Eliminating or at least limiting use of temporary workers is a major issue for the union.

And there is still more anger at Stellantis after former executives of the company were caught giving bribes to former union officials, says Art Wheaton, director of labor studies at Cornell University’s Industrial and Labor Relations school in Buffalo.

Many of the members who are angry at the corruption scandal that resulted in two recent UAW presidents going to prison are angry with Stellantis as well.

25 min ago

The autoworkers' strike is confusing. That's by design

From CNN's Chris Isidore and Kayla Tausche

UAW President Shawn Fain has become the X factor in the striking autoworkers’ pursuit of increased pay and benefits, injecting a level of chaos into negotiations that neither the automakers nor the White House predicted or quite know how to manage.

That confusion is purposeful.

The UAW on Friday struck at just three plants, one at each of the Big Three automakers. None of the plants is particularly crucial to the automakers’ operations, surprising industry insiders – even experts who predicted the UAW would implement a targeted strike.

Automakers have lambasted the UAW chief, calling the union’s demands unreasonable. Ford CEO Jim Farley on Thursday told CNN that the union’s call for a 40% pay raise and a 32-hour, four-day work week would bankrupt the company. GM CEO Mary Barra on Friday said the union is “asking for more than the company made,” calling the demands unrealistic. And GM and Stellantis lashed out at Fain late last month for his surprising tactic of filing unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board, accusing GM and Stellantis of not bargaining in good faith.

Fain told union members Thursday that the union’s strike strategy “will keep the companies guessing” and give union negotiators “maximum leverage” when they return to the bargaining table.

Just as Fain’s hefty demands and unique strike method were designed to maximize leverage with the automakers, his lack of deference to the White House added pressure on pro-union President Joe Biden.

Fain said the union would withhold its endorsement of Biden. Although Fain has at times praised Biden, he has also criticized the president for failing to do enough to help the autoworkers in their cause. The UAW routinely supports Democratic presidential candidates, and the president – who is fighting low approval ratings ahead of the 2024 campaign season – could use all the support he can get.

The unpredictable and unknown commodity in Fain has created a “uniquely challenging” predicament for the Biden administration, according to three sources briefed regularly on the discussions, who requested anonymity to describe sensitive conversations during ongoing negotiations.

Read more about Fain and his strategy here.

25 min ago

In his first remarks, Biden voiced support for UAW workers but didn't explicitly endorse the strike

From CNN's Kyle Feldscher

President Joe Biden on Friday issued a strong statement of support for UAW workers in brief remarks from the White House but stopped short of explicitly endorsing their decision to strike.

Biden, who frequently refers to himself as the most pro-union president in history, called on the Big Three auto companies to fairly share record profits with their employees.

“Auto companies have seen record profits, including in the last few years, because of the extraordinary skill and sacrifices of UAW workers,” Biden said. “But those record profits have not been shared fairly, in my view, with those workers.”

The president has been walking a fine line in recent weeks over the negotiations between autoworkers and the American companies. The strike is sure to affect the nation’s economy and the president has made his economic record central to his reelection message. However, he has also traditionally relied on the backing of union workers as a key part of his political coalition. Crucially, the UAW has withheld its endorsement of the president as leadership waits to see how he handles the situation.

It was against this backdrop that Biden gave a firmly pro-worker speech at the White House on Friday, noting a recent report done by his administration that argued unions “raise standards across the workplace and entire industries.”

“No one wants a strike, but I respect workers’ right to use their options under the collective bargaining system,” Biden said.

Time has run out to avert a strike at America’s unionized automakers.

The United Auto Workers contracts expired at 11:59 pm ET on Thursday. The contracts covered 145,000 UAW members at the three companies: General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, which builds vehicles under the Jeep, Ram, Dodge and Chrysler brands for North America.

With no deal reached by the contract expiration, the union said it has started targeted strikes against three facilities – one at each company.

Here’s what to know now that the strike has begun:

Where have workers walked off the job?

UAW President Shawn Fain announced that workers at a GM plant in Wentzville, Missouri; a Stellantis plant in Toledo, Ohio; and a Ford plant in Wayne, Michigan, would go on strike. Workers walked off the job there, picketing outside the plants Friday morning.

It might not take much to virtually shut down the output from all the companies. They operate a complex network of plants that depend on getting parts from different facilities.

Slowing or stopping the production of a few engine or transmission plants at each company could be as effective at stopping operations as a full strike at all plants, according to industry experts.

Key numbers motivating the UAW members:

$32.32: The hourly wage for most of the UAW members at GM, Ford and Stellantis 

$18: The starting wage of a UAW worker 

$15: The starting wage for temporary workers

Those wages haven't adjusted for inflation, which rose significantly over the past two years.

Will the automakers negotiate?

Based on their latest reports, Ford and GM are now offering a 20% raise during the life of the contract, and Stellantis is offering 17.5%. The union started with a demand for an immediate 20%, and four additional raises of 5% each over the course of a four-year deal.

GM CEO Mary Barra sent a letter to employees Thursday saying the company’s latest offer now includes a 20% raise, with an immediate 10% pay hike. The lower-paid temporary employees would get $20 an hour, which represents at 20% raise from current $16.67 an hour they receive.

Ford CEO Jim Farley told CNN that an offer from Ford of a 20% raise over the life of the contract is the most lucrative offer the company has made to the union in the 80 years it has been there. But he said meeting the union’s demands of close to a 40% raise, along with a four-day work week and other benefit improvements, would have been unaffordable.

Farley blamed the union for the lack of progress in negotiations. But the union has blamed the companies for waiting until the end of August or early September to make their first counteroffers.

Anger is mounting with Stellantis:

Stellantis is making greater use of lower-paid temporary workers than the other automakers. Eliminating or at least limiting use of temporary workers is a major issue for the union.

And there is still more anger at Stellantis after former executives of the company were caught giving bribes to former union officials, says Art Wheaton, director of labor studies at Cornell University’s Industrial and Labor Relations school in Buffalo.

Many of the members who are angry at the corruption scandal that resulted in two recent UAW presidents going to prison are angry with Stellantis as well.

UAW President Shawn Fain has become the X factor in the striking autoworkers’ pursuit of increased pay and benefits, injecting a level of chaos into negotiations that neither the automakers nor the White House predicted or quite know how to manage.

That confusion is purposeful.

The UAW on Friday struck at just three plants, one at each of the Big Three automakers. None of the plants is particularly crucial to the automakers’ operations, surprising industry insiders – even experts who predicted the UAW would implement a targeted strike.

Automakers have lambasted the UAW chief, calling the union’s demands unreasonable. Ford CEO Jim Farley on Thursday told CNN that the union’s call for a 40% pay raise and a 32-hour, four-day work week would bankrupt the company. GM CEO Mary Barra on Friday said the union is “asking for more than the company made,” calling the demands unrealistic. And GM and Stellantis lashed out at Fain late last month for his surprising tactic of filing unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board, accusing GM and Stellantis of not bargaining in good faith.

Fain told union members Thursday that the union’s strike strategy “will keep the companies guessing” and give union negotiators “maximum leverage” when they return to the bargaining table.

Just as Fain’s hefty demands and unique strike method were designed to maximize leverage with the automakers, his lack of deference to the White House added pressure on pro-union President Joe Biden.

Fain said the union would withhold its endorsement of Biden. Although Fain has at times praised Biden, he has also criticized the president for failing to do enough to help the autoworkers in their cause. The UAW routinely supports Democratic presidential candidates, and the president – who is fighting low approval ratings ahead of the 2024 campaign season – could use all the support he can get.

The unpredictable and unknown commodity in Fain has created a “uniquely challenging” predicament for the Biden administration, according to three sources briefed regularly on the discussions, who requested anonymity to describe sensitive conversations during ongoing negotiations.

Read more about Fain and his strategy here.

President Joe Biden on Friday issued a strong statement of support for UAW workers in brief remarks from the White House but stopped short of explicitly endorsing their decision to strike.

Biden, who frequently refers to himself as the most pro-union president in history, called on the Big Three auto companies to fairly share record profits with their employees.

“Auto companies have seen record profits, including in the last few years, because of the extraordinary skill and sacrifices of UAW workers,” Biden said. “But those record profits have not been shared fairly, in my view, with those workers.”

The president has been walking a fine line in recent weeks over the negotiations between autoworkers and the American companies. The strike is sure to affect the nation’s economy and the president has made his economic record central to his reelection message. However, he has also traditionally relied on the backing of union workers as a key part of his political coalition. Crucially, the UAW has withheld its endorsement of the president as leadership waits to see how he handles the situation.

It was against this backdrop that Biden gave a firmly pro-worker speech at the White House on Friday, noting a recent report done by his administration that argued unions “raise standards across the workplace and entire industries.”

“No one wants a strike, but I respect workers’ right to use their options under the collective bargaining system,” Biden said.