


The United Auto Workers strike against the "Big Three" automakers is getting much bigger, the union’s president announced on Friday, adding pressure to negotiations.
UAW President Shawn Fain said that progress has been made in negotiations with Ford, but not with General Motors or Stellantis.
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Prior to the Friday announcement, workers at just one Ford plant, one GM facility, and one Stellantis plant were on strike. The expansion added all GM and Stellantis parts distribution facilities to the strike, bringing the total number of facilities on strike to 38 locations across 20 states.
“As we’ve said for weeks, we’re not going to wait around forever for a fair contract at the Big Three,” Fain said during the announcement. “The companies know how to make this right. The public is on our side and the members of the UAW are ready to stand up.”
Fain added that the union’s strike strategy “is designed to do one thing — win record contracts after years of record profits.”
Fain was recently elected to lead the UAW by running a campaign in part pushing for a more confrontational stance in contract negotiations.
Ford announced on Friday that it is temporarily laying off 600 workers because of the interconnected nature of the assembly line at the Michigan plant.
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President Joe Biden has weighed in on the strike, urging both sides to come to an agreement that is good for workers. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has also noted that it’s too soon to know how big the economic effects of the strike will be but is hoping for an agreement.
“It’s premature to be making forecasts on what it means for the economy,” Yellen recently said. “It would depend very much on how long the strike lasts and exactly who’s affected by it.”