UAW President Sean Fain said Wednesday night that the United Auto Workers’ strike against Detroit automakers would help President Joe Biden and other politicians choose sides on organized labor. Ta.
“I think our strike will reaffirm the following.” [Biden] “It’s time for the working-class people in this country to stand, and as you know, the politicians in this country to choose which side to take,” said CNBC’s show with Brian Sullivan. In “Last Call,” he said. Everyone else gets left behind or you represent the working class and the working class people vote. ”
Outspoken union leaders repeated: general motors, ford motor and/or Stellantis Sept. 14, when contracts for some 150,000 auto workers expire after 11:59 p.m., is not the target, but the gap between the two sides remains wide when it comes to key demands.
UAW President Sean Fein addresses union members during a solidarity Sunday rally in Warren, Michigan, August 20, 2023.
Michael Weiland/CNBC
“We’re at our limit. We have eight days left,” Fain said. “We are pushing. As in the last seven weeks, we are working 24/7 so where do we end up and on the 14th we have to finally take action. It is up to the company to decide whether.”
Fain said the union will meet with GM on Thursday morning, following its meeting with Ford on Wednesday afternoon. Stellantis said Wednesday it plans to submit a counter-proposal to the UAW against members’ financial claims by the end of this week.
Fain’s comments about Biden have heightened unusual tensions between historically Democratic union leaders and the commander-in-chief, who has described himself as ‘the most pro-union president I’ve ever seen’. .
Earlier this week, Fain said he was “shocked” to hear Biden say he was “not worried until the strike happened” and “didn’t expect the strike to happen.”
“He must know something we don’t know. Maybe the company is going to walk in the night before and tell us what they want. I don’t know, but he knows what I don’t know.” He may be telling the inside story about,” Fain said. He told reporters at a Labor Day event in Detroit.
The UAW has historically supported the Democrats. But former President Donald Trump was able to gain significant support from blue-collar auto workers during his presidential campaign. Fain said he believed Trump would be president again “would be a catastrophe,” adding that unions were “pro-worker, pro-climate, pro-democracy that can be achieved for the working class.” We need to organize our members in support of our political plan,” he said. . ”
Fain has previously said the UAW would withhold support for Biden’s re-election until concerns about job security, salaries and organizing around the auto industry’s transition to all-electric vehicles are resolved.
“Our support is not given for free, our actions determine who we support,” Fain reiterated on Wednesday.
Simultaneous strikes against GM, Ford and Stellatis would be unprecedented. It will also be one of the largest strikes in the UAW’s recent history, and could quickly have ripple effects on the auto supply chain, the US economy and domestic manufacturing.
Then-presidential candidate Joe Biden talks about new proposals to protect American jobs during a campaign stop in Warren, Michigan, September 9, 2020, against a background of American-made vehicles and UAW signs. .
Leah Millis | Reuters
The strike against GM during the final stages of contract negotiations in 2019 lasted 40 days and generated $3.6 billion in profits for the automaker for the year, GM reported at the time.
If a tentative agreement is reached, the union’s current demands could also be costly. The main demands include a 40% increase in hourly wages, a reduction in the 32-hour workweek, a return to traditional pensions, abolishment of compensation tiers, and the reinstatement of cost-of-living adjustments.
