The strike at the three major US automakers that began on Friday could “expand” if the companies refuse to make better wage offers, the head of the industry union warned on Sunday.
“If we don’t get better deals…we’re going to step this up,” United Auto Workers (UAW) President Shawn Fain said on the CBS talk show “Face the Nation,” explaining that General Motors, Ford and Stellantis “have no excuse”…
“If we don’t get better deals…we’re going to step this up,” United Auto Workers (UAW) President Shawn Fain said on the CBS talk show “Face the Nation,” explaining that General Motors, Ford and Stellantis Given the enormous profits in recent years, I have “no excuse” for not resolving salary disputes.
“They have left us behind for decades,” he added, explaining that the workers they represent are “fed up.”
Talks between the union and Detroit’s Big Three resumed Saturday with the aim of ending the strike.
“We had somewhat productive discussions with Ford today,” a UAW source told AFP on Saturday.
Three plants have been closed since Friday: one owned by General Motors in Wentzville, Missouri, another owned by Stellantis in Toledo, Ohio, and a Ford subsidiary in Wayne, Michigan.
“Stellantis and the UAW have entered a critical phase of negotiations,” the group, formed from the 2021 merger of Fiat Chrysler and France’s PSA Group, said on Saturday.
Stellantis has increased its offer, proposing an increase of “nearly 21%” over the four-year term of the new collective agreement, up from 14.5% a week ago.
For Fain, an offer of 21% is far from enough and he understands that the employees deserve the same 40% raise as the manufacturers’ managers.
“We don’t even want to hear about it,” he said Sunday on CBS.
GM and Ford are offering to raise wages by 20% overall.
