DETROIT —
With hours before the deadline to agree on a new contract, the United Auto Workers union and the three Detroit automakers remained far from contract negotiations Thursday and the union prepared for a strike.
The union demanded a 36% wage increase, but General Motors, Ford and Stellantis – formerly Fiat Chrysler – offered only half.
The gulf between the two sides threatens to spark the United Auto Workers’ first joint strike against three Detroit automakers in the union’s 80-year history, a potential shock to an economy that is low. already under pressure from high inflation and a test for Joe Biden who has been described as the most union-friendly president in American history.
In an online speech Wednesday night, union leader Shawn Fain told union members that the automakers raised initial wage offers but rejected other union demands.
“We still don’t have offers on the table that reflect the sacrifices and contributions of our members in these companies,” he said. “To win, we have to act. “We are preparing to attack these companies in a way that has never been seen before.”
“It’s hard to negotiate a contract when there’s nobody to negotiate with,” Ford boss Jim Farley said Wednesday night, saying that if the union goes on strike, it won’t be Ford’s fault. because the company did it. four offers and none. a “genuine counteroffer.”
Automakers maintain that they need to make large investments to develop and build electric vehicles and at the same time build and design internal combustion cars. They say a costly labor deal could force them to raise prices above their non-union foreign competitors. And they say they are making fair proposals to the union.
Fain said the final decision on which plants will go on strike will not be announced until 10pm on the East Coast.
