Threats of a strike heating up even before UAW begins negotiations with automakers

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Whenever the United Auto Workers union begins negotiating a new contract with Detroit’s three automakers, threats of a strike are typically heard among union members

DETROIT — Whenever the United Auto Workers union begins negotiating a new contract with Detroit's three automakers, threats of a strike are typically heard on the floor of the old Chrysler transmission plant in Kokomo, Indiana.

This year, the talk is a little louder.

Besides the usual haggling over wages, pensions and health care, the union has set its sights on a more consequential goal: It is determined to secure a foothold in the joint-venture plants that will manufacture electric vehicle batteries in the years and likely decades ahead.

As the industry undergoes a historic transition from internal combustion engines to EVs, the automakers will likely need many thousands of workers to staff electric-battery plants. The UAW, representing 146,000 employees of the automakers, sees this year's contract as a crucial opportunity to ensure representation in the industry's jobs of the future.

“I've got almost 30 years in, and this contract seems a little different," said Michael Hunter, a tool inspector who fixes gauges on the Kokomo plant's equipment. “I think it's a very strong possibility of a strike.”

Contract talks will begin this week between the union and two of the automakers, Ford and Stellantis, a company that was formed from the 2021 merger of Fiat Chrysler and PSA Peugeot. Negotiations with the largest U.S. automaker, General Motors, will start next week.

At the union's behest, gone is the traditional friendly handshake between UAW bargainers and auto executives, a sign that the talks will be even more contentious than usual. Four-year contracts