UAW says its 'strike is working,' holds off on more walkouts
By Joseph White and David Shepardson
DETROIT (Reuters) — The United Auto Workers held off on additional strikes against Detroit Three auto plants on Friday, citing General Motors (NYSE:GM)' unexpected willingness to allow workers at joint-venture battery plants to be covered by union contracts.
GM's concession could be critical if rivals Ford Motor (NYSE:F) and Chrysler parent Stellantis (NYSE:STLA) follow suit, potentially clearing the way for final agreements that would shore up the union's position as the industry switches to making electric vehicles.
«Our strike is working, but we’re not there yet,» UAW President Shawn Fain said in a livestreamed update on negotiations with the three automakers.
Automakers have more than doubled initial wage hike offers, agreed to raise wages along with inflation, and improved pay for temps, but the union wants higher wages still, the abolishment of a two-tier wage system and the expansion of unions to battery shops at all three companies.
Until Friday, the UAW had ratcheted up action against different automakers weekly to try to get its demands met. Threatening to strike against GM's Arlington, Texas, plant that makes cash-cow SUVs like the Cadillac Escalade spurred GM to agree that EV battery factories would become union plants with UAW contracts, Fain said.
Sales of electric vehicles are growing thanks in part to federal subsidies meant to support a U.S. transition to lower carbon emissions, and the union wants those workers to obtain the same pay and job protections granted other members.
«This is absolutely a big step for all the vehicle manufacturers to get a contract done,» said Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting at AutoForecast Solutions. «This was
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