About 146,000 U.S. auto workers are set to go on strike this week if General Motors, Ford and Stellantis fail to meet their demands for big pay raises and the restoration of concessions the workers made years ago when the companies were in financial trouble.
Shawn Fain, the combative president of the United Auto Workers union, has threatened to strike any of the three companies that hasn't reached an agreement by the time its contract with the union expires at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time Thursday.
Perhaps most important to the union is that it be allowed to represent workers at 10 electric vehicle battery factories, most of which are being built by joint ventures between automakers and South Korean battery makers. The union wants those plants to receive top UAW wages. In part, that is because workers who now make components for internal combustion engines will need a place to work as the auto industry increasingly transitions to EVs.
Over the past decade, the Detroit Three have emerged as robust profit-makers. They've collectively posted net income of $164 billion, $20 billion of it this year. The CEOs of all three major automakers earn multiple millions in annual compensation. They also contend that too lavish a UAW contract would saddle them with expenses that would force up the retail prices of vehicles, pricing Detroit automakers above competitors from Europe and Asia. Outside analysts say that when wages and benefits are included, Detroit Three assembly plant workers now receive around $60 an hour while workers at Asian automaker plants in the U.S. get $40 to $45.
"Things are moving but they're moving very slow and we've got a long way to go in four days," Fain said on a Sunday night video event. Eventually. GM, Ford and Stellantis have continued to run their factories around the clock to build up supplies on dealer lots. But that's also putting more money into the pockets of UAW members and strengthening their financial cushions.
"A work stoppage of three weeks or more," Fiorani said,"would quickly drain the excess supply, raising vehicle prices and pushing more sales to non-union brands," Fiorani said.