OAN’s Abril Elfi
2:58 PM – Friday, September 29, 2023
The United Auto Workers (UAW) has added two more assembly plants to its strike against General Motors (GM) and Ford, increasing pressure on the firms to reach a new contract agreement.
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On Friday, workers at Ford’s Chicago Assembly Plant and General Motors’ Lansing-Delta Assembly Plant went on strike at midday. The plants employ approximately 7,000 workers, raising the total number of striking UAW auto workers to approximately 25,000 as part of the union’s plans to gradually broaden its strike against the Big Three automakers.
UAW president Shawn Fain said the union decided not to extend its strike against Stellantis, claiming that the business that manufactures Jeep and Ram cars had made a considerable offer to the union, indicating positive progress toward a settlement.
Stellanis released a statement following the strike saying that they have been working to find solutions.
“Stellantis has been intensely working with the UAW to find solutions to the issues that are of most concern to our employees while ensuring the Company can remain competitive given the market’s fierce competition,” Stellantis said in the statement. “We have made progress in our discussions, but gaps remain. We are committed to continue working through these issues in an expeditious manner to reach a fair and responsible agreement that gets everyone back to work as soon as possible.”
The strike began by focusing on one assembly plant from each of the automakers.
Last Thursday, the union expanded the strike to include 38 GM and Stellantis parts distribution locations.
Fain also stated that because the union had made headway in negotiations with Ford, the UAW would not be expanding the strike at its facilities.
With the new strike announced by Fain on Friday, 17% of UAW members at the Big Three are now on strike.
The strikes come as UAW is reportedly asking for a 36% pay increase and a return to traditional pensions and retiree health care.
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