Shawn Fain, a union firebrand from Kokomo, first shocked organized labor in March by being elected the United Auto Workers’ national president. Then he surprised the Big Three automakers by organizing a strategic strike.
If the fuel pump module doesn’t work, the car’s engine may not start or can stall while driving, regulators said, increasing crash and injury risks.
The United Auto Workers union overwhelmingly ratified new contracts with Ford and Stellantis, that along with a similar deal with General Motors will raise pay across the industry, force automakers to absorb higher costs and help reshape the auto business.
The automaker, formed in the 2021 merger of Fiat Chrysler and PSA Peugeot of France, said it is taking the action “to protect our operations and the company.”
The escalated walkout began Saturday evening at a Spring Hill, Tennessee plant, GM’s largest in North America. Its nearly 4,000 workers join about 14,000 already striking at GM factories in Texas, Michigan and Missouri.
The pact includes 25% in general wage increases over the next 4 1/2 years for top assembly plant workers, with 11% coming once the deal is ratified.
The UAW’s move further escalates a labor dispute that’s in its sixth week and now has about 46,000 union workers off the job.
In just a few months, Shawn Fain has gone from obscurity to one of the most visible leaders in America, demanding that his workers get more concessions from the Big Three automakers after two decades of givebacks.
New-car sales are up about 15% this year, with pent-up demand fueling sales. The strike has yet to put a crimp in supply or demand for new cars, but industry executives and dealers are growing wary.
The UAW’s initial list of demands was projected to cost each of the companies $80 billion over four years, according to people familiar with the companies’ estimates.
It was the first time in the UAW’s 88-year history that it walked out on all three companies simultaneously, as four-year contracts with the companies expired at 11:59 p.m. Thursday.
A strike against all three major automakers—General Motors, Stellantis and Ford—could cause damage not only to the industry as a whole but also to the Midwest economy, and could lead eventually to higher vehicle prices.
A strike of more than a couple of weeks would reduce still-tight supplies of vehicles on Detroit automakers’ dealer lots. With demand still strong, prices would rise.
The plant produces automotive switch-related components such as steering pad switches, power seat switches, hazards, and door lock switches.
The U.S. government’s most ambitious plan ever to slash planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions from passenger vehicles faces uncertainty over both about how realistic it is and whether it goes far enough.
The mystery project involves a company in the “advanced technology automotive components” industry and would be located somewhere in north-central Indiana, according to the IEDC.
The United Auto Workers union will present a long list to General Motors, Ford and Stellantis when it delivers economic demands to the companies this week, the union’s president says.
The recall covers certain pickups from the 2021 through 2023 model years with single exhaust systems.
The lawsuit alleges that certain Kia and Hyundai models lack the industry-standard technology needed to prevent the vehicles from being stolen.
As the industry undergoes a historic transition from internal combustion engines to EVs, the UAW sees this year’s contract as an opportunity to ensure representation in the industry’s jobs of the future.
