Jacqueline Rayfield is a student at Harvard Law School.
In today’s News and Commentary, United Auto Workers gear up for a strike after their contract expires with Detroit Three automakers Thursday evening, marking the first ever simultaneous labor stoppage at all three firms and one of the largest U.S. industrial labor actions in recent history.
Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis (Detroit Three) are nearing the deadline for negotiations at 11:59pm on Thursday, when UAW workers plan to begin a stand-up strike. This would mark the largest strike activity by active union employees in the U.S. in 25 years. So far, none of the Detroit three have come close to offering UAW’s proposed 46% pay raise over four years. Stellantis has offered a 14.5% increase, and Ford and GM have offered 10%. These offers come after automakers pulled in $21 billion in profit the first six months of this year alone. UAW leaders have called automakers’ offers “disappointing” and demand a higher share of the firms’ profits. The union’s demands also include restoring pensions, a 32-hour work week, job security, and an end to use of temporary workers.
The UAW has announced that they will initially target only specific plants for work stoppages but could include others or change plans entirely before the Thursday deadline. Focusing strikes on a few strategic plants could help the UAW to extend their $825 million strike fund to put more pressure on automakers.
The potential for strike has drummed up attention from politicians. Nancy Pelosi said automakers now “have the means and the opportunity to invest in their workers.” Bernie Sanders wrote in an opinion piece that “all of us should support the strikers,” if UAW choses to strike Thursday night. However, President Biden on Labor Day remained optimistic that a strike would happen. UAW leadership has pushed back explaining that “it’s time for politicians in this country to pick a side.” While most other major labor unions have endorsed Biden’s reelection bid, the UAW remains a hold out.
Daily News & Commentary
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September 16
In today’s news and commentary, the NLRB sues New York, a flight attendant sues United, and the Third Circuit considers the employment status of Uber drivers The NLRB sued New York to block a new law that would grant the state authority over private-sector labor disputes. As reported on recently by Finlay, the law, which […]
September 15
Unemployment claims rise; a federal court hands victory to government employees union; and employers fire workers over social media posts.
September 14
Workers at Boeing reject the company’s third contract proposal; NLRB Acting General Counsel William Cohen plans to sue New York over the state’s trigger bill; Air Canada flight attendants reject a tentative contract.
September 12
Zohran Mamdani calls on FIFA to end dynamic pricing for the World Cup; the San Francisco Office of Labor Standards Enforcement opens a probe into Scale AI’s labor practices; and union members organize immigration defense trainings.
September 11
California rideshare deal advances; Boeing reaches tentative agreement with union; FTC scrutinizes healthcare noncompetes.
September 10
A federal judge denies a motion by the Trump Administration to dismiss a lawsuit led by the American Federation of Government Employees against President Trump for his mass layoffs of federal workers; the Supreme Court grants a stay on a federal district court order that originally barred ICE agents from questioning and detaining individuals based on their presence at a particular location, the type of work they do, their race or ethnicity, and their accent while speaking English or Spanish; and a hospital seeks to limit OSHA's ability to cite employers for failing to halt workplace violence without a specific regulation in place.