UAW members go on strike at GM Missouri, Stellantis Toledo, Ford Wayne assembly plants
(CBS DETROIT) - United Auto Workers union President Shawn Fain provided an update on negotiations with the Big Three automakers and strike plans ahead of Thursday's 11:59 p.m. contract deadline.
Fain called on the General Motors Wentzville Assembly Plant in Missouri (UAW Local 2250, Region 4), Stellantis Toledo Assembly Complex (Local 12, Region 2B), and Ford Michigan Assembly Plant - Final Assembly and Paint in Wayne (Local 900, Region 1A) to strike at midnight following no agreement.
The contracts cover 145,000 UAW members.
"If we need to go all out, we will," Fain said in the update.
Fain said there will be a mass rally at 4 p.m. Friday, Sept. 15, at the UAW-Ford Joint Trusts Center.
READ: 2023 UAW contract negotiations: Here's what to know ahead of Thursday's deadline
The union and its members have been gearing up for a potential strike for weeks. The strike could cause the UAW's first simultaneous strike against the three Detroit automakers.
The UAW is now demanding a 36% pay raise from General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, but the automaker's counteroffers have all been rejected.
READ: Haven't been paying attention to the UAW strike? What you need to know
Ford issued the following statement Thursday night:
"At 8 p.m. this evening at Solidarity House in Detroit, the United Auto Workers presented its first substantive counterproposal to Ford a few hours from the expiration of the current four-year collective bargain agreement.
"On the key economic issues that matter most to our UAW-represented employees, Ford has submitted four proposals to the UAW since Aug. 29. The last offer Ford submitted was historically generous, with large wage increases, cost of living adjustments, more paid time off, additional retirement contributions and more.
"Unfortunately, the UAW's counterproposal tonight showed little movement from the union's initial demands submitted Aug. 3. If implemented, the proposal would more than double Ford's current UAW-related labor costs, which are already significantly higher than the labor costs of Tesla, Toyota and other foreign-owned automakers in the United States that utilize non-union-represented labor.
"The union made clear that unless we agreed to its unsustainable terms, it plans a work stoppage at 11:59 p.m. eastern. Ford has bargained in good faith in an effort to avoid a strike, which could have wide-ranging consequences for our business and the economy. It also impacts the very 57,000 UAW-Ford workers we are trying to reward with this contract. Our hourly employees would take home nearly 60% less on average with UAW strike pay than they would from working. And without vehicles in production, the profit-sharing checks that UAW workers could expect to receive early next year will also be decimated by a significant strike.
"Ford remains absolutely committed to reaching an agreement that rewards our employees and protects Ford's ability to invest in the future as we move through industry-wide transformation."
