The United Auto Workers will strike at more plants if
Ford,
General Motors,
and
Stellantis
fail to make “serious progress” toward an agreement by Friday, the union’s leader warned late Monday.
The UAW strike, entering its fifth day, began in the early hours of Friday morning with the union striking at three facilities, one at each auto maker. Workers are currently on strike at
GM’s
(ticker: GM) Wentzville Assembly in Missouri,
Stellantis
’ (STLA) Jeep assembly complex in Toledo, Ohio, and select departments in Ford’s (F) assembly plant near Detroit.
But UAW President Shawn Fain said the union will call on more members to join the strike unless there’s a breakthrough in negotiations by Friday.
“Autoworkers have waited long enough to make things right at the Big Three. We’re not waiting around, and we’re not messing around. So, noon on Friday, September 22nd is a new deadline,” he said in a video released online.
Ford and GM stocks both pointed 0.1% down in early premarket trading Tuesday, while Stellantis climbed 1.7%.
Ford stock closed 2.1% down Monday, GM fell 1.8% and Stellantis was down 1.6% as investors digested the latest developments over the weekend. Those included negotiations between the union and the three auto makers resuming.
However, there was also a reminder of how far apart the sides currently are. Fain rejected Stellantis’ offer of a 21% pay increase, in an interview with CBS’ Face the Nation Sunday.
The UAW initially sought raises of 40%, cost-of-living increases, job protections, a 32-hour workweek, and benefits for retirees. Fain on Sunday pointed to 40% pay raises for auto maker CEOs over the past four years as the reason why workers deserved similar sized increases.
The auto makers have responded to the strikes with temporary layoffs. Ford announced Friday that it has temporarily laid off about 600 nonstriking workers at its Michigan plant. General Motors said about 2,000 workers at its Fairfax Assembly plant in Kansas could be out of work this week, until production resumes.
Write to Callum Keown at callum.keown@barrons.com
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