Reuters-UAW hits the picket lines with first simultaneous strike against Detroit Three automakers
September 15, 2023 5 min 922 words
这篇报道涵盖了联合汽车工人工会（UAW）对通用汽车（GM）、福特汽车（Ford）和克莱斯勒母公司斯泰兰蒂斯（Stellantis）三家工厂同时发起罢工的事件。这是几十年来美国工业劳工行动中最雄心勃勃的一次。报道中指出，这次罢工将停止福特Bronco、Jeep Wrangler和雪佛兰Colorado皮卡等热门车型的生产，尽管开始时罢工人数约为12,700人，但规模较之前的预期要小。 工会与底特律三巨头高管之间的冲突已持续数周，主要是关于工会要求获得更大比例的燃油卡车利润和在汽车制造商转向电动汽车时加强就业安全。前一份合同在东部时间周四晚上11:59到期，工会表示周五不会进行谈判，但如果无法达成新合同，工会将保留采取更多代价高昂的全公司罢工的权利。 总统乔·拜登呼吁汽车公司像高管的薪水一样奖励工人，表示尊重工人使用罢工作为他们的选择。他还指出，迄今为止，这些利润“没有公平地与工人分享”。这次罢工反映了工人对过去15年合同和工作规则的一系列变化感到受伤，这些变化将风险转嫁给了“二级”工人，这些员工的时薪只有高级UAW工人的一半，达到过期合同下最高工资水平需要更长时间。然而，底特律三巨头没有提出取消这些分层工资制度的建议，这是工会的一个关键要求。 从报道中可以看出，这次罢工对于工会成员来说是一次争取更好待遇和工作条件的斗争。他们认为，他们应该分享到公司利润的更大份额，特别是在公司盈利丰厚的情况下。但汽车公司则担心工会的要求将使它们失去竞争力，对其他非工会竞争对手不利。总统拜登的评论表明，政府也在关注这次劳工冲突，尽管他没有直接干预。 这篇报道全面报道了罢工事件的背景和影响，突出了工人和汽车公司之间的分歧。罢工对汽车产业和劳工关系的未来具有重要影响，需要密切关注其发展。
The United Auto Workers union launched simultaneous strikes at three factories owned by General Motors (GM.N), Ford Motor (F.N) and Chrysler parent Stellantis (STLAM.MI), on Friday, kicking off the most ambitious U.S. industrial labor action in decades.
The walkouts at the Detroit Three will halt production of the Ford Bronco, Jeep Wrangler and Chevrolet Colorado pickup truck, along with other popular models, though the action was smaller than some expected, with roughly 12,700 workers striking at the outset.
The action caps weeks of clashes between the union and Detroit Three executives over union demands for a bigger share of profits generated by combustion trucks, and stronger job security as automakers shift to electric vehicles.
The automakers' previous contract expired at 11:59 p.m. EDT on Thursday, and there will be no negotiations on Friday, the UAW said. Union President Shawn Fain said the union will hold off more costly company-wide strikes for now, but all options are open if new contracts are not agreed.
President Joe Biden, who faces re-election next year, called for the auto companies to reward workers just as executives' salaries have risen. "No one wants a strike, but I respect workers' right to use their options," Biden said, echoing statements from union leaders. He said that until now, these profits "have not been shared fairly" with workers.
Dozens of workers picketed the main entrance at Ford’s Michigan assembly plant in Wayne on Friday. Many passing drivers blew their horns in solidarity, including a police car and a car marked Ford Security.
Workers said they have been hurt by a series of changes to their contract and work rules over the past 15 years which have shifted risks to "tier two" workers. Those employees can make only half the hourly wages of senior UAW workers and face a longer climb to reach the highest pay under the expired contract.
None of the Detroit Three has proposed eliminating those tiered wage systems - a key UAW demand.
“There are times when I look in my pantry, I look in my fridge and I don’t know how I’m going to feed my family,” said Gerry Gunn, 38, who started at Ford six years ago and was on the picket line on Friday in Wayne.
Executives say the union's asks would make the automakers uncompetitive against other nonunion rivals. "We still have a ways to go with the offer they put on the table last night," said GM CEO Mary Barra on "CBS This Morning" on Friday.
In addition to Ford's Wayne plant, the strikes are taking place at assembly plants operated by GM (GM.N) in Wentzville, Missouri, and by Stellantis' (STLAM.MI) Jeep brand in Toledo, Ohio. Those plants produce some of the automakers' most profitable vehicles.
Friday's walkout was smaller than some analysts expected, but workers in Michigan supported the plan. "Keep the other plants open," said Sofus Nielsen, a 29-year Ford veteran, outside the Wayne plant. "This way we can be out here longer and hurt them more.”
Targeted walkouts could limit the cost of strike pay to the UAW, which has an $825 million strike fund. The automakers have built up billions thanks to robust profits from the trucks and SUVs UAW members build.
Stellantis has more than 90 days' worth of Jeeps in stock, and has been building SUVs and trucks on overtime, according to Cox Automotive data. But a week-long shutdown at the Toledo Jeep plant could cut revenue by more than $380 million, based on Stellantis financial reports.
Biden on Friday said acting Labor Secretary Julie Su and adviser Gene Sperling will travel to Detroit to offer support for talks.
Stellantis stock was up 2.3% in New York on Friday afternoon, while Ford and GM shares rose 0.5% and 1%, respectively.
The UAW has said it wants a 40% raise, while the automakers have offered up to 20%, but without key benefits demanded by the union. The automakers have said the union's demands would create an unsustainable financial situation and leave them exposed to losses in coming years.
Fain has rejected the automakers' assertions, saying the companies have spent billions on share buybacks and executive salaries.
Ford said the UAW's latest proposals would double its U.S. labor costs and make it uncompetitive against Tesla (TSLA.O) and other nonunion rivals. A walkout could mean that UAW profit-sharing checks for this year would be "decimated," it said.
Stellantis said it had immediately gone into "contingency mode" and would take structural decisions to protect the company and its North American operations, without elaborating. Fain said earlier this week that Stellantis had proposed shutting as many as 18 U.S. facilities.
GM said on Thursday that the UAW wage and benefits proposals would cost the automaker $100 billion, but did not detail how the union proposals would result in that cost, or over what time frame.
While Biden is pouring billions in federal subsidies into expanding electric vehicle sales, this shift could threaten combustion powertrain jobs and the UAW has not endorsed his re-election.
Biden's likely opponent, former president Donald Trump, on Friday criticized the shift to EVs as a job-killer for the UAW in an effort to court their votes.