DEARBORN (WWJ) – Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford on Monday called for an end to the “acrimonious talks” as the UAW’s strike against the Detroit Three automakers has now surpassed one month.
Speaking at the company’s historic Rouge Plant in Dearborn, Ford said the future of the auto industry is at stake as the strike drags on, calling on the union to come together with the company.
“This should not be Ford vs. the UAW. It should be Ford and the UAW vs. Toyota, Honda, Tesla and all the Chinese companies that want to enter our home market,” Ford said during his Monday speech.
The chairman said raising labor costs could limit spending for the company when it comes to developing new vehicles and investing in factories.
“It’s the absolute lifeblood of our company. And if we lose it, we will lose to the competition. America loses. Many jobs will be lost,” Ford said.
But in response to Ford’s Monday comments, UAW President Shawn Fain said the chairman “knows exactly how to settle this strike.”
“Instead of threatening to close the Rouge, he should call up (Ford CEO) Jim Farley, tell him to stop playing games and get a deal done, or we’ll close the Rouge for him,” Fain said in a statement. “It's not the UAW and Ford against foreign automakers. It's autoworkers everywhere against corporate greed.”
Fain said if Ford wants to be the “all-American auto company,” they can “pay all-American wages and benefits.”
The UAW president says he doesn’t see the likes of Toyota, Honda, Tesla and other foreign companies and EV startups as the enemy. Instead, he wants to organize them as well, calling them the “UAW members of the future.”
Ford has been hit harder than the other companies impacted by the UAW’s strike, as an additional 8,700 UAW Ford workers went on strike last week at the company’s Kentucky Truck Plant.
In total, some 34,000 union members are now on strike across the three companies.
In its latest report, the Anderson Economic Group says the cost of the strike is approaching $8 billion. The group says carmakers have lost nearly $3.5 billion, while suppliers have lost more than $2.5 billion and dealers and customers have lost more than $1 billion.
Workers, meanwhile, have lost about $359 million, according to the report, which was released Monday afternoon.
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