The United Auto Workers expanded its strike against major automakers Friday, walking out of 38 General Motors and Stellantis parts distribution centers in 20 states.
The 5,000 rank-and-file workers at the Arlington General Motors plant are waiting to hear if their names will be called.
A week ago, the UAW named three factories to be targeted by picketers including one each in Ohio, Missouri and Michigan. But seven days of talks have shown little progress and union president Shawn Fain set the deadline of 11 a.m. Friday.
Since the picketing at those three plants has not influenced the negotiations, many industry insiders believe Fain will announce picketing at plants that make the more profitable vehicles, and that certainly applies to the Arlington plant which makes GM's most popular full-size SUVs like Chevy Suburbans and Tahoes, Cadillac Escalades and GMC Yukons.
As part of this latest move union officials are calling on the GM Fort Worth Parts Distribution Center which is in Roanoke and the Stellantis Dallas Parts Distribution Center which is in Carrollton to go on strike.
Ford was spared additional strikes because the company has met some of the union’s demands during negotiations over the past week, said UAW President Shawn Fain.
“We’ve made some real progress at Ford,” Fain said during an online presentation to union members. “We still have serious issues to work through, but we do want to recognize that Ford is showing that they are serious about reaching a deal.”
“At GM and Stellantis, it’s a different story,” he said. Those companies, he said, have rejected the union’s proposals for cost-of-living increases, profit sharing and job security.
The union is seeking pay raises of 36% over four years, an end to lower pay scales for new workers, and most boldly, a 32-hour work week for 40 hours of pay. The car companies say they can’t afford the union’s demands despite huge profits because they need to invest in the transformation to electric vehicles.
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