DETROIT (WWJ) -- No new plants will be added, and no additional walkouts are planned as the UAW says it's making meaningful progress in contract talks with Detroit's Big Three.
On the 22nd day of the strike, UAW President Shawn Fain said: "Our strike is working... but we're not there yet."
Sharing an update Friday, Fain talked about progress made with automakers on important points, including cost of living adjustments, meaningful pay raises, retirement security and work-life balance.
The top salary offer on the table, Fain said, is a 23% increase from Ford, while Ford and Stellantis, have both agreed to the restoration of the cost of living allowance.
There's also progress, he said, in talks on another major issue: the switch from gas-powered to electric vehicles.
Fain said GM has agreed to unionize EV battery plants.
"GM has now agreed in writing to place their electric battery manufacturing under our national master agreement," Fain said. "We've been told for months that this is impossible; we've been told that the EV future must be a race to the bottom, and now we've called their bluff."
Fain said Friday that the union was prepared to strike at GM's Arlington Assembly Plant in Texas — where SUVs are produced for the Chevy, GMC and Cadillac brands — and that was enough to reach the EV deal.
He said jobs at engine and transmission plants were to be replaced with low-wage battery jobs. However: "We had a different plan, and our plan is winning at GM, and we expect it to win at Ford and Stellantis as well," Fain said.
The strike began on Sept. 15 when the UAW's contracts with the Big Three expired.
Currently, the strike involves about 25,000 workers at five factories and 38 parts distribution centers. Fifteen of the facilities are in Michigan.
Fain said Friday enough progress is being made that no additional walkouts will be called; at least not today.
"Everything we've done to this point has been with one goal in mind: to win a record contract that reflects the Big Three's record profits," Fain stressed.
Consulting firm Anderson Economic Group estimated that over $3 billion in economic losses in just the first two weeks of the strike, as manufactures and suppliers lost over $1 billion each, and dealers and customer losing over $1 billion.
Speaking live on WWJ Newsradio 950 earlier Friday, University of Michigan-Flint economics professor Chris Douglas said that if the strike continues, shopping for a car from the Big Three may become difficult.
"I think if it drags on for another month or two that we'll start seeing impacts, because dealership lots with be depleted of new vehicles," Douglas said.
"So another month or so of the strike you could start seeing vehicles wiped out of dealership lots. Maybe consumers who need to buy a new car would need to switch to a foreign automaker, because they would still have inventory," he said. "Well, that would cause General Motors, Ford and Stellantis to lose market share over the long run."
Douglas told WWJ's Jackie Paige that Michigan's economy could take a big hit, and a recession is "definitely possible."
"If you remember back in the 2000s, Michigan had a one-state recession for the better part of that decade that was due to the decline of the auto industry," he said. "Because Michigan is still disproportionately dependent on the auto industry for its economy."
Auto analysts continue to be skeptical of an agreement anytime soon, with WWJ's John McElroy saying he expects the strike to continue into November.
In a statement released following Fain's Friday remarks, Stellantis said the company continues to have "good momentum" at the bargaining table.
"We are making progress, but there are gaps that still need to be closed," the automaker said. "Since the beginning of these negotiations, our focus hasn’t wavered – that is, to reach a balanced agreement as soon as possible that establishes the framework that will allow the Company to be competitive and sustainable in a rapidly changing market and brings our workforce along on the journey."