Detroit (WWJ) This is a very special Labor Day for the UAW. The union turned 90 last month.
“They have proven to Americans that negotiations work,” says Cornell University labor expert Art Wheaton.
The UAW was founded on August 26, 1935. It gained prominence a year later with a 44-day “sit down strike” in Flint that won GM’s recognition of the union. The union helped workers win gains in pay, limits on hours worked and pensions, which were a novel idea at the time.
But, Wheaton says, the pensions won by the UAW in the 1940’s reverberated through American society.
“The very next day, they raised Social Security for everybody.
UAW President Shawn Fain has often referred to a ‘UAW bump” when raises and benefits worked out by the union won gains at non union facilities.
“Our members have always understood that our fight is bigger than any one contract or workplace,” said Fain, in a statement released by the UAW. “For 90 years, the UAW has taken on billionaires and corporate power, and we’ve raised the standards for the entire working class. Our mission remains to fight the bosses, build worker power, and win a better world for working people.”
Fain, in his column in the Detroit News pointed out that the union has to evolve as the world changes.
“As the UAW turns 90, new challenges are emerging–global supply chains, advances in technology such as AI, an the financialization of our economy.”
The UAW has expanded into a number of other areas, including casinos, health care and education. This has helped offset auto industry membership, which has declined in recent decades.
A union effort to expand to foreign plants in the U.S.--referred to as transplants–has had less success. The only successful vote has been at Volkswagen, and that was more than a year ago.
“They won the organizing, so they have a UAW local there, but they haven’t negotiated or finished their first contract,” says Wheaton. “They need to get more of the auto plants organized.”
An organizing vote at a Mercedes plant failed, and the union has yet to get enough support to organize other plants. Tesla has also proved to be a very difficult challenge, as its CEO Elon Musk has actively challenged the union, and the UAW has fired back with a number of unfair labor practices charges.
Shawn Fain was the first UAW President to win in a popular election. Previous presidents were chosen by caucus, with approval at the union’s convention. Fain narrowly defeated incumbent Ray Curry.
The election of Fain brought a different kind of president. He’s been controversial, with charges of favoritism and retaliation against union vice presidents who don’t follow his lead. Fain has also faced off with the independent monitor appointed to watch over the union. He’s likely to face significant challengers within the union ranks when he stands for re-election in 2027.
Fain has not been shy about challenging companies. He used social media to communicate with members and who won significant gains. His “stand up strikes” created a new type of tactic that resulted in large raises for workers and a number of job guarantees.
“It was almost like guerilla warfare,” says Wheaton. “You never knew what was going to happen.”