UAW Expands Strike to Include 7,000 More Workers in Push for Better Wages and Benefits

The United Auto Workers (UAW) announced on Friday that it would expand its strike at Ford and General Motors to include another 7,000 workers. UAW President Shawn Fain made the announcement in a live video broadcast on Facebook, citing the automakers’ refusal to make meaningful progress in negotiations.

The strike, which began in mid-September, is the largest labor action in the U.S. auto industry in more than a decade. The additional 7,000 workers will join the more than 50,000 workers who are already on strike. The strike will now include a General Motors plant in Lansing, Michigan, and a Ford plant in Chicago.

Fain said that the union has “momentum” in discussions with Stellantis, the company formed by the merger of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot, and that the union would not expand its strike at that automaker.

The strike is the result of months of negotiations between the UAW and the automakers over wages, job security, and health care benefits. The union is seeking to secure better wages and benefits for its members, as well as a path to permanent employment for temporary workers.

The strike has had a significant impact on the automakers, with GM estimating that it has lost $2 billion in profits since the strike began. The union is hoping that the additional 7,000 workers will help to pressure the automakers into making a deal.