UAW firm on 40% pay raise demand as strike enters 4th day

WAYNE, Mich. (NewsNation) — The United Auto Workers strike against the Detroit Big Three automakers entered its fourth day with no immediate resolution on the horizon.

Nearly 13,000 workers are picketing Monday outside three assembly plants in Michigan, Ohio and Missouri, resulting in the halting of production for Ford Broncos, Jeep Wranglers and Chevy Colorados.

Negotiations are progressing slowly, and UAW warns of the possibility of additional plant walkouts this week.

The UAW held discussions with Ford and General Motors on Sunday and is scheduled to meet with Stellanits on Monday, but there has been no breakthrough in reaching a deal as the strike enters its fourth day.

During an interview Sunday, UAW President Shawn Fain confirmed that the union is standing firm on its demand for a 40% pay increase for members. This position remains unchanged, even though some proposals from the big three automakers have offered raises exceeding 20%.

President Joe Biden has expressed hope for a prompt resolution. NewsNation has confirmed that he’s dispatching Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su and senior aide Gene Sperling to Detroit to assist with negotiations.

However, some experts believe this move is more symbolic than substantive in pushing talks toward a resolution.

“President Biden sending some of his people here to supposedly help negotiate isn’t going to help negotiate at all,” said University of Michigan professor Eric Gordon. “It’s not clear what he can do. He can’t solve the strike, he can’t order the car companies to pay more. He can’t make the fear of job loss to EV plants go away.”

Meanwhile, 12,700 workers have gone on strike at three plants, affecting Ford, GM and Stellantis.

During an interview with union members, Tory Rachel, who has dedicated nearly two decades to Ford, shared experiences of inducing facility changes and witnessing wage reductions throughout their career.

“I was here since 2007, until 2010-11, then they sent me to the Flint Rock plant, and that’s where I actually lost $13 an hour,” Rachel said. “Since 2011, I made $28 an hour, when I got to Flint Rock, I went down $15 an hour, and It’s taken me until 2020 to get back up to full pay.”

The current walkouts are affecting plants that manufacture the Ford Broncos, Jeep Wranglers and Chevy Colorados.. However, a financial analyst at Evercore predicts that the next UAW targets for walkouts could be the plants responsible for producing the immensely popular Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado and Stellantis Ram trucks, all of which are significant sources of profit for the Big Three automakers.

This is the first time the UAW has gone on strike against all three automakers simultaneously.