The strike between the United Auto Workers (UAW) union and General Motors Corporation (GM) officials broke down on October 24. With roughly 5,000 workers walking off the job in Arlington, TX, they now join 40k of their fellow UAW members in striking for a better deal. Pushing the strike was GM’s report of $3.5 billion in profits for the third quarter that came just hours before.
In a statement following the profits announcement, UAW President Shawn Fain said, “Another record quarter, another record year. As we’ve said for months: record profits equal record contracts. It’s time GM workers, and the whole working class, get their fair share.”
Walking off the floor, the total on strike now is approaching 46,000 UAW employees across multiple plants and at three of the major motor vehicle companies across the US. Spread out across GM, Ford, and Stellantis planes, the strike involves UAW workers in 22 states. It’s not just eight assembly plants either; it also includes 38 parts distribution centers.
The timing and the walkout from this plant are almost symbolic. Notably producing the Chevy Tahoe, Chevy Suburban, GMC Yukon, and Cadillac Escalade, the Arlington plant is one of the most profitable for GM. On October 23rd, Stellantis had 6,800 walk off the job and shut down their most profitable plant in Sterling Heights, MI. This followed the 8,700 walkouts from Ford’s most profitable Louisville, KY plant on the 11th.
Closing these plants and wreaking havoc on the global economy is part of the plan. With all three automakers choking every dime out of the American people in the quest for profits, they have used COVID and chips as their excuse for the rising costs. Yet they post record profits and C-suite bonuses, as they underpay plant workers and treat them like tools for wanting their fair share.
