via Mike Shedlock:
The United Auto Workers (UAW) contract with GM, Ford, and Stellantis will expire on September 14. The UAW demands are outright ludicrous. A strike appears likely.
UAW Demands
- 32-hour workweek
- 46 percent pay raise over 4 years
- Right to strike over plant closures
- Increased retiree benefits
- Defined pension plan for all workers
- Cost of living adjustments
UAW Declares War Against Corporations
Automotive News (paywalled) reports UAW President Shawn Fain readies membership for ‘war’ against corporations.
UAW Demands Would Add $80 Billion to US Carmaker Labor Costs
Bloomberg reports UAW Demands Would Add $80 Billion to US Carmaker Labor Costs
New contract demands made by the United Auto Workers union would add more than $80 billion to each of the biggest US automakers’ labor costs, according to people familiar with the companies’ estimates.
It would increase hourly labor costs to more than $150 per hour at Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Co., including wages and benefits, up from the $64 an hour GM, Ford and Stellantis NV workers make currently, the people said.
‘A Slap in the Face’
Fain lashed out against Stellantis for its starting proposal in labor negotiations, calling it a “slap in the face” during a livestream on Facebook and accusing the owner of the Jeep and Ram brands of lying to its workers about how aggressive its asks are.
The negotiations come as US automakers are pouring tens of billions into designing and building EVs, while trying boost profits on conventional gas-fuel vehicles to pay for it. Fain has accused them of engaging in a “race to the bottom” in the transition to electric vehicles, with factories that will employ fewer workers making lower wages.
Into the Ash Can
UAW President Shawn Fain just read lines from Stellantis's early bargaining proposals and then chucked them in a trash can. pic.twitter.com/lWBfx3UdSd
— Michael Martinez (@MikeMartinez_AN) August 8, 2023
Militant Unions
If GM, Ford, and Stellantis agreed to those demands, they would soon be headed for bankruptcy.
A 46 percent pay raise, increased benefits and a reduced workweek would be more like a 100% pay raise, if not more.
The union also wants guaranteed jobs despite the fact that EVs will be easier to manufacture, requiring fewer people. This is what’s behind the demand for a right to strike over plant closures.
Biden Urges UAW and Big Three Automakers to Reach Deal
CNN reports Biden Urges UAW and Big Three Automakers to Reach Deal
“As the Big Three auto companies and the United Auto Workers come together — one month before the expiration of their contract — to negotiate a new agreement, I want to be clear about where I stand. I’m asking all sides to work together to forge a fair agreement,” Biden said in a new statement Monday.
The White House has been closely monitoring the talks as the two sides appear far apart. The union is demanding significant pay raises of 40% or more for members to match increases in CEO pay at the companies over the last four years and a reversal of past concessions by the union.
The three contracts between the UAW and General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, which sells cars and trucks under the Dodge, Ram and Chrysler brands, are due to expire September 14.
Traditionally the UAW will select one of the three companies to go first and have the other two put on hold while it concentrates on reaching a deal, then the union will push for similar from the other two automakers as part of a “pattern.”
The UAW is pushing for an aggressive set of demands at the negotiating table, and has been critical of the Biden administration’s financial support for the transition to electric vehicles, arguing that the Biden administration has been overly supportive of automakers’ plans for EV battery plants that are expected to pay far less than union wages. Fain has publicly warned that UAW is prepared to strike, saying nearly 150,000 members will strike if the three automakers do not meet their demands.
In a nod to the UAW’s demands, Biden used the union’s “fair transition” to clean energy language.
“I support a fair transition to a clean energy future. That means ensuring that Big Three auto jobs are good jobs that can support a family; that auto companies should honor the right to organize; take every possible step to avoid painful plant closings; and ensure that when transitions are needed, the transitions are fair and look to retool, reboot, and rehire in the same factories and communities at comparable wages, while giving existing workers the first shot to fill those jobs,” Biden said in the statement.
The union is concerned about the plans by all three automakers to convert from traditional gasoline powered vehicles to EVs in the coming decades. it takes an estimated one third less hours of work to assemble an EV than a car with an internal combustion engine, since that engine and the transmission that goes with it has so many moving parts missing from an EV.
Fair Transition Hoot of the Day
What a hoot.
Biden crammed down highly inflationary regulations in an ill-advised push for EVs with no appreciation of either the costs or the benefits.
Now it seems that push will cost union jobs, so Biden and the unions want those jobs guaranteed whether they are needed or not.
This is despite the huge costs the auto manufacturers face to be part of this fool’s mission.
China Abandons Clean Energy Goals Making U.S. Efforts Painful and Pointless
This entire setup screams inflation in every corner.
Meanwhile, China Abandons Clean Energy Goals Making U.S. Efforts Painful and Pointless
Electric Vehicles for Everyone?
On July 19, I asked Electric Vehicles for Everyone? If the Dream Was Met, Would it Help the Environment?
My follow-up post was What Do MishTalk Readers Think About “Electric Vehicles for Everyone?”
A reader ignorantly commented “My Tesla S can easily over a hundred miles per gallon equivalent. As utilities get cleaner so does my car. ”
I replied: Well la de da.
Where did the minerals come from for your battery?
At what cost if everyone stupidly did the same?
At what environmental cost to extract the minerals?
At what cost to build the infrastructure so everyone can plug in?
A Word About Scaling
No one has ever scaled EVs to estimate the mining costs and infrastructure costs if everyone did the same thing.
Now we have a proposal to pay UAW members $150 an hour for doing nothing because these EVs will require fewer workers.
This is inflationary and environmental madness in every corner, from every angle.