About 13,000 U.S. auto workers have stopped making vehicles and headed for the picket lines. Their leaders have been unable to bridge a giant gap between union demands in contract talks and what Detroit’s three automakers are willing to pay.
Those “20%” raises are spread over 4 years which averages to ~5%/year, barely keeping ahead of inflation. The media throwing that out without quantifying it is a blatant attempt by the corporate press to breed animosity towards the unions and paint them as greedy.
And to help keep GM from going bankrupt they took concessions a decade ago or whatever that they never got back. Now they want back what they had and some more to account for the ridiculous inflation and corporate greed we’ve seen since then across all of corporate America. I don’t see why that’s so unreasonable.
GM did go bankrupt. The concessions they took were also significantly lesser than what it could have been without the Obama administration structuring a more union friendly bankruptcy.
If the strikes drag on, shortages could push vehicle prices higher and strain an economy already bruised by inflation.
Cue the “but I was thinking about maybe potentially kind of buying a new car next year, and this will either make it more expensive or force me to wait” BS
Note: I’m not referring to underprivileged folks whose current vehicle craps out/is stolen and they’re in desperate need of a new method of transportation. I’m talking about folks who are either in no danger of losing their only vehicle &/or can easily obtain a new one and are whining about nothing more than minor inconvenience.
And let’s not forget how embarrassing the state of public transportation is in the US. We basically pretend it doesn’t exist and is impossible to achieve, thus forcing those who live here to have access to some sort of private automobile.
I think part of the reason UAW is starting with a rotating strike plan is to call bullshit on the prepared narratives that parts will imminently be unavailable unless the union settles.
Yup. All Republicans and exactly enough Democrats. And complicit anti-union centrists will be like “don’t blame Manchin! Look at all the other people we agree with who he voted with!”
Manchin is probably providing cover for a few corporate Dems. If it wasn’t him, it would be one of them, I’m sure. We just really need to get corporate money out of politics.
I used to work at Electronic Arts for 13 years. Doesn’t sound very different. Large public corporations will do anything to make profit, including layoffs.
Those “20%” raises are spread over 4 years which averages to ~5%/year, barely keeping ahead of inflation. The media throwing that out without quantifying it is a blatant attempt by the corporate press to breed animosity towards the unions and paint them as greedy.
And to help keep GM from going bankrupt they took concessions a decade ago or whatever that they never got back. Now they want back what they had and some more to account for the ridiculous inflation and corporate greed we’ve seen since then across all of corporate America. I don’t see why that’s so unreasonable.
GM did go bankrupt. The concessions they took were also significantly lesser than what it could have been without the Obama administration structuring a more union friendly bankruptcy.
Just wait until “the strike is hurting the holy economy” narrative gets going.
Surprised it already hasn’t tbh.
FTA:
Cue the “but I was thinking about maybe potentially kind of buying a new car next year, and this will either make it more expensive or force me to wait” BS
Note: I’m not referring to underprivileged folks whose current vehicle craps out/is stolen and they’re in desperate need of a new method of transportation. I’m talking about folks who are either in no danger of losing their only vehicle &/or can easily obtain a new one and are whining about nothing more than minor inconvenience.
And let’s not forget how embarrassing the state of public transportation is in the US. We basically pretend it doesn’t exist and is impossible to achieve, thus forcing those who live here to have access to some sort of private automobile.
I think part of the reason UAW is starting with a rotating strike plan is to call bullshit on the prepared narratives that parts will imminently be unavailable unless the union settles.
but how will the underpaid assembly line workers survive without 1 billion vehicles rolling out of their factory
Just wait until Congress passes a bipartisan law to make it illegal for them to strike.
Is that you, Florida teachers?
Yup. All Republicans and exactly enough Democrats. And complicit anti-union centrists will be like “don’t blame Manchin! Look at all the other people we agree with who he voted with!”
Manchin is probably providing cover for a few corporate Dems. If it wasn’t him, it would be one of them, I’m sure. We just really need to get corporate money out of politics.
“GET MONEY OUT OF POLITICS!!!” “LEFTISTS ARE EXTREMISTS WHO WANT CAPITALUSM DESTROYED!!”
Fuck
I used to work at Electronic Arts for 13 years. Doesn’t sound very different. Large public corporations will do anything to make profit, including layoffs.