Thousands of United Auto Workers union members went on strike Friday at three plants in three Midwestern states in what was the first simultaneous strike affecting all three Detroit automakers.
The union and the companies — General Motors, Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis, Chrysler’s parent company — remained at an impasse in negotiations over a new collective bargaining agreement when the current contract expired at 11:59 p.m. on Thursday.
As the deadline approached, workers began walking out to the targeted plants — in Michigan, Missouri and Ohio — to protest.
Initially, the strike would idle one plant owned by each automaker, and could force automakers to halt production at other locations, shaking local economies in factory towns across the Midwest.
“We are using a new strategy,” union president Sean Fine said in a video posted on Facebook Thursday evening. “We are calling on a select group of local residents to stand up and strike.”
During the 88 years since its founding, the union has called strikes targeting a single automaker, a handful of which halted production for several weeks. GM plants were idle for 40 days in 2019 before the company and union agreed to a new contract.
The plants slated for strikes Friday represent only a small fraction of all unionized plants for General Motors, Ford and Stellantis and of the UAW’s 150,000 members.
However, this limited strike may hamper automakers because the sites produce some of their most profitable trucks, such as the Ford Bronco SUV and Chevrolet Colorado minivan. Mr Fine has made it clear that the strike could expand more widely if contract agreements remain elusive.
“This is definitely a different approach, and Fine is tough-talking and has tough proposals,” said Dennis Devaney, a former member of the National Labor Relations Board and a labor lawyer in Detroit.
Factories affected include GM’s plant in Wentzville, Missouri, which makes the GMC Canyon as well as the Colorado, and the Stellantis complex in Toledo, Ohio, which makes the Jeep Gladiator and Wrangler. At Ford’s Michigan assembly plant in Wayne, which builds the Bronco along with the Ranger truck, only workers will exit the assembly area and paint shop, Mr. Fine said.
The General Motors plant employs 3,600 hourly workers, according to the union, and the Stellantis plant employs 5,800. About 3,300 workers at a Ford assembly plant in Michigan will be affected, the union said.
The union demanded a 40 percent wage increase over the next four years, noting that compensation packages for the CEOs of the three companies increased by this amount on average over the past four years.
Mr. Fine, who took office as union president this year, has also called for cost-of-living adjustments that push wages higher in response to inflation, shortening work weeks, improving pensions and health care, and job security measures such as ability to work. To hit plants intended for closure. Additionally, he wants to make changes to the pay scale that starts new employees at about $17 an hour and requires eight years for them to climb to the UAW’s top wage of $32 an hour.
So far, manufacturers have met Mr. Fine about halfway on wages, but have opposed almost all other demands.
GM said Thursday that its latest offer includes a 20 percent pay increase over the life of the new contract, including a 10 percent raise in the first year, and cost-of-living adjustments, but only for older employees. GM also said it will allow new employees to reach top pay after four years of employment.
“We have put forward a compelling and unprecedented offer,” GM CEO Mary T. Barra said in a video posted on the company’s website Thursday night. “It addresses what you told us is most important: wage growth, job security, and long-term stability.”
She also indicated that meeting most or all of the union’s demands could harm the company’s prospects, as it has invested tens of billions of dollars in its transition to electric cars.
“We are at a crossroads on our way to transforming the company,” she said. “Make no mistake: If we don’t continue to invest, we will lose ground, and it will happen quickly. No one wins in a strike.”
Ford and Stellantis also submitted new proposals to the union in the 48 hours before the deadline but did not reveal details.
The Biden administration said Thursday that President Biden spoke with Mr. Fine and with auto company leaders about the status of negotiations. A senior White House official said Biden was not pressuring companies or the union on details, but was encouraging all parties to stay at the table and make sure workers get a fair contract.
The union’s demands for much higher wages and new benefits represent a sharp departure from the past 20 years, when automakers were ailing and the UAW had to accept big concessions to help companies survive.
But recently, GM, Ford and Stellantis reported near-record profits. In the first half of this year, Ford generated $3.7 billion, and General Motors generated $5 billion. Stellantis reported profits of €11 billion (about $11.9 billion).
Mr. Fine, who grew up as an electrician at Chrysler and worked in union management before being elected president, campaigned by promising a more aggressive and confrontational approach in this year’s contract negotiations.
In his speeches to union members, he often highlighted the pay of automakers’ CEOs. Last year, Ms. Barra earned $29 million. Ford’s Jim Farley received $21 million, while Stellantis boss Carlos Tavares received a package worth about $25 million.
An expanded strike would hinder the availability of new vehicles and lead to higher prices. A long strike would also impact the automakers’ supply chain and could hurt other companies as workers survive on $500 a week in strike pay from the union.
The auto industry is still dealing with the lingering effects of the pandemic. Production was halted after the spread of the Corona virus, which led to a sharp decline in the supply of vehicles Domestic car stocks It is about a quarter of the inventory at the end of 2019.
Michael D. Share Contributed to reports.
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