The GM strike enters its 2nd week. Here’s where things stand

September 23, 2019 nedvedmedia News

wellesenterprises/iStock(DETROIT) — The nationwide United Auto Workers strike against General Motors entered its second week Monday, and while both sides say that talks are continuing, negotiations appear to be at a stalemate.

Nearly 50,000 union workers walked off their jobs on the night of Sept. 15, starting a nationwide strike at General Motors after a previous labor contract expired and negotiations over a new one fell apart.

“We continue to work into the evening, including this past weekend,” Brian Rothenberg, a spokesperson for UAW, told ABC News Monday. “Talks have already begun today. We appreciate the support the public has given our UAW members and their families as they stand up for all of us.”

A spokesperson for GM said, “talks continue and our goal remains to reach an agreement that builds a stronger future for our employees and our business.”

On Sunday, striking workers at a GM plant in Detroit were visited by 2020 presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren, who joined the picket lines.

“When unions win, all workers win,” Warren tweeted, adding that she was “proud” to stand alongside the UAW.

Fellow presidential candidate Joe Biden also visited striking workers in Kansas City on Sunday.

“It’s time we start rewarding work, not just wealth,” Biden said in a tweet. “America’s workers deserve better. I’m proud to stand in solidarity with UAW.”

A handful of other lawmakers have weighed in on Twitter, many voicing support for the workers. Despite the high-profile attention, the progress on the negotiations has been extremely slow.

In his most recent statement from last Thursday, UAW vice president Terry Dittes said “some progress has been made” but many issues “remain unresolved.”

Union leaders have argued that GM workers deserved a bigger slice of the company’s profits, which they say have totaled $35 billion in North America over the last three years. Union members are calling for higher wages, retention of a health insurance plan in which workers pay about 4 percent of the costs, an improved pension and assurances that GM — the maker of Buick, Cadillac, GMC and Chevrolet — will not close four plants in Maryland, Ohio and Michigan.

GM has argued that its offer to the union “prioritizes employees, communities and builds a stronger future for all.”

“It includes improved wages and health care benefits, over $7B in U.S. investments and 5,400 jobs,” according to a post on GM’s Twitter page.

As the strike continues, stakes are especially high as GM announced last week it was no longer covering striking workers’ health insurance costs.

Meanwhile, the ripple effects of the strike in the U.S. are being felt by suppliers who have started eyeing layoffs and even in neighboring Canada where over a thousand workers have been temporarily laid off at a GM plant in Oshawa as a result of the strike.

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