The United Auto Workers will not add new plans to its ongoing strike of the big three automakers, but UAW President Shawn Fain warned that surprise walkouts could become the norm going forward.
Earlier this week, the union shut down the Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) Kentucky Truck plant, which employs 8,700 workers and produces Super Duty pickups and Lincoln Navigator SUVs, two high-margin vehicles for the automaker.
“We’re entering a new phase of this fight and it demands a new approach,” Fain said Friday morning.
"We're not waiting until Fridays anymore," Fain said. "Now there's only one rule - pony up."
After a month, the UAW strike has grown to include more than 34,000 union members at Ford, General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) and Stellantis NV (NYSE:STLA, EPA:STLA).
Meanwhile, a Ford executive said Thursday that the automaker is “at the limit” of concessions it can offer its roughly 57,000 UAW employees.
“We’ve been very clear that we are at the limit. We stretched to get to this point,” Ford Blue President Kumar Galhotra said during a media and analyst call. “Going further will hurt our ability to invest in the business like we need to invest.”
In response to the walkout, Ford warned it could furlough up to 4,600 workers at its Louisville assembly plant, which builds compact Escape SUVs, in the coming days. The Lousiville plant receives parts from Kentucky Truck, according to reports.
Ford’s most recent offer to the UAW included 23%-26% wage increases, retention of platinum healthcare benefits, reinstatement of cost-of-living adjustments (COLA), ratification bonuses and other benefits.
The UAW originally called for a 40% wage increase, among other benefits.
This week, the union has been engaged in intensive bargaining talks with Stellantis, as well as discussions with GM about a deal to include EV battery plant workers as part of a master labor deal.
Contact Andrew Kessel at andrew.kessel@proactiveinvestors.com
Follow him on Twitter @andrew_kessel