Nearly 1,000 United Auto Workers at American Axle in Three Rivers, Michigan, walked off the job at midnight on Monday after failing to reach an agreement during contract negotiations.
According to the UAW, workers at American Axle — a Tier 1 parts supplier to General Motors — took “major concessions” to save the facility from closure during the Great Recession in 2008, with many long-time workers seeing their wages cut nearly in half from $29 an hour to $14.50 an hour. Wages at American Axle currently top out at $22 an hour, and workers say they plan to strike until they get a better deal.
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“We will not be intimidated, we will not be ignored,” said Josh Jager, bargaining chairman at UAW Local 2093. “Just like members of the big three, we made major sacrifices, and we’re done being left behind.”
American Axle, which produces axles for the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra — both built at GM’s Flint Assembly plant — has generated $8.4 billion in profits for GM over the last decade, according to the UAW. Over that time, the company’s CEO has been paid $111 million, with the top five executives receiving nearly $231 million in compensation.
UAW President Shawn Fain joined Local 2093 workers in Three Rivers on Sunday night to announce the strike and show support for members.
In a livestream Sunday evening, Fain addressed company leaders directly, telling them that he was there to share a simple message: “Time’s up.”
“For 18 years, these members have built you an empire of profit while getting treated like dirt, he said. ”They’ve taken wage cuts, benefit cuts, they’ve poured their souls into this plant, they missed birthdays, graduations, time with their families, to provide this company with axles, to keep this company and several auto assembly plants running."