UAW Strike: More Walkouts Expected Friday: Reports

DETROIT — The United Auto Workers union is expected to expand its strike Friday against Detroit's Big Three in a campaign to pressure the automakers into "serious" negotiations, according to multiple reports.

United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain is expected to hold a virtual conference Friday when he is expected to ask more union members to walk off the job. As of Thursday, roughly 18,000 of the union's 146,000 member workforce were on strike.

The news comes after President Joe Biden stood side-by-side Tuesday with striking United Auto Workers outside the General Motors Customer Care and Aftersales Plant in Ypsilanti Township.

"Wall Street didn't build the country, the middle-class built the country, and unions built the middle-class," Biden said. "So let's keep going. You deserved what you earned and you've earned a hell of a lot more than what you're getting paid right now."

Former President Donald Trump and Republican front-runner for the 2024 presidential nomination spoke at a non-union auto parts factory Wednesday in Clinton Township. He blasted Biden and his push for electric vehicles, deeming them a threat to thousands of jobs across the country.

"The auto industry is being assassinated," Trump said. "If you want to buy an electric car, that's absolutely fine. I'm all for it. But we should not be forcing consumers to buy electric vehicles they don't want to buy."

The visits come after the United Auto Workers expanded the strike Friday to include 38 parts and distribution factories at General Motors and Stellantis in the U.S. The move came after Fain said the union made "real progress" in its talks with Ford Motor Company.

Fain said the automaker has agreed to several key demands proposed by the union, including pay, cost of living, profit sharing, job security as well as the right to strike over plant closures. No additional Ford facilities were asked to join the strike.

The historic UAW strike against Detroit's Big Three began on Sept. 8 after the union's contract expired without a new one in place. It's the first time ever the union launched a strike against all three automakers at the same time.

Roughly 13,000 UAW workers initially walked off the job at three plants in Michigan, Ohio and Missouri as part of what Fain called the "Stand Up Strike," which is a strategy to target specific plants. As of Monday morning, those workers were still on strike.

The union is calling on the automakers for a 46 percent wage increase and a 32-hour workweek for its members. The union also wants to eliminate the wage tiered system, restore cost of living adjustments, end temporary workers after 90 days and increase multiple retiree benefits.

Ford, General Motors and Stellantis have offered the union multiple proposals that included a 10 percent wage increase from GM, a 14.5 percent increase from Stellantis and Ford's 9 percent increase and a 6 percent lump sum added after. The union rejected all proposals.