LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The United Auto Workers (UAW) started their strike when contracts with Ford, General Motors and Stellantis expired at midnight on Sept. 15.
Auto workers at Louisville's Kentucky Truck Plant (KTP) went on strike around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 11.
UAW Local 862 President Todd Dunn believes the Louisville Assembly Plant could face layoffs as early as Friday.
UAW President Shawn Fain said workers at more plants will be asked to walk off the job unless major progress is made.
As the strike continues, here's everything you need to know about those plants, and the strike as a whole:
How many workers are employed at Ford in Louisville?
More than 4,000 employees work at the Louisville Assembly Plant (LAP), and another 8,500+ employees work at the Ford Kentucky Truck Plant (KTP) in eastern Jefferson County.
Ford is the fourth-largest employer in Louisville, according to the chamber of commerce.
What do the Louisville Ford plants manufacture?
The Louisville Assembly Plant produces the Ford Escape and Lincoln Corsair. The facility opened in 1959 and sits on 180 acres.
The Kentucky Truck Plant produces the Ford F-250–F-550 Super Duty Trucks, Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator. The plant opened in 1969 and is situated on 500 acres.
The F-series has been the top-selling vehicle in the U.S. for over 40 years.
How much are the workers getting paid?
Top-scale assembly workers earn $32.32 an hour, and temporary workers start at just under $17. Full-time workers have received profit-sharing checks ranging this year from $9,716 at Ford to $14,760 at Stellantis.
How many workers are involved across the United States?
Around 146,000 U.S. workers at the big three automakers are represented by the UAW.
Which auto companies are involved?
Ford, General Motors and Stellantis.
Why are UAW workers striking?
The United Auto Workers union is seeking big raises and better benefits from General Motors, Ford and Stellantis. They want to get back concessions that the workers made years ago, when the companies were in financial trouble.
Shawn Fain, the combative president of the UAW, says the targeted strikes give the union leverage in contract talks and keep the auto companies guessing about its next move.
It could also make the union’s $825 million strike fund last much longer.
Both sides began exchanging wage and benefit proposals earlier this month. Though some incremental progress appears to have been made — General Motors made a new, richer offer just hours before the strike deadline — it was not enough to avoid walkouts. The strike could cause significant disruptions to auto production in the United States.
What do auto workers want?
The union is asking for 36% raises in general pay over four years — a top-scale assembly plant worker gets about $32 an hour now. In addition, the UAW has demanded an end to varying tiers of wages for factory jobs; a 32-hour week with 40 hours of pay; the restoration of traditional defined-benefit pensions for new hires who now receive only 401(k)-style retirement plans; and a return of cost-of-living pay raises, among other benefits.
Perhaps most important to the union is that it be allowed to represent workers at 10 electric vehicle battery factories, most of which are being built by joint ventures between automakers and South Korean battery makers. The union wants those plants to receive top UAW wages. In part that's because workers who now make components for internal combustion engines will need a place to work as the industry transitions to EVs.
Currently, UAW workers hired after 2007 don’t receive defined-benefit pensions. Their health benefits are also less generous. For years, the union gave up general pay raises and lost cost-of-living wage increases to help the companies control costs. Though top-scale assembly workers earn $32.32 an hour, temporary workers start at just under $17. Still, full-time workers have received profit-sharing checks ranging this year from $9,716 at Ford to $14,760 at Stellantis.
What happens next?
Union leadership and the Detroit companies appeared to make progress in an update from Oct. 4, according to a person with direct knowledge of the talks.
The union could pick more plants to strike in the coming days, and it all depends on progress — or lack of it — at the bargaining table, the UAW president says.
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