The gains in union membership in 2023 were driven entirely by workers under the age of 45, says Heidi Shierholz, president of the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.
By having contracts with all the Big Three automakers expire on May Day, 2028, the UAW president also issued a challenge to the labor movement. Will his union be ready to meet it?
Strikes by autoworkers, actors and writers brought wins in 2023, but analysts worry labor laws could undo progress. Worker advocates say what is badly needed is for other unions, helped by the AFL-CIO, also to launch big, ambitious organizing drives.
Recent victories of today's progressive social movements show us real change is possible if we use smart, rigorous strategies. The right has known this for years. It's past time we catch up.
Thousands of non-union auto workers are already organizing across the 10 foreign-owned transplants, including Toyota, Hyundai, and Mercedes, as well as in the electric vehicle sector at Tesla, Rivian, and Lucid.
Modest goals won’t get us where we need to go. We need to think big. The labor movement needs, before anything, genuine ambition for a new America...We need labor leaders who see their jobs as climbing mountains no matter how high they are.
"We've shown the world that this industry is harming workers and consumers to the benefit of company executives and the rich—and it's time that the working class did something about it," said the UAW president.
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