What the Win for UAW Could Mean for Non-Union Automakers

On October 30, General Motors (GM) became the final member of the Big Three automakers to reach an agreement with the United Auto Workers (UAW) union, following a strike that began September 15. The automaker joined Ford and Stellantis in coming to terms with the union, setting in motion the process to ratify agreements with all three.

UAW President Shawn Fain said the new contracts represented “record” deals, implying that the negotiations resulted in a win for autoworkers. However, despite their status as the three largest domestic automobile manufacturers in the U.S., several auto giants with manufacturing presences in the country employ non-union labor.

While those labor practices may have insulated them from becoming a part of the UAW strike itself, the union’s successful negotiations with the Big Three has already had ramifications for non-union automakers, and could potentially have more in the future.

The UAW Strike Against the Big Three Ended With Large Gains for Workers

When the UAW strikes were announced, Fain insisted that they would not end until the union got what it demanded. Instead of targeting a single plant or automaker, the union included all of the Big Three in its strike plans. This led to an historic number of auto workers walking off of the job in a movement that quickly spread beyond the initial group of strikers.

Manufacturers were publicly firm in their positions leading up to and in the early days of the strike. However, mounting pressure from the growing number of strikers, polls showing popular support for the unions, and a picket-line visit and public encouragement from President Joe Biden eventually brought each of the Big Three to the negotiating table.

After six weeks of striking, Ford was the first of the group to reach a tentative agreement with the UAW on October 25. Just three days later, the UAW came to an agreement with Stellantis, too. GM then became the final member of the group to reach such an agreement with the UAW on October 30.

Following the agreements, Fain opted to tout the strength of the UAW rather than offer a conciliatory tone to the manufacturers. In a video announcing the deal with GM and an official