In this process, the workers gradually expanded their strike as no progress was made in the negotiations with the car manufacturers over the new contract and an agreement was still not reached in the negotiations.

At the beginning of the week, approximately 4,000 unionized workers announced that they decided to strike at the factories of Mack Trucks, a subsidiary of the Swedish group Volvo, in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Florida. With the participation of Mack Trucks workers, the total number of unionized workers on strike exceeded 30,000 in 22 states.

Finally, the union surprisingly announced Wednesday afternoon that 8,700 of its members went on strike at Ford’s “iconic” and “highly profitable” truck factory in Kentucky.

SCREENS ARE INCREASING

While the number of striking factories increases across the country, disruptions in production due to the strike also cause a knock-on effect.

Strikes cause layoffs. Since the start of the strike, Ford has laid off a total of 1,865 non-union workers, GM has laid off 2,330 workers and Stellantis has laid off 640 workers. Thus, the number of workers laid off due to the strike of the three main car manufacturers approached 5,000.

Automakers defend themselves by saying they had to lay off workers because of the interconnectedness of their production systems.

5.5 BILLION DOLLARS IN 3 WEEKS

According to the latest analysis by Michigan-based economic consulting firm Anderson Economic Group (AEG) on the so-called “Stand Up” auto workers strike, it is estimated that the strike caused a total economic loss of $5.5 billion in 3 weeks.

It is estimated that $579 million of the economic losses in question consist of direct wages, $2.68 billion in losses from producers, $1.6 billion from suppliers, and $1.26 billion from distributors and customers.

It should be noted that this loss exceeds the estimated $4 billion economic damage caused by the month-long strike that the UAW launched against GM in 2019.

GM alone announced that the strike cost $200 million in the first two weeks.

Ford also stated that they were “at the limit” of what they could spend on higher wages and social support in the face of the new strike decision, and warned that the latest strike launched at the company’s most profitable factory could harm workers and reduce the benefits. .

It is estimated that a further extension of the strike by automotive workers could have significant financial consequences for car manufacturers.

As automakers prepare for a long and costly strike, GM is known to have recently received a $6 billion loan guarantee, following Ford’s roughly $4 billion loan in August. (AA)