The United Auto Workers announced nearly 7,000 members at the Stellantis Sterling Heights Assembly Plant went on strike Monday.
The plant is Stellantis' largest plant and has 6,800 members, according to the UAW. The plant makes the RAM 1500 truck.
It's the first strike announcement since the UAW announced a strike at Ford's Kentucky Truck Plant where they make the F-series Super Duty Trucks, Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator.
"I’m excited about it. The companies have made a lot of money over the last couple of years and the CEO’s got the biggest part of the pot which is okay but now we want our fair share of the pot. We’ve actually made the pot with our blood, sweat and tears," said Kevin Watts who has worked for Stellantis for 11 years. "For people that have a little bit more seniority than me, they gave up a lot of things (and) got no increases over a lot of amount of years to help this company get through the bankruptcy and get through hard times."
Dozens of workers walked out of the plant in unison and are now stationed at multiple entry points around the SHAP plant.
"Everybody's having a hard time with their bills, putting food on the table. It’s time that we get what’s owed to us," said one Stellantis worker as he stood on the picket line near Van Dyke Rd.
"This is for the young people. This is their future right here. You gotta eat, inflation is going up, war is going on. A lot of people working here can’t even afford a truck that they built," another worker chimed in. "Your CEOs are making over $400,000 a week. People in here are making $700 a week."
UAW President Shawn Fain spoke outside of the plant Monday morning, just a couple of hours after the strike.
"We are where we are. They know where we need to be. We can get there. We can get a deal done this week, but we gotta get serious, the company has gotta get serious, and get down to business," Fain said. "We don’t want our members out here. We want to get our members off the picket lines and back to work building the greatest product in America, but we want our fair share."
Fain also said that they had talks over the weekend, and then sat back, reflected on everything, and decided "it was time to turn it up. Today was this choice, and we'll see what tomorrow brings," he said.
He also said the strike should have a huge impact for Stellantis, and it's their biggest moneymaker.
Fain also said earlier this month the union would not wait until Fridays to call strikes, and an in update last week, Fain encouraged membership to stand strong and said there's more to give.
Stellantis has issued the following statement about the UAW's strike expansion to SHAP.
We are outraged that the UAW has chosen to expand its strike action against Stellantis. Last Thursday morning, Stellantis presented a new, improved offer to the UAW, including 23% wage increases over the life of the contract, nearly a 50% increase in our contributions to the retirement savings plan, and additional job security protections for our employees. Following multiple conversations that appeared to be productive, we left the bargaining table expecting a counter-proposal, but have been waiting for one ever since.
Our very strong offer would address member demands and provide immediate financial gains for our employees. Instead, the UAW has decided to cause further harm to the entire automotive industry as well as our local, state and national economies.
The UAW’s continued disturbing strategy of “wounding” all the Detroit 3 will have long-lasting consequences. With every decision to strike, the UAW sacrifices domestic market share to non-union competition. These actions not only decrease our market share, but also impact our profitability and therefore, our ability to compete, invest and preserve the record profit sharing payments our employees have enjoyed over the past two years.
Monday's walkout brings the total number of plants on strike to 45 – 20 GM plants, 22 Stellantis plants and three Ford plants.
There are now nearly 40,000 workers on strike – 9,375 at GM, 16,600 at Ford and 14,750 at Stellantis.
Workers say they're hopeful the SHAP plant will be the last facility that will be called to join the stand up strike before automakers and the union are able to reach an agreement.
"I think we’re the straw that breaks the camels back. I think we’re the one now that gets their attention. They’re going to start losing more and more money because of what the Ram does around here," said Stellantis worker Kevin Watts.
Last Friday, Fain said that Stellantis had increased their offer to 23% wage increases, but said there were still issues with wage progression, the cost-of-living adjustment, profit-sharing, among other issues.
Stellantis said in a statement Friday after the update saying negotiations "continue to be productive" and they had made progress on some issues.
The City of Sterling Heights released a statement on the strike at the plant. You can read the whole statement below.
“Sterling Heights is proud to be home of the RAM 1500 and the facility in which this vehicle is produced, better known as the Sterling Heights Assembly Plant (SHAP). SHAP has played a major role in our country’s defense, starting as a missile production facility in 1953. Since being acquired by Chrysler in 1983, it has become a fixture in the Detroit automotive sector, producing a variety of brands including the popular RAM 1500 pickup truck. Since 2010, almost $3 billion has been invested in the facility, making it one of the most technologically advanced assembly plants in the world.
The city of Sterling Heights values the 6,500 men and women who build the Ram 1500 truck at SHAP. Considering the SHAP plant alone represents a roughly $1.6 billion economic impact to not only Sterling Heights, but the entire Detroit region, our hope is that an agreement is reached as soon as possible to return the facility to full production, in the best interest of all parties. Between now and then, our focus remains on safety. We are fortunate to have strong relationships with both the UAW 1700 and our local SHAP representatives, and we will continue to remain in direct communication with both to ensure peaceful assembly and the safety of all residents, workers and visitors within our community.”
