Why you shouldn't be surprised that auto workers are asking for a 40% pay raise
Bold union demands, bolstered by a tight labor market and frustration throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, are paying off in some sectors with significant raises for workers.
As a potential strike at the Detroit Three automakers inches closer, the United Auto Workers union is pushing for a substantial pay raise for its members: 40% over four years.
It's the kind of raise that Marcelina Pedraza, a Ford electrician in Chicago, thinks is long overdue.
"Everything's going up — the cost of food, gas, mortgage interest rates," Pedraza said. "A lot of people haven't been able to have a safety net anymore."
UAW, which represents 150,000 workers at General Motors, Stellantis and Ford, is not alone in asking for big pay raises over the course of their contract (it's a tad lower than its opening gambit of 46%).
In recent months, workers across industries have fought for — and, in a handful
