GM estimates UAW strike has cost carmaker $200M as walkouts reach Day 20

Adam Schrader
·2 min read
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UPI
Rep. Cory Bush (D-St. Louis) walks with striking United Auto Workers at the General Motors Wentzville Assembly Plant in Wentzville, Missouri, on September 24, 2023. Bush was joined by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, (D-N.Y.) File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Oct. 4 (UPI) -- General Motors revealed Wednesday that the ongoing strike by the powerful United Auto Workers union has cost the carmaker $200 million -- about six times what chief executive Mary Barra made in 2022.

The revelation was made on the 20th day of the strike in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, according to The Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press. The company is reportedly basing the figure on the value of what two of its three factories would have produced under normal operations.

Ford and Stellantis, the two other major carmakers of the Detroit Three, have not publicly revealed the estimated fallout of the strike at their companies.

Analysts have noted that the $200 million figure has raised attention but has not led to concern on Wall Street because the figure is only a small portion of the carmaker's quarterly revenue and most production has not stopped.

The UAW has deployed a novel strike strategy after this year's failed labor negotiations -- hitting all three major Detroit automakers at once with rolling strikes. The union is gradually increasing the number of workers on the picket lines seemingly to spare its strike budget to extend the lifespan of its walkout.

Morningstar Auto Analyst David Whiston told the Detroit Free Press that the situation could get worse for GM when more plants get added to the picket lines, especially those plants that produce full-size SUVs and full-size pickups.

So far, the GM facilities that UAW has initiated a strike against include a midsize truck plant in Wentzville, Mo., all of its parts distribution warehouses and its Lansing Delta Township plant that produces Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave SUVs.

Currently, about 25,300 union members are on strike across the three companies, The Detroit News reported. GM also revealed that about 9,200 of those are at its facilities.