GM lays off 34 employees at Marion Metal Center, citing UAW strike

General Motors laid off 34 union workers at the Marion Metal Center in Marion starting Monday, citing the United Auto Workers strike, according to a statement from the Detroit-based auto company.

The company also laid off 130 workers at GM’s Parma Metal Center in Ohio. Starting Monday, the company said these workers "will have no work available," due to strikes at GM's Wentzville, Mo., and Lansing, Mich., assembly plants according to a statement from General Motors spokesperson David Barnas. The statement also said the employees will not return until the strike is over nor will they receive severance pay, since the contract is expired.

"We have said repeatedly that nobody wins in a strike, and this is yet another demonstration of that fact," the statement said. "We will continue to bargain in good faith with the union to reach an agreement as quickly as possible."

More: GM lays off more plant employees after latest expansion of UAW strike

The Marion plant, located at 2400 W. Second St., employs over 700 workers, according to GM's website. The plant produces sheet metal stamped parts for Chevrolet, GMC, Buick and Cadillac vehicles.

Stellantis announced Sept. 20 it anticipated laying off an estimated 300 workers at Kokomo Casting and Transmission plants due to the UAW strike at a plant in Ohio, though it did not give a date as to when these layoffs would occur.

UAW President Shawn Fain has been escalating the strike against the "Big Three" Detroit-based automakers — Stellantis, GM and Ford — weekly since the contract expired Sept. 14, calling on new plants to strike dependent on progress at the bargaining table. UAW is calling the 2023 work stoppage the “Stand-Up Strike,” a reference to the “sit-down strikes” the union organized in the 1930s.

After the contract expired on Sept. 14, the strike has now expanded to about 25,000 workers at 43 facilities across the country. The latest plants to go on strike were Chicago's Ford Assembly Plant and General Motors' Lansing Delta Township Assembly in Lansing, Mich.

Where are the 'Big Three' plants in Indiana?

There are at least 10 "Big Three" auto manufacturing facilities in Indiana.

Stellantis has four plants in Kokomo: two transmission, one casting and an engine plant, as well as a transmission facility in Tipton. In total, the company, which manufactures Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge cars, employs over 7,000 workers in Indiana.

General Motors has plants scattered throughout the state: the metal stamping plant in Marion, an assembly plant in Roanoke near Fort Wayne, an electronics manufacturing plant in Kokomo and a casting operations facility in Bedford. General Motors makes Buicks, Chevrolets and Cadillacs and employs over 6,200 workers statewide.

Ford has a parts facility in Plainfield, where workers are represented by UAW Local 933, UAW representative Petra Jameson told IndyStar.

All Indiana locations are represented by local unions within UAW and are affected by national labor action from UAW, according to the Stellantis and General Motors websites and labor representatives. The GM Bedford plant also has representation within the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.

United Auto Workers strike 2023: What UAW's Shawn Fain hasn't talked about could provide focus for a deal

What are auto workers asking for?

In 2007 and 2009, when automakers were looking to slash costs due to the Great Recession, workers gave up a pension, cost-of-living adjustment, some wages and other concessions in collective bargaining agreements. With the three companies returning to high profitability, workers argue they should be getting back what they gave up.

The union is asking companies for a 40% pay increase for workers over the life of the four-year contract, the end of "tiered wages," or a system where some workers receive automatically lower pay or less benefits if they start after a certain date, cost of living adjustments and a return to pensions.

The union also introduced a proposal where workers would work 32-hour weeks for 40 hours pay, a system that’s shown positive results, including increased productivity, at companies across the world, primarily in Europe.

Stellantis, Ford and General Motors made a combined $21 billion in profits in the first six months of 2023 and UAW members argue that those record profits should mean record wages.

What have the 'Big Three' companies offered workers?

The latest public offer from Stellantis proposed 21% wage increases for workers over four years, as well as protection against inflation for workers. On Friday, Fain said Stellantis had made "significant progress" last minute at a number of key issues, including reinstating the 2009 cost-of-living adjustments formula.

General Motors has offered 20% wage increases over the life of the contract, which CEO Mary Barra called a “record offer.”

In Ford negotiations, Fain said Sept. 22 the company had eliminated wage tiers and reinstated cost of living raises, in addition to other concessions.

The Detroit Free Press contributed to this report.

Contact IndyStar reporter Claire Rafford at 317-617-3402 or email crafford@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: United Auto Workers strike: GM lays off 34 employees in Marion