Spring Hill United Auto Workers braced to strike; 'I pray GM does what's right'

A third-generation union worker, Telisa Sangster has called the General Motors plant in Spring Hill her home for 15 years.

She takes pride in its legacy.

A tradition that is now at stake.

Sangster is one of more than 3,000 United Auto Workers members at the plant working under an expired contract. They continue to work while anticipating phone calls and texts that could add them to a strike that has garnered national attention.

On Friday morning, about 13,000 of the union's 150,000 members were involved in what the movement is calling the "Stand up Strike" — a sequel to the 1937 "Sit-Down Strike" which was considered the first major labor dispute in the U.S. auto industry. Workers in Ohio, Michigan and Missouri spent the day on the picket lines.

Spring Hill could be among the next plants to strike if a deal isn't reached with automakers GM, Ford and Stellantis.

At the forefront: core issues such as pay and cost of living increases.

"We do our best to build world class vehicles, engines and components," Sangster said. "Based on our J.D. Power scores, it has been accomplished on multiple occasions.

"I support my union leadership's decision. And I pray GM does what's right."

The strike occurs after one month of negotiations failed late Thursday night with GM, Ford and Stellantis, workers, who responded by walking out of assembly plants in Michigan, Ohio and Missouri.

Vanderbilt professor sites pros, cons of public-facing union negotiations

Vanderbilt finance professor Josh White said UAW is showing strength to leverage wins from recent collective-bargaining contracts for UPS and airline pilots. In those deals, unionized workers received significant raises.

"I anticipate the negotiations will unfold prominently in the public eye, which is a tactic unions employ to put pressure on executives," White said.

"I fear that pushing for a steep raise could backfire, prompting companies to relocate production to areas with lower costs or to ramp up automation — both strategies potentially leading to diminished workforce at unionized plants over the long run."

Will the strike reach Middle Tennessee?

GM CEO Mary Barra said Friday in an interview on "CBS Mornings" the union's demands are unreasonable and would cost more than $100 billion.

The company's offer includes a "record" overall wage increase and strong health benefits, Barra said.

"We've been at the table since July 18," Barra added. "We received over 1,000 demands. We have a historic offer on the table, and we're at the table right now ready to keep going."

In turn, UAW spokesperson Brian Costantino said workers nationwide are ready for action in lieu of more concessions.

Until that call comes, Costantino said Spring Hill workers continue producing around 700 vehicles per day with an expired contract.

But, he emphasized, everything is in place for a strike. And the more than 3,000 workers in Spring Hill are "fired up" and fed up. Contract negotiations have stalled as demands for cost-of-living increases continue.

"The average new hire starts at $16.67 an hour," Costantino said. "They would have to work for 3 years straight to make what our GM CEO makes in a single day."

Said Sangster: "The wage disparities and retirement benefits between us and our CEO is embarrassing."

UAW strike pay is about $500 per week and is available about a week after action initiates.

Biden on 'Insulting proposals'

President Joe Biden weighed in on the dispute Friday, citing record profits for auto companies in recent years.

"Those record profits have not been shared fairly, in my view, with those workers," Biden said. "Strong unions are critical for a growing economy. That's especially true as we transition to a clean-energy future, which we're in the process of doing."

Negotiations have been a belabored process since union demands were submitted in July and August. Counter proposals have been underwhelming, Costantino said.

On Sept. 7, the guild responded to GM's contract offer.

"After refusing to bargain in good faith for the past six weeks, only after having federal labor board charges filed against them, GM has come to the table with an insulting proposal that doesn’t come close to an equitable agreement for America’s autoworkers," UAW President Shawn Fain said.

Costantino believes the big three automakers want a strike.

"The Big three delayed everything till the last minute," he said. "They have not met our demands as they continue to give insulting proposals."

But, while pilots and UPS workers recently prevailed after contentious contract disputes, White said autoworkers may have a harder time getting demands met because of the high cost of transitioning to electric vehicle technology.

Cheaper, non-unionized labor in southern states and Mexico has increasingly drawn automakers away from the Midwest as they cut costs to accelerate EV technologies.

"In the case of UAW, the high demand for new vehicles comes with the caveat of already elevated labor costs for heavily unionized companies such as Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler," White said. "While these firms operate with high labor expenses, competitors have capitalized on cheaper, non-unionized labor. Shareholders will be looking for cost cutting in other areas of the business to offset these investments, which is the opposite of what the unions seek."

Costantino said the transition to electric is seeing both job creation and job loss due to new technologies, but that the union will prevail.

"The UAW isn't going anywhere," Costantino said. "In fact, it's growing with the installation of a new Ford plant near Memphis. Unions are needed now more than ever for the working class, and we will be leaders on that front."

Reach reporter Craig Shoup by email at cshoup@gannett.com and on X @Craig_Shoup. To support his work, sign up for a digital subscription to www.tennessean.com.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: UAW members in TN brace for strike: 'I pray GM does what's right':