Will UAW strike impact GM plant in Spring Hill? What we know

The United Auto Workers have gone on strike. After one month of negotiations failed late Thursday night with General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, workers at three assembly plants in Michigan, Ohio and Missouri walked out.

About 13,000 of the union's 150,000 members were involved as of Friday morning. Will the strike reach Middle Tennessee?

General Motors operates a manufacturing plant in Spring Hill, but it's not clear if local workers will join the action.

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

But union strength has waned in the auto industry because of corporate relocations to southern states and Mexico, and there are heavy price pressures from the industry's transition to electric.

"I anticipate the negotiations will unfold prominently in the public eye, which is 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."

Here's what else we know about how this strike impacts the Tennessee plant.

Is the General Motors Plant in Spring Hill on strike?

The movement is calling the "Stand up Strike," a sequel to the 1937 "Sit-Down Strike" which was considered to be the "first major labor dispute in the U.S. auto industry."

At the moment, the strike hasn't reached the Spring Hill facility.

The local UAW guild that represents Spring Hill workers said late Thursday that it supports those striking and "stands ready for the call."

The assembly plant builds three types of Cadillac SUVs and the GMC Acadia. The plant employs more than 3,700 workers.

Ultium Cells: Amid UAW strike, GM electric battery supplier announces raises for hourly workers

Spring Hill Mayor Jim Hagaman said the city is aware of the potential strike and hopes for a swift resolution.

"Over the past several days, City of Spring Hill officials have met with leadership on both sides of the ongoing contract dispute between General Motors and United Auto Workers," Hagaman said.

"The GM plant has been a cornerstone of Spring Hill for decades, and the UAW Local 1853 members that allow that facility to thrive have been a mainstay in our community for just as long."

Why aren't all General Motors, Ford and Stellantis plants striking?

The "Stand up Strike" is a new take on the tactic, the union said.

"Instead of striking all plants at once, select locals will be called on to 'Stand up' and walk out on strike," the union said on its website.

There is still the option to call on all workers at all plants to walk out.

"The Stand Up Strike gives our union the ability to escalate all the way up to a national, all-out work stoppage if necessary," UAW said. "It keeps the companies guessing, and builds economic leverage against the Big Three over time if they refuse to negotiate a contract we deserve."

Those that are not called will continue working, but will do so without a contract agreement.

A car every 78 seconds: GM's Spring Hill facility is changing Tennessee. Here's how.

Where is the UAW striking?

Workers in Michigan, Ohio and Missouri are on strike.

The UAW asked members at the Stellantis plant in Toledo, Ohio, to participate in the strike.

Only members working in the Final Assembly and Paint portion at Ford Motor Co.'s Michigan Assembly in Wayne walked out.

Workers at the General Motors' Wentzville Assembly in Missouri also walked out.

What is the UAW striking for?

Negotiations are focused on wage increases — both pay-rate raises and cost-of-living adjustments.

The UAW also asks for the companies to re-establish retiree medical benefits and increase pay.

"We owe our retirees everything," UAW said. "They built these companies and they built our union."

The sticking point, said White, is that automakers are spending heavily on the transition to electric vehicles and battery manufacturing.

"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," White said. "Given the potential option to relocate production to cheaper locales, and the untimely rise in labor costs given the investment in EV, UAW probably holds lesser negotiation leverage compared to the pilots and Teamsters at UPS. But either of these options would take time to implement."

What is the union saying about contract negotiations with General Motors?

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.

The union called out GM's soaring profits and the offer that included an "unacceptable pay offer," no cost-of-living adjustments and rejected all increases to retiree pay.

"The company earned more than $7 billion in profits in the first half of this year," the union said. "While Big Three executives and shareholders have gotten rich off our labor, UAW members have been left behind."

What is General Motors saying about the strike?

GM CEO Mary Barra released a statement Thursday ahead of the contract expiration detailing an updated offer.

"We have been bargaining in good faith to deliver a better package with historic wage increases and manufacturing commitments, recognizing your contributions to our company — past, present and future," the statement said.

The updated offer included 20% wage increases, unspecified details about job security at manufacturing and warehousing sites and two weeks of paid parental leave and up to five weeks of vacation. It also included a $20 per hour temporary team member wage and a $500 payment to retirees.

Upon news of the strike, leadership expressed disappointment.

"We'll continue to bargain in good faith with the union to reach an agreement as quickly as possible for the benefit of our team members, customers, suppliers and communities across the U.S.," the company said. "In the meantime, our priority is the safety of our workforce."

−Sandy Mazza contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: UAW Strike: Tennessee's GM plant is ready for the call. What we know