The strike of the workers in the US automotive industry came to an end on Thursday as unions agreed to the deal proposed by GM.
The six-month-long automaker strike in the United States is drawing to a close. The deal between General Motors and the striking workers was accepted by union members. General Motors was the last automaker hit by strikes to close a deal with the unions, after Ford and Stellantis.
The General Motors deal was the closest call so far, with only 55% of workers agreeing to the new conditions. The deals with Ford and Stellantis, on the other hand, passed with a 67% majority each.
The deal includes a 25% pay rise, an agreement for future job positions at battery plants, and an effort to extend these benefits to workers not covered by a union.
Last month, Ford CFO John Lawler said these deals would increase prices for individual vehicles by $850-900. He said the company will do its best to cut costs along the production line to maintain the current price levels.
Other automaking giants hit by strikes included Tesla, which still faces workers on the picket line in Sweden.
This deal is a major political victory for US President Joe Biden, who became the first president to join a striking force last September.
A summer of strikes
Overall, last summer was characterized by several strikes in strategic US industries. Hollywood screenwriters and actors recently ended their 150-day-long strike, finding a similarly convenient deal for workers in the film industry with the majors.
Both strikes (the automakers’ and Hollywood’s strikes) began with a conjoined amount of dissatisfaction at low salaries and threats posed to the respective industries by new and unregulated technologies.
In Hollywood, screenwriters and actors were afraid that artificial intelligence would replace their roles, automating the most important creative processes of a film.
In Detroit, the US’s main automotive center, workers were afraid of the transition to electric cars leaving many out of a job.
In both cases, protesters lamented the high salaries of executives, while years of high inflation have made the cost of living almost unsustainable in many parts of the country.
Eventually, Hollywood writers and actors reached an agreement with producers, increasing their residuals on streaming revenues, i.e. gaining more on a per-view basis on their films and shows from streaming platforms.
They also gained protection against artificial intelligence, ensuring it would only be used as a tool to aid screenwriters in their creative processes, and not hampering it.
It would seem both automotive workers and Hollywood creatives reached their goals and created a new status quo.
