Tag Archive for: Shawn Fain

,

UAW Files Federal Labor Charges Against Volkswagen for Violating Workers’ Rights in Chattanooga

Chattanooga — The UAW has filed federal labor charges against Volkswagen for violating U.S. labor law at its Chattanooga, Tennessee plant. The company is attempting to cut jobs and make major changes without first negotiating with the union, as required by law.

In a statement, UAW President Shawn Fain said:

“Nearly a year ago, thousands of Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga voted to join the UAW, to win the respect and dignified life that union autoworkers at the Big Three have enjoyed for generations.

Since then, the company has failed to meet the basic standard at the bargaining table that 150,000 American autoworkers have won at Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis.

Volkswagen is the second most profitable automaker in the world. On Tuesday, the company reported over $20 billion in profits in 2024. And on Wednesday, they announced their intention to cut a shift at their single American plant, in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

This is a company that makes 75% of their North American products in Mexico, paying highly exploited workers around $7 an hour to sell cars for tens of thousands of dollars in the US. They do this to avoid paying a living wage and drive a race to the bottom in the auto industry. It’s bad for workers everywhere.

And instead of coming to a fair agreement for their American autoworkers in Tennessee, Volkswagen is choosing to attack American auto jobs.

The UAW has notified the Trump Administration of Volkswagen’s unacceptable, anti-union, anti-worker, and anti-American conduct. It is no accident that they want to ram through a layoff in America in the days before expected auto tariffs take effect, as they profit from high exploitation labor in Mexico.

The 4,000 autoworkers in Chattanooga deserve better. America deserves better. And the UAW is going to fight like hell to deliver for Chattanooga, for Volkswagen autoworkers, and for the whole working class.”

This latest charge highlights a continuing trend of union-busting tactics by Volkswagen aimed at silencing American workers. The UAW is committed to holding the company accountable and protecting workers’ rights on the job.

,

Statement from UAW President Shawn Fain Condemning Attacks on Higher Education

The UAW represents 100,000 higher education workers, including campus staff, student workers, faculty, research assistants, and postdoctoral fellows, at Columbia University and beyond. 

Drawing on our long tradition of protest, support for international peace, and commitment to education for all, the UAW condemns in the fullest terms recent actions taken by the Trump administration to cut federal research funding; to detain, intimidate, and deport students; and to attack our members’ First Amendment rights. 

As we stated under the previous Presidential administration, “The UAW will never support the mass arrest or intimidation of those exercising their right to protest, strike, or speak out against injustice.”  

The Trump administration’s decisions will impact critical research, academic work, and the livelihoods of all campus workers including thousands of UAW members, and are unacceptable.

,

Breaking: Union Drive for Volkswagen Workers Goes National As New Jersey VW Workers File to Join UAW

Cranbury, NJ – The push to unionize Volkswagen has gone national, as VW autoworkers at a large distribution center in New Jersey have reached supermajority support and just became the first VW workers on the East Coast to file to unionize with the UAW. They join more than 4,000 VW workers in Chattanooga, TN, who won their union with UAW nearly a year ago. The New Jersey facility is now VW’s second in the country to organize with the UAW in the past 12 months.

“Every autoworker in America deserves a union,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “Volkswagen workers made history in Chattanooga last April, and now, New Jersey VW workers are stepping up. We won’t stop until every autoworker who wants a union has one.”

“We saw what was going on at the Big Three, and then Volkswagen workers in Tennessee won their union despite pushback from management,” said Sergio Sumano Jr, a warehouse worker with 7 years at the Volkswagen PDC/RDC in New Jersey. “Now, it’s our turn. We deserve fair pay, affordable benefits, and a secure retirement – just like every other unionized autoworker in the U.S. If Volkswagen wants to operate in America, they need to treat us with the same dignity as their workers overseas.”

“Operating in New Jersey means operating with full respect for labor law and the rights of working people,” said Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12), who represents the congressional district in New Jersey where the VW workers filed and many are constituents.  “I’m proud to stand with the inspiring New Jersey Volkswagen workers unionizing with UAW and telling corporate power that working people will not be brought to heel.”

“Volkswagen has been getting away with exploiting their U.S. workers for far too long,” said UAW Region 9 Director Dan Vicente. “It’s clear the balance of power is shifting. Autoworkers across the country witnessed workers demanding their due during the Stand Up Strike. When they see what can be won when we unite together, anything is possible.”

After winning their union on April 19, 2024, VW workers in Chattanooga are now fighting for a first agreement that reflects unionized auto manufacturing standards in the U.S. as well as the company’s record-breaking profits. Volkswagen lags behind its competitors in wages and benefits and treats its U.S. workers worse than its foreign workforce. With the one-year anniversary of the workers’ union win approaching, pressure is mounting at the bargaining table.

“Volkswagen racked up $24.4 billion in profits in 2023 by paying their large U.S. workforce poverty wages with shameful workplace benefits and conditions,” said Steve Cochran, a UAW member and 14 year skilled trades worker at Volkswagen Chattanooga. “Volkswagen must be held to account for failing for decades to provide good jobs for U.S. workers, and the only way that’s going to happen will be by workers in VW, Tennessee, and elsewhere standing together to take action and demand better. Since we won our union, we’ve won key protections at work including the right to have a voice on the issues that matter most – and now we’re working to negotiate a historic first contract that will finally give Volkswagen workers in the South the same good union standards workers have won at Stellantis, GM, and Ford.”

Volkswagen PDC and RDC workers in New Jersey distribute aftermarket parts across the country. They will be the first Volkswagen distribution workers to join UAW; in Tennessee, the Volkswagen workers assemble cars inside auto plants. Regardless of location, job, or employer, UAW members welcome all Volkswagen and other non-union workers across the country to join the fight for economic and social justice, in the auto industry and beyond.

,

UAW Reaches Tentative Agreement with Rolls-Royce

Indianapolis — The UAW has reached a groundbreaking tentative agreement with Rolls-Royce ahead of the contract’s expiration at midnight on Wednesday, February 26. This agreement follows a major rally the day prior and the escalation of a credible strike threat against the world’s second-largest manufacturer of aircraft engines.

The five-year agreement, covering more than 800 workers in Indianapolis, delivers significant economic gains, including the elimination of wage tiers, double-digit wage increases, a true profit-sharing plan that the company cannot manipulate arbitrarily, improved retirement benefits, and a Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) that will now be rolled into base pay for all workers.

In a direct address to membership, UAW President Shawn Fain outlined key parts of the deal and reflected on the tenacity of the Rolls-Royce membership and bargaining committee.

To view President Fain’s remarks in full, head to UAW’s Facebook page, and read Fain’s prepared remarks below. The media is invited to use these materials.
_________________________________________________________________

UAW President Shawn Fain Prepared Remarks on Rolls-Royce Negotiations, February 26, 2025

For months, the Local 933 bargaining team has been hard at work, negotiating to win a contract for our members that truly represents the massive profits they make for this company.

Our members at Rolls-Royce do incredibly important work.

The company is the second largest manufacturer of aircraft engines in the world, and the facility here in Indianapolis produces aircraft engines for our nation’s military.

Our members are proud of the work they do, and it’s their blood, sweat, and tears that make Rolls-Royce’s billions in profits possible.

I’m proud to stand here today with this bargaining team and Region 2B Director Dave Green to announce to our membership that we have reached a tentative agreement that reflects the hard work and sacrifices made by our members.

So, let’s take a look at what’s in the TA. First: We are ending wage tiers at Rolls-Royce!

For the lowest tier — Tier 4 — you are going to see an $18.79 raise over the life of this agreement. That’s a raise of 68%.

That’s a life changing wage increase.

For Tier 2, they will immediately be brought to the legacy rate.

At the beginning of the final year of the contract, ALL PRODUCTION WORKERS at Rolls-Royce will be making a top wage of $46.37 an hour. And that does NOT include COLA.

Similarly, At the beginning of the final year of the contract, skilled trades will be making over $50 an hour.

Next, I want to talk about COLA.

Rolls-Royce has a big COLA. But not everyone gets it, and nobody gets it folded into their base pay.

This means that our wages don’t necessarily keep up with inflation over time. It also means that when workers get a raise, it doesn’t include the COLA.

With this agreement, EVERYONE gets COLA, with the same strong formula we’ve had previously.

And everyone will get COLA folded into their base pay.

We also are seeing healthy general wage increases, more than twice as high as the previous contract.

We told the company, we needed wage increases in EVERY year of the agreement.

At the new UAW, we will no longer accept lump sum bonuses in the place of wage increases which increase our lifetime earnings.

That’s how you raise the standard of living for the working class. That’s what we deserve and we aren’t going to accept anything less.

I’m also excited to announce that we won back true profit sharing at Rolls Royce.

For years, Rolls-Royce has been giving out a bonus that they called profit share, but that bonus was based on a formula that wasn’t transparent and that management could change on a whim.

Now we are back to a profit sharing formula based on the company’s publicly shared profit margins. That’s the same way we do it at the Big Three.

Our new profit sharing formula means the company can’t lie, they can’t hide, and it means that Rolls-Royce members are going to earn on average thousands of more dollars than they have in the past.

We worked hard to get more vacation for our members.

Some workers in the middle of their career are going to see an additional two days of vacation. Workers with four years or less are going to receive an ENTIRE additional week of vacation.

One of the biggest and thorniest issues in bargaining was retirement.

For legacy workers, we are excited to announce that we successfully increased the monthly Basic benefit rate from $60.94 to $65 per year of credited service.

That’s a bigger increase to the monthly Basic benefit rate than the last two contracts combined. It’s the biggest increase in twenty years.

For those with a 401(k), we raised the company match from 5% to 7% while keeping the additional 3% company contribution.

There is so much more that was won in this contract, but these are just a few of the highlights that we were excited to share with you tonight.

While the bargaining team behind me are extremely proud of this TA and all of the work that it took to win it, we know that, ultimately, this decision is up to our members and our members alone.

The membership is always the highest authority in the UAW.

In the coming days, Local 933 will be rolling out highlighters and sharing the TA’d language and holding roll-out meetings where members will be able to ask our bargaining team any questions they have before they vote on whether to ratify this agreement.

I want to close by saying this bargaining team has worked their assess off for the membership.

They stood up to the company and demanded a historic agreement and I’m proud to say that is exactly what they won.

Following the success of the Stand Up Strike at the Big Three, we have seen UAW members win massive gains in historic agreements at Allison Transmission, Daimler Trucks, Cornell University, and now here at Rolls-Royce.

And all of those victories were made possible by the membership. Winning strong agreements is only possible when our members are organized and united.

It only happens when the company looks over the shoulder of our bargaining team and sees an army of fired up and fed up members who are ready to do what it takes to win what they deserve.

That is exactly what happened here this week when hundreds of members showed up to rally in support of their bargaining team and show the company that they were ready to strike if needed.

I’m so proud of my UAW family and I’m incredibly honored to be back home again in Indiana, the home of Local 933 to celebrate this massive victory.

,

UAW President Shawn Fain & Rolls-Royce Bargaining Committee to Announce Major Update Ahead of Midnight Contract Expiration at Rolls-Royce Plant

Indianapolis, IN — At 10 pm on Wednesday, February 26, UAW President Shawn Fain will provide an update on negotiations between UAW Local 933 members and Rolls-Royce. The current contract covering more than 800 workers at the company’s Indianapolis facility, which manufactures aircraft engines for U.S. government contracts, expires at midnight.

With tensions growing, workers are demanding equal pay for equal work, cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) for all employees, and better retirement benefits. The negotiations come as Rolls-Royce posts record profits. The company reported $2 billion in profits for 2023, a staggering 144% increase from the previous year. Meanwhile, the CEO’s compensation soared to $16.9 million, a 255% jump. About 30% of Rolls-Royce’s revenue is generated from the U.S. market.

On February 13, UAW members at Rolls-Royce voted overwhelmingly, with 99.5% support and 86% participation, to authorize a strike if necessary. The strong backing reflects the workers’ resolve to secure a fair contract amid Rolls-Royce’s record profits.

With major recent victories at the Big Three automakers and Daimler Truck, Rolls-Royce workers are now joining other UAW members in the “stand up movement” to fight against corporate greed. Currently, more than 4,000 UAW members at Volkswagen are pushing for their first contract in Chattanooga, Tennessee, after forming their union last April.

WHAT: UAW President Shawn Fain will provide an update on negotiations with Rolls-Royce on Facebook Live.

WHEN: Wednesday, February 26 at 10:00pm ET

WHERE: https://www.youtube.com/uaw

WHO: UAW President Shawn Fain, Rolls-Royce UAW Local 933 Bargaining Committee

*RSVP to https://uaw.org/press/questions/ to receive latest updates.

,

Lucid Workers Win Substantial Back Pay and Reinstatement in Dramatic Settlement

Workers organizing at the electric vehicle maker Lucid have won a settlement with a quarter-million dollars in back pay, the right to return to work, and a sweeping cease and desist order that stops the company from committing a long list of unfair labor practices.

The settlement, approved on Dec. 31 by the National Labor Relations Board, is a Formal Board Settlement. Formal settlements are typically reserved for companies committing serious labor law violations. The Lucid settlement stems from unfair labor practice charges filed by the UAW for the 2023 firing of three workers organizing with the union. Those firings and other anti-union efforts by Lucid were found to be so extreme that the NLRB sought and obtained a rare 10(j) injunction against the company this September. 

“This settlement shows a better way forward for Lucid and companies like it,” said Lucid worker Amie Hansen, who received $120,000 in back pay in the settlement and the right to return permanently to her job. “Instead of trying to block our right to organize, Lucid should have been working with us all along as we’ve struggled to get this company off the ground. Respect for the voice of workers is critical to the long-term success of this company.”

The settlement ensures that Lucid workers will have the right to make their voices heard. In the settlement, Lucid accepts the Board’s order that it must cease and desist committing a list of nine unfair labor practices including:  

  • Firing or threatening employees for engaging in protected organizing activities 
  • Surveilling employees to discover if they’re engaged in organizing 
  • Confiscating union literature from non-work areas 


Lucid also must take positive steps to make whole three fired workers with back pay, damages and interest payments totaling $258,000. In addition, within 14 days of the Dec. 31 order, the company must distribute a video about the settlement to workers at Lucid’s two facilities in Casa Grande, Ariz. The video will be recorded in a company cafe area by a Board agent who will inform workers of the settlement and their rights to organize under U.S. law. The company will also post physical notices of the settlement and workers’ rights at its Casa Grande locations.

“Every autoworker in America can take heart from this settlement,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “Lucid is backed by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, the deepest pockets in the world. But Lucid workers stood up and won justice. They showed that no matter how big the challenge workers can win when they stand together and fight for a better life.”

“This is a significant victory for worker and climate justice,” said UAW Region 6 Director Mike Miller.  “We’re building the green economy to create a more sustainable future. But we will only have a truly sustainable future if we build our economy around protecting both the planet and workers’ right to organize for justice on the job without employer interference.” 

The UAW has aggressively supported the Lucid workers’ fight to form their union. When Lucid fired the workers for organizing in February 2023, the UAW filed multiple unfair labor practice charges with the NLRB. Acting on the union’s charges, the Board sought and won the 10(j) injunction, which ordered the company to offer interim reinstatement to the workers even before the settlement was approved on Dec. 31.

,

UAW Calls Out Missed Opportunities in Lansing Lame Duck, Applauds Key Working-Class Wins

LANSING — Today, the UAW applauds key legislative victories passed this lame duck session in Lansing affecting thousands of working-class Michiganders. The UAW called upon legislators to fight for working class people, and they delivered key wins on wages, healthcare and retirement security, including:

  • 70% increase in unemployment for laid off workers from $362/week to $614/week and extending unemployment insurance from 20 weeks to 26 weeks.
  • Legislation to make healthcare more affordable and restore public sector workers’ rights to negotiate healthcare costs, including over 15,000 UAW members in the public sector.
  • Legislation reinstating pensions for some state workers for the first time in decades, an important step in winning back a benefit that all workers deserve.

These bills will change the lives of many working class people in Michigan. However, legislators left many priorities for working people on the table when some chose not to show up, not to lead, or not to fight.

“UAW members demanded that Lansing lawmakers pick a side: the working-class or the corporate class,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “The Senate heard us and led a marathon session to see through important laws to boost the lives of thousands of working-class people.”

“But too much was left on the table thanks to the loyalty of some politicians to the looming corporate influences in Lansing. Our elected officials should remember that the mighty membership of the UAW does not shy away from letting those in power know when they aren’t doing their jobs well and are prepared to make their voices heard in the Capitol and the ballot box.”

The UAW now looks to Governor Gretchen Whitmer as the last step to signing into law pieces of an agenda centered on working-class Michiganders.

,

UAW Applauds Passage of Unemployment Insurance Reform as Michigan Legislature Takes First Step to Deliver on Working-Class Priorities

LANSING, MI — Yesterday, Michigan workers and the UAW celebrated a landmark victory as the state legislature approved a significant reform to the unemployment insurance system. Under the new legislation, weekly benefits will increase by 70%, rising from $362 to $614. This long-overdue change provides essential relief for workers and brings Michigan closer to aligning with the rest of the Great Lakes region.

“For too long, corporations and the wealthy have rigged the rules in their favor, leaving the working class behind,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “This reform is a positive shift toward leveling the playing field and ensuring that all workers have the support they need to navigate tough times. UAW members demanded action, and Michigan lawmakers stepped up and showed us whose side they’re on.”

Michigan’s unemployment system has been one of the most restrictive in the nation, leaving too many workers behind during times of economic hardship. Yesterday’s reform begins to address these inequities, but much more needs to be done to ensure all workers are treated fairly and with dignity.

This victory comes in the final days of Michigan’s Democratic trifecta, after intense advocacy from the UAW and labor allies who called on legislators to choose between standing with the working class or doing the bidding of corporations and big donors.

On December 4, the UAW laid out its policy positions for the session and urged legislators to pass bills taking action on living wages, health care, retirement with dignity, time with our families, fighting against corporate greed and corporate influence over our politics, and standing united against divide and conquer politics.

Following the passage of the unemployment insurance legislation, the UAW pushed lawmakers to keep the momentum going and pass additional measures that protect workers’ rights and strengthen communities across the state.

“Make no mistake—Michigan legislators still need to show up for the entire working class. There are still critical issues to address in this lame duck session, including workers’ compensation reform and restoring local control over labor standards. The UAW is watching the clock and will continue to hold our leaders accountable,” said Fain.

,

Statement from UAW President Shawn Fain on Stellantis-Samsung SDI Leasing Agreement and Carlos Tavares Resignation

We are excited to announce that Stellantis has finalized their employee leasing agreement at their joint venture battery plant with Samsung SDI. This means over 1,000 new jobs for UAW members in Kokomo, at a time when Stellantis is trying to cut its way out of its own mismanagement.

We won this leasing agreement in our 2023 contract negotiations, but under the failed leadership of Carlos Tavares, the company delayed making good on their commitment to workers in Kokomo. This pattern of going back on agreements and violating our contract was part of what led us to call for Tavares’s resignation.

We look forward to continuing this progress in honoring our contract with new Stellantis leadership that respects hardworking UAW members and is ready to keep its promise to America by investing in the people who build its products.

Tavares’ resignation is a major step in the right direction for a company that has been mismanaged and a workforce that has been mistreated for too long. Tavares is leaving behind a mess of painful layoffs and overpriced vehicles sitting on dealership lots. For weeks, thousands of UAW members at Stellantis have been calling for the company to fire Tavares due to his reckless mismanagement of the company. We are pleased to see the company responding to pressure and correcting course.

We will keep using all means available to hold Stellantis accountable and enforce the contract we won in 2023, including advancing strikeable grievances until Stellantis keeps its investment commitments to workers in Belvidere, Michigan, and beyond. We are looking forward to sitting down with the new CEO, backed up by thousands of UAW Stellantis members ready to take action, and discussing their plan to keep making world-class vehicles here in the United States.

,

A message from UAW International President Shawn Fain

UAW Family,

Last week, the American people decided to give Donald Trump another term as President of the United States. In a democracy, the four most important words are: The People Have Spoken.

And while it’s not the outcome our union advocated for, and it’s not the outcome a majority of our members voted for, our mission remains the same. We must raise the standard of living for our members and the entire working class through unity, solidarity, and working-class power. No matter who is in the White House.

Going into this election, we heard from our CAP Councils, polled our membership, and looked at the records of the two candidates, and the choice was clear. A majority of UAW members were supporting Biden, and then Harris, and a majority voted accordingly.

But for us, this was never about party or personality. As we have said consistently, both parties share blame for the one-sided class war that corporate America has waged on our union, and on working-class Americans for decades.
And we stand today where we stood last week.

We stand for bringing back American jobs.

We stand for renegotiating the broken USMCA trade deal.

We stand for taking on corporations that break their promises to American workers.

And we stand against the same things we’ve always stood against.

We will never support the destruction of the union movement.

We will never support efforts to divide and conquer the working class by nationality, race, and gender.

We will never support handouts to the ultra-wealthy or paying for it by cutting crucial federal investments.

We are unafraid to confront any politician who takes actions that harm the working class, our communities and our unions.

But the UAW will also work with any politician, regardless of party, who stands with the working class.

So, our mission now is to keep our issues on the table.

Our mission is to be loud and clear about where we stand.

Our mission is to stop plant closures and the mass exodus of jobs to low-wage, high-exploitation countries.

Our mission is to stop the race to the bottom as blue-collar jobs are liquidated in service of Wall Street paydays.

Our mission is to ensure a secure retirement, a living wage, adequate healthcare, and work-life balance for every one of our members, and every member of the working class.

Today, our members clock in to the same jobs they clocked into last week. You face the same threats – corporate greed, Wall Street predators, and a political system that ignores us. And we are driven by the same force, as outlined in our UAW Constitution generations ago: “the hope of the worker in advancing society toward the ultimate goal of social and economic justice.”

No matter how you voted, or how you’re feeling about the results, I encourage each and every one of you to get involved. Our UAW Constitution provides for a CAP rep at every plant, CAP Councils in every region, and implores every UAW member to participate in the political process.

And that process does not begin or end with the presidential election. Political action on every level of government, in every state, in every sector has an impact on every contract, every organizing drive, and every standard we win as a union. This union belongs to you, and we want you to get involved today.

 

In solidarity,
UAW President Shawn Fain
UAW Logo

UAW SOLIDARITY HOUSE

8000 East Jefferson Avenue
Detroit, Michigan 48214

(313) 926-5000

Union Plus Logo

Connect

Organize

Latest News

UNION PLUS – CAR RENTAL DISCOUNTS

UAW Statement on Mexico’s SINTTIA Organizing Drive at GM San Luis Potosí

People's Voice Winner Award
Webby Award Logo