Re: The Nation's Financial Condition
Posted: Thu Sep 21, 2023 10:11 pm
As I said before, codifying the 32 hour workweek was always a jon starter. An opening ask in a larger existential negotiation from their perspective.
UAW’s Demand for 32-Hour Workweek Takes Back Seat in Talks
Proposal captivated workers’ attention, but negotiations have focused on issues such as pay
Nora Eckert
As negotiations grind on between the United Auto Workers and Detroit’s automakers, one union demand that stoked worker enthusiasm has gotten little focus at the bargaining table: a 32-hour workweek for 40 hours of pay.
The proposal isn’t completely off the table. But union leaders initially floated the idea knowing it was a long shot, and did so to spark dialogue on improving work-life balance, people familiar with the strategy said. Meanwhile, wage increases, cost-of-living adjustments and higher pay for entry-level workers are taking priority in negotiations, as a limited strike of General Motors, and Jeep maker Stellantis continues.
UAW President Shawn Fain has threatened to call more factory walkouts Friday if substantial progress isn’t made in the talks, which union negotiators are conducting in parallel with each automaker. Three plants—one per company—have been down for nearly a week, with 12,700 workers on picket lines.
The 32-hour-workweek idea has energized UAW members, many of whom say they have been logging a lot of overtime in the past few years to meet strong vehicle demand, while their white-collar counterparts worked from home. On the picket lines and at rallies, some UAW members have held signs supporting the proposal.
The companies have said granting workers a paid personal day each week would swell their labor costs to unsustainable levels. Automakers would need to hire thousands more workers to cover gaps in their schedules, they said. One company pegged the additional cost at roughly $1.5 billion a year.
The union declined to comment.
A limited UAW strike of General Motors, Ford Motor and Jeep maker Stellantis started Sept. 15. Photo: Emily Elconin/Bloomberg News
Fain and his team have said the demand is a nod to the union’s roots as a progressive labor group that fought for improved quality of life. He has drawn inspiration from historical records in the union’s library of how past leaders have advocated for shortened weeks and improved working conditions, he said.
The four-day workweek idea popped up publicly in early August, when Fain floated it during a livestream address to workers. One viewer stated that workers shouldn’t have to clock more than 40 hours a week to make a decent wage. “I agree with you brother,” Fain responded. “I think we should push a 32-hour workweek.”
That demand formally made its way to the companies’ bargaining tables as talks heated up.
“The Union proposes that a workweek would be limited to eight hour work days between Monday through Friday,” read a UAW document delivered to the automakers and reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
“In addition, each employee would be afforded one fixed day per week (Monday-Friday) for a Personal Day Off. Employees would be compensated for eight hours of pay on their Personal Day Off,” the document said.
The union’s public calls for a four-day workweek come amid a broader debate about schedule flexibility in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, which scrambled the routines of Americans’ lives.
The idea of a four-day workweek specifically has gained ground, too, and some companies have even experimented with the schedule.
The proposal, if implemented, could lead to some workers having nearly 100 paid days off a year. At Ford, workers with more than 20 years of experience would get one paid personal day a week, 25 days of vacation, around 17 paid holidays and two so-called family days.
Fain acknowledged that the demand is provocative and has generated strong reactions outside of Detroit and in the media. “It’s been wild to watch the talking heads on television continue to have a meltdown over this discussion,” Fain said in one of his recent livestreams.
The union offered few specifics about how a shortened schedule would work, which Fain said was partly by design. “I didn’t give specifics on it because I didn’t want to get in the weeds on it,” Fain said of delivering the demand to the companies, in an August interview with The Wall Street Journal. The intent, he said, was to ensure workers can make a better wage on a shorter schedule, and clock overtime if they want, but not be mandated to do so.
Other aspects of the union’s demands, which Fain has called the most audacious in its history, appear to be stalling in talks, according to the latest offers released by the companies and union. These include the return of defined benefit pensions and of retiree medical benefits.
The two sides also are clashing on the issue of wages. The companies have offered what they call historic proposals for around 20% wage increases over four years plus lump-sum payments for signing bonuses and inflation protection. However, a large gap remains between those offers and the union’s initial 40% ask, which has recently fluctuated to the mid-30s range.
Some workers have expressed frustration with the public backlash to the demands for a shorter workweek, bristling at accusations that they are being lazy or asking for too much. Some have concerns about what the proposal could do for their future job security.
“You want to increase the pay but cut the hours,” said Demond Clayton, who works at Stellantis’ Jefferson North Assembly plant in Michigan. “It just opens the door for automation.”
Ryan Felton contributed to this article.
Write to Nora Eckert at [email protected]
UAW’s Demand for 32-Hour Workweek Takes Back Seat in Talks
Proposal captivated workers’ attention, but negotiations have focused on issues such as pay
Nora Eckert
As negotiations grind on between the United Auto Workers and Detroit’s automakers, one union demand that stoked worker enthusiasm has gotten little focus at the bargaining table: a 32-hour workweek for 40 hours of pay.
The proposal isn’t completely off the table. But union leaders initially floated the idea knowing it was a long shot, and did so to spark dialogue on improving work-life balance, people familiar with the strategy said. Meanwhile, wage increases, cost-of-living adjustments and higher pay for entry-level workers are taking priority in negotiations, as a limited strike of General Motors, and Jeep maker Stellantis continues.
UAW President Shawn Fain has threatened to call more factory walkouts Friday if substantial progress isn’t made in the talks, which union negotiators are conducting in parallel with each automaker. Three plants—one per company—have been down for nearly a week, with 12,700 workers on picket lines.
The 32-hour-workweek idea has energized UAW members, many of whom say they have been logging a lot of overtime in the past few years to meet strong vehicle demand, while their white-collar counterparts worked from home. On the picket lines and at rallies, some UAW members have held signs supporting the proposal.
The companies have said granting workers a paid personal day each week would swell their labor costs to unsustainable levels. Automakers would need to hire thousands more workers to cover gaps in their schedules, they said. One company pegged the additional cost at roughly $1.5 billion a year.
The union declined to comment.
A limited UAW strike of General Motors, Ford Motor and Jeep maker Stellantis started Sept. 15. Photo: Emily Elconin/Bloomberg News
Fain and his team have said the demand is a nod to the union’s roots as a progressive labor group that fought for improved quality of life. He has drawn inspiration from historical records in the union’s library of how past leaders have advocated for shortened weeks and improved working conditions, he said.
The four-day workweek idea popped up publicly in early August, when Fain floated it during a livestream address to workers. One viewer stated that workers shouldn’t have to clock more than 40 hours a week to make a decent wage. “I agree with you brother,” Fain responded. “I think we should push a 32-hour workweek.”
That demand formally made its way to the companies’ bargaining tables as talks heated up.
“The Union proposes that a workweek would be limited to eight hour work days between Monday through Friday,” read a UAW document delivered to the automakers and reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
“In addition, each employee would be afforded one fixed day per week (Monday-Friday) for a Personal Day Off. Employees would be compensated for eight hours of pay on their Personal Day Off,” the document said.
The union’s public calls for a four-day workweek come amid a broader debate about schedule flexibility in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, which scrambled the routines of Americans’ lives.
The idea of a four-day workweek specifically has gained ground, too, and some companies have even experimented with the schedule.
The proposal, if implemented, could lead to some workers having nearly 100 paid days off a year. At Ford, workers with more than 20 years of experience would get one paid personal day a week, 25 days of vacation, around 17 paid holidays and two so-called family days.
Fain acknowledged that the demand is provocative and has generated strong reactions outside of Detroit and in the media. “It’s been wild to watch the talking heads on television continue to have a meltdown over this discussion,” Fain said in one of his recent livestreams.
The union offered few specifics about how a shortened schedule would work, which Fain said was partly by design. “I didn’t give specifics on it because I didn’t want to get in the weeds on it,” Fain said of delivering the demand to the companies, in an August interview with The Wall Street Journal. The intent, he said, was to ensure workers can make a better wage on a shorter schedule, and clock overtime if they want, but not be mandated to do so.
Other aspects of the union’s demands, which Fain has called the most audacious in its history, appear to be stalling in talks, according to the latest offers released by the companies and union. These include the return of defined benefit pensions and of retiree medical benefits.
The two sides also are clashing on the issue of wages. The companies have offered what they call historic proposals for around 20% wage increases over four years plus lump-sum payments for signing bonuses and inflation protection. However, a large gap remains between those offers and the union’s initial 40% ask, which has recently fluctuated to the mid-30s range.
Some workers have expressed frustration with the public backlash to the demands for a shorter workweek, bristling at accusations that they are being lazy or asking for too much. Some have concerns about what the proposal could do for their future job security.
“You want to increase the pay but cut the hours,” said Demond Clayton, who works at Stellantis’ Jefferson North Assembly plant in Michigan. “It just opens the door for automation.”
Ryan Felton contributed to this article.
Write to Nora Eckert at [email protected]