The United Auto Workers Strike and Building Worker Power for a Just Transition

By Tim Thomas, Sydney Ghazarian, Gaby Sarri-Tobar, and Ted Glick - Center for Biological Diversity, February 4, 2024

The climate emergency demands urgent action. Last year was the hottest on record: proof that the United States must abandon fossil fuels once and for all. But the pursuit of a fast transition to a clean future can’t come at the expense of communities who’ve been most burdened by the extractive fossil fuel economy. Just as Black, Brown, Indigenous and low-wealth communities are disproportionately harmed by fossil fuels, workers are facing injustice at the hands of profit-oriented, polluting corporations taking advantage of the rapid growth of electric vehicle manufacturing.

By putting profits first, CEOs and the auto industry are leaving working people behind.

That was on full display in September when the United Auto Workers, aka UAW, took on the Big Three auto companies — Ford, General Motors and Stellantis. In what became a notable confluence for both the labor and climate justice movements, collective worker action and solidarity from climate and other groups helped turn the tide against an unjust transition from fossil fuels to EVs. Bold strike tactics brought industry to the table and delivered contracts with higher wages, union job security, and many other critical provisions for the millions of workers on the frontlines of the transition from fossil fuels.

On this call, we heard from organizers who helped lead this campaign and learn about how the fight for worker justice is key to building a just, renewable and livable future for all.

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are not the official position of the IWW (or even the IWW’s EUC) and do not necessarily represent the views of anyone but the author.