"'A strike for the little guy': auto workers hope a deal will change the industry", 20 September 2019

...The United Auto Workers union walked out on General Motors last Sunday night...after contract negotiations broke down. Some 49,000 people are now taking industrial action...

...Jackson has worked for GM for 26 years...There is widespread support for the strikers, said Jackson. People know what happens at GM will set a benchmark for negotiations...If we win, everyone wins...,”...

...There is a sense of betrayal among...workers...GM received about $50bn from US taxpayers when it went bankrupt at the height of the last recession...GM workers suffered too as pay was frozen, more “temporary” workers were brought on at lower wages and facilities closed.

GM has pulled in over $25bn in profits over the last two years...“We gave back to the company. Now they have made a boatload of cash. It’s time to share the wealth.”

Relations between the two sides worsened this week when GM announced a surprise decision to shift the cost of workers’ healthcare payments to the union immediately...