Current President Joe Biden got off to a bit of a rocky start in his relationship with United Auto Workers (UAW) President Shawn Fain as the union began its strike against Ford, Stellantis, and General Motors last year, but ultimately, the two sides were able to find common ground. It wasn’t long before Biden was on the picket line alongside Fain, carrying on a tradition of Democratic politicians supporting unions, in general. Thus, it should come as no surprise that the UAW officially endorsed Biden’s replacement and current Vice President Kamala Harris as its pick for President, nor that the union continues to battle it out with her opponent.
The latest development in this ongoing saga comes as the UAW has announced that it has filed federal labor charges against both Donald Trump and Tesla founder/CEO Elon Musk over what it alleges are “illegal attempts to threaten and intimidate workers who stand up for themselves by engaging in protected concerted activity, such as strikes.” The UAW pointed to a recent conversation between the two on X, in which Trump told Musk, “I mean, I look at what you do. You walk in, you say, You want to quit? They go on strike, I won’t mention the name of the company, but they go on strike and you say, That’s OK, you’re all gone. You’re all gone. So, every one of you is gone.”
The UAW points out that under federal law, workers can’t be fired for going on strike, and it’s also illegal to threaten to fire striking workers under the National Labor Relations Act, hence why it’s taking legal action against Trump and Musk following this particular discussion.
Meanwhile, the UAW previously endorsed Biden’s re-election campaign earlier this year, while publicly panning his (and now Harris’) opponent in the Presidential race. Trump has also directed his fair share of barbs at Fain as well, with the two sides continuing to battle it out in the court of public opinion ahead of November’s election.
We’ll have more on the UAW soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for more Ford-UAW news, UAW news, and continuous Ford news coverage.
