United Auto Workers Say Strike Against GM Begins Sunday Night

DETROIT, MI – Nearly 50,000 autoworkers are off the job Monday at dozens of General Motors plants. The United Auto Workers, which represents them, has called for a strike beginning at midnight, saying that talks with GM have broken down.

The decision to strike comes one day after UAW Vice President Terry Dittes told GM that the union would not agree to extend their contract while talks continued.

“We stood up for General Motors when they needed us most. Now we are standing together in unity and solidarity for our Members, their families and the communities where we work and live,” UAW Vice President Terry Dittes said in a statement.

The union says that there are five major issues:

• Fair Wages
• Affordable Healthcare
• Our Share of Profits
• Job Security
• A Defined Path to Permanent Seniority for Temps

Unless something changes, it will be the first auto strike in the United States since 2007 and the first broad strike since 1982.

General Motors, the largest U.S. automaker, says that they are not giving up hope for a settlement.

"We are prepared to negotiate around the clock because there are thousands of GM families and their communities – and many thousands more at our dealerships and suppliers – counting on us for their livelihood," they said in a statement.