Three Rivers auto workers begin strike, demand fair compensation for labor

Beginning at 12:01 a.m. Monday morning, workers at American Axle & Manufacturing in Three Rivers went on strike, with union members seeking higher wages, improved benefits and greater job security as contract negotiations continue.

Workers represented by United Auto Workers Local 2093 began picketing after a new labor agreement was not reached before the expiration of the previous contract. Union leaders say workers plan to remain on strike until a deal is reached.

“With inflation, cost of living, you know, my members want a living wage, and my members want benefits that are affordable and that they have access to, and I think they have every right to have every one of those benefits,” UAW Local 2093 Vice President Joe Taylor told Watershed Voice. “They want job security, they want to retire with dignity, and they’re some of the hardest working people that I know.”

Members of UAW Local 2093 work at American Axle & Manufacturing, also known locally as Dauch Corporation, which supplies axles for General Motors pickup trucks.

The strike follows months of contract negotiations between union representatives and the company. Earlier in May, workers voted 98% in favor of authorizing a strike if an agreement could not be reached before the contract deadline.

In a statement announcing the strike authorization vote, the union said American Axle, a Tier 1 supplier to General Motors, generated $8.4 billion in profits over the last decade. The union also said CEO David Dauch received $111 million in compensation during that period, while the company’s top five executives received nearly $231 million combined.

Union leaders argue workers have yet to recover concessions made during the company’s financial struggles in 2008. According to the union, some workers saw wages reduced from $29 an hour to as low as $14.50 during negotiations that year in an effort to keep the Three Rivers facility operating.

“Back in ‘08, they had their wages cut in half with the thought that when this company was doing great that they would get those back, and 18 years later their company’s making billions of dollars, and my membership’s still suffering, and you know they’re living paycheck to paycheck, and a company that’s made $8.4 billion,” Taylor said.

Taylor said workers believe the company’s financial performance in recent years warrants increased wages and stronger benefits.

“I know these people went from making $29 to $14.50 overnight. They had their benefits frozen. They had new hires starting at $10 an hour,” Taylor said. “They made the sacrifices to keep Three Rivers open. Those sacrifices were not made for the rest of their lives.”

According to union leaders, many workers at the facility currently earn around $22 an hour.

The last strike by Local 2093 occurred in May 2008 and lasted 89 days. Local 2093 leadership says workers will remain on strike until a deal is reached.

American Axle did not respond to a request for comment before publication.

Maxwell Knauer is a staff writer for Watershed Voice.