The return of trade unionism in the United States

For more than two weeks, nearly 50,000 General Motors workers affiliated with United Auto Workers (UAW) have been on strike in some 50 factories. With the flood of scandals falling on the White House, the news is passed over in silence. And yet. This is a symptom of the return of trade unionism to the American political and economic scene.

In American history, mobilizations at GM have often had a major impact nationally, as was the case with the Flint strike in 1936, the Detroit Treaty of 1945-1946, and the 1970 strike. GM's agreements have served as a framework for negotiations with other automakers, such as Ford and Fiat Chrysler, and their multiple suppliers.

This strike is in the context of the decline of unionism in the United States in recent decades. Today, only 10.5% of American workers are unionized, compared to more than 30% in the early 1960s. Encouraged by financial and economic deregulation, companies have moved their manufacturing activities to the southern United States and to the United States. countries where production costs are lower.

The balance of power between large American corporations and unionized workers has changed radically: since the early 1980s, unions have been on the downward slope. The new dynamic has contributed significantly to the stagnation of middle-class incomes and the exacerbation of inequality, and the 2008 economic crisis has only amplified them.

In 2007, GM was on the brink of bankruptcy, prompting the US government to adopt a $ 51 billion bailout. Workers were forced to accept major concessions to keep their jobs. Employees hired after 2007 (about one-third of the current workforce) receive an hourly wage of $ 17 with greatly reduced pensions and benefits, while those hired before 2007 earned $ 31 and were on full pension. The UAW has also agreed that the company hires part-time workers (7% of the current workforce), paid $ 15 an hour, with little or no benefits and virtually no job security.

Meanwhile, GM has been on the rise and has been making profits of more than $ 35 billion in the past three years. His father-in-chief Mary Barra, has pocketed $ 22 million in 2018. Yet the company's recent restructuring plan, which aims to save $ 1.1 billion, includes the closure of three plants, with layoffs that could affect thousands of workers. The CEO made it clear that the "final status" of these factories would depend on ongoing negotiations with the UAW.

In this first strike since 2007, GM workers say they want to recover what they lost. They demand inflation-adjusted pay (to return to standard of living before 2008), regularization of part-time employees, health insurance for all, improved benefits and a commitment by the company to increase the share of production in US soil (including the reopening of closed factories).

Favorable context

Not to mention a strong comeback of unionism, there has been for some time a growing mobilization on the part of workers from different sectors (teachers, restaurants, hotels) in the face of rising inequalities, stagnation or falling wages, the deterioration of working conditions and part-time work.

This mobilization benefits from a favorable economic situation: the unemployment rate is down and the growth is quite vigorous.

On the political front, the Democratic Party and most of the nomination contestants have given unconditional support to GM workers (most of whom are in Midwestern factories, a key region for the 2020 elections), and have the reduction of inequalities and the improvement of the working conditions of the central elements of their platforms. These positions are supported by a large part of the American electorate.

Trapped, President Trump has been little talkative since the start of the strike. Setting himself up as a labor champion in 2016, he promised to keep jobs in the United States and repatriate US companies. Despite tax breaks and deregulation, investments and relocations have not increased significantly. The manufacturing sector has 1.4 million fewer jobs than in December 2007 and, although the president favors economic nationalism, he is certainly not in favor of the redistribution of wealth or the re-emergence of unions. All of this could provide weapons to the Democrats.

The outcome of the strike at GM is unpredictable, but it nonetheless signals a reemergence of unionism and the political left that could redefine the American political landscape.