Union workers who have been called to strike in the UAW strike against America’s “Big Three” automakers will receive up to $500 a week from the union’s strike fund.
This will also pertain to those who are laid off due to the ongoing strike.
UAW’s targeted strike strategy has helped the union preserve many of its resources in the strike fund.
However, Jenner Phillips, an attorney for McDonald Hopkins, said this approach could negatively impact workers.
"The risks, I will say, from a legal perspective, is there is always the possibility that the employer could use a lockout in facilities that are not striking,” Phillips said. “And it also, you know, there's always the risk of replacement workers, so the company could hire replacement workers to fill the void left by the striking workers."
Phillips said none of the employees from the about 600 auto-related manufacturing companies in Ohio would be eligible for strike pay if they were laid off since they are not a part of the union.
One week after the UAW strike began, the union’s president, Shawn Fain, announced dozens of additional factories that are being called to strike, including the Stellantis Mopar Cleveland Distribution Center in Streetsboro and the GM Cincinnati Parts Distribution Center in Westchester, Ohio.
