The vote has spawned a contest between the UAW’s scandal-scarred, Administrative Caucus, which has run the UAW for decades, and a loose alliance of reformers and critics, who believe it is time for a change to reinvigorate the union and rebuild some of influence it has lost.
During a forum organized by the monitor, supporters of the shift to direct election of officers said the tight control exerted by the Administrative Caucus has demoralized union members. They also believe it’s led to a string of substandard contracts, which undercut UAW members standard of living and fostered the corruption, badly damaging the union’s reputation.