Big 3 Contract Fight HQ
Autoworkers are in the fight of our lifetimes. For the first time in history, UAW members are striking all of the Big Three at once.
Don’t wait for your local to be called out to STAND UP in the fight to to end tiers, restore COLA, and secure jobs for our communities. Pledge to refuse VOLUNTARY overtime and support members on strike by joining a flying squadron!
Not sure where to start? Join the Members’ Update every other Tuesday to hear from other Big Three members organizing for a strong contract and share how it’s going in your plant.
KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST ISSUE OF MEMBERS’ VOICE
Each week of the strike, we’re publishing a strike bulletin featuring stories of members Standing Up on the picket line and on the job. Click the link below to read the bulletin and share your story to be featured in the next issue!
PLEDGE TO REFUSE VOLUNTARY OVERTIME
The UAW is asking you to refuse voluntary overtime in order to pressure the Big Three and support the strike. Read our tips below for safely refusing voluntary overtime, and remember: there’s always strength in numbers!
Fill out the form below to pledge that you will refuse voluntary overtime in solidarity with members on strike, and request free leaflets to get your coworkers on board.
JOIN A FLYING SQUADRON
UAWD is reviving the old UAW tradition of “Flying Squadrons”. Flying Squadrons are groups of UAW members who are prepared to join fellow members on the picket line in order to reinforce and boost morale. You can learn more about the history of UAW Flying Squadrons here.
TAKE ACTION TOGETHER, BE READY TO STAND UP!
In the lead up to the contract expiration, members have been organizing group photos on Red Shirt Wednesdays, 10-Minute Meetings, and Practice Pickets. UAWD organizers have supported members who organized many of these actions, and we can help you too.
“To be effective as possible, it’s going to be important that members in locals that are not on strike keep organizing actions: red shirt days, practice pickets… Show the companies that you are ready to go at a moment’s notice.”
— Shawn Fain on the September 13 livestream
CONTRACT FIGHT FAQ
My local has not been called on to strike yet. What can I do to keep building pressure on the companies?
We may not all be on strike yet, but we are going to stay united in the fight for a strong Big Three contract. Join a UAWD Flying Squadron and build our strike by taking action with your coworkers:
- Make Red Shirt Wednesdays a Team Effort: Find point people from a few different areas who can remind nearby coworkers to wear red on the upcoming Wednesday. Choose a convenient location to take a picture outside, and designate someone to take the picture. Ask those who come to remind their coworkers next week, so you can grow the picture. UAWD can help you print flyers to get the word out about your Red Shirt Wednesday photo; email [email protected] to learn more.
- Hold 10-Minute Meetings: Get in the habit of holding very brief weekly meetings in your area that are easy for your coworkers to attend. Set a timer to make sure they are only ten minutes long. Stick to the agenda, and stop when the timer goes off! You can start by inviting just 3-5 coworkers, but the important thing is to grow the size of the meeting by asking each attendee to invite coworkers to attend next week. Read our Guide to 10-Minute Meetings for more tips.
- Turn Up the Heat with a Practice Picket: If you’ve built enough momentum and have a reliable team who can get members throughout your worksite in action, you’re ready to flex that power with a practice picket. Practice picketing is about showing the companies that we’re united and ready to strike. Read more in our Guide to Practice Picketing.
Why organize contract actions if my local isn't on strike?
“It is imperative that the companies see that EACH local is prepared to Stand Up and go out on strike on a moment’s notice, if called to do so by national UAW leadership.” —UAW’s “Stand Up Strike Frequently Asked Questions”
In order to maintain our leverage, we need to keep the companies on notice. We do this by maintaining the threat that any local is ready to go out if called upon. Contract actions like Red Shirt Wednesdays, practice pickets, rallies, and even holding 10-Minute Meetings on your breaks, remind management that we’re ready to STAND UP.
Want to organize a contract action? Get started here.
How can I support OTHER Big Three members who are on strike?
UAWD is reviving the old UAW tradition of “Flying Squadrons”. Flying Squadrons are groups of UAW members who are prepared to join fellow members on the picket line in order to reinforce and boost morale. You can learn more about the history of UAW Flying Squadrons here.
SIGN UP to join a Flying Squadron! We’ll follow up to sign you up for a shift to join members in the Big Three on the picket line. We encourage you to bring a group of your coworkers with you.
How can I get updates about member actions on the shop floor and the picket line?
Want to keep up with members in the Big Three as we STAND UP and take action, whether on the picket or shop floor? SIGN UP HERE to receive the UAWD Strike Bulletin in your email inbox. Pass it on!
How can I get updates about negotiations and the strike?
The UAW International can send you updates on negotiations and the strike strategy as it unfolds. SIGN UP HERE! You can also tune into regular live updates from Shawn Fain and other members of International leadership on Facebook or YouTube.
What is our strike strategy? What does "Stand Up Strike" mean?
Yesterday, President Fain announced that we will pursue a strategy of striking targeted plants. This strike can grow and change, depending on the state of negotiations. We are calling this the “Stand Up Strike” as locals will be called upon to “Stand Up” and join the strike if needed.
Now is the time for every UAW member to join in on the action. UAWD has three ways to get involved to support the strike.
- Solidarity actions. If you are a worker in the Big Three who is not on strike, you can organize an action with your coworkers, big or small. A UAWD organizer can help you plan a Red Shirt Wednesday Group Photo, shop floor meeting, or practice picket. Sign up here.
- Join the picket line. UAWD will be organizing flying squadrons of fellow UAW members, across all sectors, to join in solidarity on the picket line. Sign up here.
- Read and contribute to UAWD’s Weekly Strike Bulletin. UAWD is producing a weekly strike bulletin to share stories and strategies from the picket line! We welcome readers and also contributors with important stories and issues to cover. Sign up here.
Latest from UAWD
CONTRACT CAMPAIGN Updates
Chants for the Big 3 Stand Up Strike Picket Lines
With thousands of UAW members now on strike as part of the historic UAW Big 3 Stand Up Strike around the country, here are some chants and songs you can bring to the picket line near you! Feel free to share your own in the comments below. Download a printable version...
As Big 3 Contracts Expire, UAW Members Know the Stakes and are Ready to Strike
By the UAWD Communications Committee There is just one day left before the UAW’s contracts with the Big Three automakers expire and tensions are higher between the two parties than they have been in years. UAWD members across the country are doing everything we can to...
UAWD in Labor Notes: Big 3 Focus on Auto Parts Centers in Strike Prep
Lisa Xu (formerly Local 5118) writes for Labor Notes: [Bill] Bagwell, who was previously the chairman of Local 174 and is also an elected convention delegate, says he’s as excited as he’s ever been about the direction of the union. He was a member of the reform...
UAWD in the News: ‘The Cost of Doing Nothing Is Much Higher’: Big Three Auto Workers Prepare to Strike
Luis Feliz Leon writes for Labor Notes: Two days before their contract expires at midnight Thursday, the Auto Workers (UAW) are poised to strike the Big 3 automakers—General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis—to recoup concessions made over the past two decades, end tiers,...
UAWD in the News: Autoworkers may wage a historic strike against the Detroit 3
Marick Masters writes for the Michigan Advance: The UAW’s newly elected president, Shawn Fain, frequently denounces corporate greed and has proclaimed the union’s willingness to go on strike. In the past, the union has held strikes against one automaker at a time,...
UAWD in Labor Notes: How to Make Ten-Minute Meetings Happen
Lisa Xu writes for Labor Notes: Chris Budnick has been holding 10-minute meetings at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville to get his co-workers talking to each other about the Big 3 contracts. Like many activists, Budnick says he has long struggled to get his...
