The United Auto Workers union announced plans to expand strikes at General Motors, Ford and Stellantis to additional factories unless substantial progress was made on contract negotiations by Friday. The UAW, reporting around $825 million in its strike fund along with a fresh increase in worker strike pay, holds a substantial war chest with which to bankroll a longer holdout, according to analysts.
Here is a quick look at how the UAW balance sheet compares to that of the other major U.S. unions.
UAW: Ford, General Motors, Stellantis
The United Auto Workers union has more than 383,000 members according to the organization's latest LM-2 filing with the Labor Department. LM-2 documents are the annual financial reports for labor organizations.
According to the UAW's latest LM-2, the auto union had nearly $1.05 billion in net assets as of Dec. 31. The group paid roughly $45.6 million in strike benefits for the year. Strike benefits are disbursements associated with work stoppages and lockouts.
The strike that began last week currently involves 12,700 workers. The benefits for the ongoing strike were not included in the filing. A total strike could potentially entail 146,000 workers standing down, according to Reuters.
The United Auto Workers' representational activities payments, which cover negotiation and administration fees for collective bargaining agreements, totaled $102.65 million.
WAG Strike: Hollywood, New York Entertainment
Strikes shut down Hollywood in early May after movie and television show writers, actors and production workers started protesting for higher pay, better residual plans and protection against AI usage.
The Writers Guild of America has east and west divisions, headquartered in New York and Los Angeles.
Writers Guild East is smaller than its western counterpart, with only 6,801 members. It listed $17.4 million in net assets as of March 31, according to its June 30 LM-2 filing. WAG East did not pay any strike benefits, but reported $2.74 million in representational activities payments between April 1, 2022 and March 31.
Writers Guild West, centered in Hollywood, boasts 25,120 members. The Union reported $99.67 million in net assets as of March 31. WAG West did not record any strike benefits during the 12-month reporting period ended in March, but listed $50.55 million in representational activities payments.
The Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Arts (SAG-AFTRA) represents 261,395 actors, announcers, singers and media professionals nationwide. The union reported $27.77 million in net assets as of April 30. SAG-AFTRA paid $122 million in representational activities between May 2022 and April. The current strike was not recorded on the filing.
Workers United Strike: Starbucks
Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), represents 79,372 employees across apparel, textile, food service industries, including the Starbucks union.
The labor union had $161.51 million in net assets as of Dec. 31. Workers United paid out $30,806 in strike benefits in 2022 and recorded $3.57 million in representational activity fees.
The SEIU is an international labor union operating in the U.S. and Canada. It had 1.82 million members at the end of 2022 and about $372.85 million in net assets. The SEIU paid $55,131 in strike benefits and $129.05 million for representational activities last year.
Teamsters: UPS, But Not FedEx
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters says it represents 70% of UPS employees, more than 340,000 workers, according to the union. Named for the wagon drivers that once handled horse and mule teams, the organization now represents freight drivers, chauffeurs and warehouse workers in North America. Teamsters reported 1.25 million members at the beginning of the year with $461.29 million in net assets. The union paid out nearly $5.3 million in strike benefits and $47.52 million for representational activities.
The Teamsters and its UPS workers kicked off their contract fight for higher pay last summer. The union reached a deal in August, ending the threat of a strike. UPS rival FedEx sidesteps the Teamsters union by dividing its FedEx ground as a separate business unit, which hires drivers only as independent contractors.
FedEx' airfreight operation, FedEx Express employs nearly 6,000 pilots, represented by the Air Line Pilots Association. The APLA rejected a 30% pay hike proposal from the company at the end of July. No updated proposals have yet been announced.
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