United Auto Workers calls for strike at 38 GM, STLA locations; progress in Ford talks
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News
The United Auto Workers said it has made significant progress in its talks with Ford (NYSE:F) as it called for strikes at 38 General Motor (NYSE:GM) and Stellantis (NYSE:STLA) locations.
"Weâve made some real progress at Ford,"Union President Shawn Fain said via video. But "we still have serious issues to work through." 
STLA and GM negotiations remain problematic, Fain said.
The union called for strikes at 38 U.S. locations starting at 12pm ET. Strikes at Ford's (F) Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne, Michigan, General Motors' (GM) Wentzville Assembly Plant in Missouri, and Stellantis' (STLA) Toledo Assembly Complex in Ohio continue.
Among the agreements made with Ford (F) are the reinstatement of a cost-of-living allowance, the elimination of a wage tier and the right to strike. 
Fain said GM and STLA have rejected job security and profit-sharing proposals, among others.
If Ford (F) were to work out a deal, the expectation is that GM would trail closely behind. 
F is up 3.4% on Friday, GM is up 0.5% and STLA rose 0.85%.
However, a potential plan by Stellantis (STLA) to close or sell up to 18 facilities in the U.S. could complicate its process. Bank of America analyst John Murphy said Stellantis (STLA) may look to the European Union to utilize excess capacity to replace U.S. unibody capacity and may leverage capacity in Mexico and Canada for body-on-frame trucks to avoid the tariff on light trucks.
The UAW also took action against a key Mercedes-Benz AG (OTCPK:MBGAF) supplier on Thursday, with about 190 workers with ZF Chassis walking out of their jobs in Alabama. Those negotiations are separate from the battle with the Detroit automakers. 
Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), Honda Motor Co (NYSE:HMC) and Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE:TM) are potential beneficiaries as the strike persists.

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