UAW delegates vote to kill strike pay increase in closing hours of convention

In a dramatic reversal shortly before the close of the UAW’s 38th constitutional convention in Detroit, delegates on Thursday voted to undo a $100-per-week strike pay increase approved earlier.

That means the strike pay will go back to the $400 per week that had been in place at the start of the convention rather than the $500 per week delegates approved on Wednesday. However, a change that allows the strike pay accrual to start on the first day of a strike rather than the eighth day was allowed to stand.

Because the reversal of the strike pay increase came late on the last day of the four-day convention, numerous delegates had already left. Some took to social media to express their frustration with the late reversal.

One delegate who said he had originally voted in favor of the strike pay increase expressed concern about the potential impact on the union’s finances if the raise was allowed to stand. Officials pointed to the cost of the 2019 strike against General Motors as a reason to drop the raise, saying the GM strike would have cost an additional $29 million, adding to the $79 million price tag.

The drama, shortly before the convention adjourned, hours later than expected, appeared to highlight the extreme divisions at work in the union, with delegates who supported the change less than a day earlier cheering their win.

Even UAW President Ray Curry touted the pay increase in a union news release, saying it builds upon earlier changes implemented by the union’s International Executive Board “to strengthen the hand of workers at the bargaining table.”