President Biden to join UAW picket line as Big 3 strikes enter second week

President Joe Biden is set to join strike Auto Workers' Union members on the picket lines outside of a Ford Motor  (F) - Get Free Report assembly plant in Wayne, Michigan later Tuesday as the unprecedented walkout takes on a political dimension as it enters its second week.

Biden, a self-described "union guy", will speak to UAW members at around noon Eastern time alongside president Shawn Fain after throwing his support behind the strikes last week.  

“Tuesday, I’ll go to Michigan to join the picket line and stand in solidarity with the men and women of UAW as they fight for a fair share of the value they helped create,” Biden wrote on his official X account Monday. “It’s time for a win-win agreement that keeps American auto manufacturing thriving with well-paid UAW jobs.”

While the UAW has said its making "good progress" in talks with Ford, which also inked an agreement with the Canadian union Unifor last night, Fain continues to target it, as well as General Motors  (GM) - Get Free Report and Stallantis  (STLA) - Get Free Report, with coordinated industrial action. 

Around 12,700 workers have been picketing assembly sites around the Midwest, including Wayne, a GM facility in Wentzville, Missouri and a Jeep plant in Toledo, Ohio.

Fain has also targeted 38 different sites around 20 different states following a deadline he imposed on talks last Friday. 

Each of the Big Three have increased or improved their counter-offers to the UAW over that past two weeks, but remain far apart in terms of overall pay, with Fain demanding a 40% increase, spread over four and a half years, and the automakers offering increases of 20%.

"Our focus in not on politics but continues to be on bargaining in good faith wiht the UAW leadership to reach an agreement as quickly as possible that rewards our workforce and allows GM to succeed and thrive into the future," General Motors said statement ahead of Biden's visit to Michigan. 

"We have presented five, record economic proposals that address the areas our team members have said matter most, including wage increases and job security."

General Motors shares were marked 0.60% lower in pre-market trading to indicate an opening bell price of $32.86 each while Ford shares were down 0.48% to $12.52 each. Stellantis fell 0.52% in Milan trading.

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