Autoworkers’ Possible Strike Against Big Three Concerns Biden, He Says

Union members gave leaders permission to strike if talks fail
Strike threatens to halt positive momentum on economy

Shawn Fain, center, walks with demonstrators during a UAW practice picket outside the Stellantis Mack Assembly Plant in Detroit, Michigan, on Aug. 23.Photographer: Jeff Kowalsky/Bloomberg

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By Akayla Gardner

August 25, 2023 at 8:33 PM UTC

Updated on

August 25, 2023 at 9:02 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

President Joe Biden said he was speaking to the United Auto Workers union, which is locked in contentious negotiations with three major automakers over a new contract, and expressed worries about a potential strike.

“I’ve been talking to the UAW. Obviously, I’m concerned,” Biden told reporters on Friday during his vacation near Lake Tahoe, speaking hours after the union said the rank and file workers at Detroit’s legacy automakers voted to authorize a strike if needed, a move intended to increase their leverage in talks.