Posts tagged Shawn Fain
The moment tensions erupted between UAW’s Fain, federal monitor
July 8, 2026 // The expletive-laden discussion from February 2024 — details of which have never before been reported — is newly relevant after the court-appointed monitor, Neil Barofsky, released his latest blistering report about the union last month. It described how Fain, who is up for reelection this fall, had retaliated against union Vice President Rich Boyer, improperly used his authority to benefit his fiancée and her sister, and destroyed evidence including text messages.
Federal monitor says UAW head Fain abused authority; Fain denies findings
June 29, 2026 // he federally appointed watchdog overseeing the United Auto Workers union found that its president, Shawn Fain, retaliated against a top officer and improperly used his authority, including in ways that would benefit his fiancée and her sister. New York attorney Neil Barofsky, the monitor overseeing UAW activities, said in a report released on Thursday that Fain retaliated against a union official, Rich Boyer, after Boyer pushed back against some of Fain’s actions.
GM lays off more than 1,000 workers, adds 50 robots at flagship Detroit plant: ‘We’re disgusted’
June 24, 2026 // The automaker insists the cobots are not replacements to human workers and are actually necessary at the Detroit-Hamtramck electric-truck plant to stay competitive while improving “safety and ergonomics” for the workers, according to Crain’s Detroit Business and a company spokesman.
With or Without UAW Momentum, Southern Autoworker Activists Determined to Fight On
June 22, 2026 // Still, despite the waning of organizing momentum, workers say that poor treatment has created ripe conditions for organizing. Ballooning health insurance costs have also been eating into Southern auto workers’ paychecks, even as coverage deteriorates. “Up until this year, our health care was free,” says Murphy. “Now we have to pay for it.
UAW finalizes candidate list for upcoming election. See who is running
June 18, 2026 // The United Auto Workers finalized its nominations for the highest seats in the union on Wednesday, June 17, with current Vice President Rich Boyer officially jumping into a six-person presidential race to unseat the incumbent, Shawn Fain. Boyer, who has been in an enduring feud with Fain, emerges as a prominent contender against the popular president. Delegates of the UAW spent Wednesday afternoon in the convention hall at Huntington Place in downtown Detroit nominating which candidates they would like to see take over the union's international executive board, which is a 14-member panel of leaders that oversees the operations of the nearly 400,000-member union. Nominations for officers (president, vice presidents and secretary-treasurer) were finalized on Wednesday evening.
Shawn Fain seeks reelection as UAW convention tackles major policy issues
June 15, 2026 // Key issues include: Increasing strike pay from $500 to $625 per week. Potentially reducing union dues from 2.5 hours of pay to 2 hours. Determining how aggressively to fund future organizing campaigns. Clarifying membership and retiree eligibility rules. Protecting the union’s direct election system. The convention comes as the UAW navigates the aftermath of a corruption scandal that sent two former presidents to prison and placed the union under federal oversight. Notably, court-appointed monitor Neil Barofsky has criticized Fain and other senior leaders over transparency and internal governance concerns, with another report expected soon.
UAW Reaches Tentative Deal to End Strike at Supplier to GM Trucks
June 11, 2026 // The UAW workers were pushing for wages closer to the $29 an hour they used to earn in 2008 before agreeing to a 50% wage reduction to keep the plant open during the economic recession. The plant’s top wage rate for regular production workers is about $22 an hour.
UAW goes on strike at key General Motors truck supplier plant
June 1, 2026 // Nearly 1,000 workers at a Michigan automotive supplier went on strike, stalling the production of key parts for General Motors’ midsize and full-size pickup trucks. Workers at the American Axle plant in Three Rivers, Mich., are at an impasse with the company over a new labor contract. Workers say their pay hasn’t recovered from 2008, when they agreed to slash wages in half to keep the plant running during dire economic times, despite high profit at American Axle in recent years on the strength of GM’s truck sales.
UAW forum generates heated exchanges between gubernatorial opponents
May 19, 2026 // Two of the top candidates to be Michigan's next governor, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson and former Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, repeatedly clashed Monday night over how they've raised money to support their political ambitions. The exchanges, which might preview the race ahead this fall, played out at a forum organized by the United Auto Workers inside a union hall in Dearborn. About 150 people were in the crowd for the event that featured Duggan, a former Democratic prosecutor and current independent candidate for Michigan's top office, and two Democratic contenders, Benson and Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson.
Monitor: Shawn Fain, staff unfairly blamed UAW treasurer over investments
May 15, 2026 // Reports of the mismanaged finances were leaked to the news media in 2025, prompting a request from U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Tipton, a few months later to explain, as news agencies had reported, how the union had missed out on approximately $80 million by failing to reinvest the strike fund. Mock had largely been blamed for the misstep as the top steward of union funds, but Mock has also been the target of retaliation schemes in the union, something the monitor has reported on in-depth before. This finger-pointing over the investment flub was retaliatory, too, the monitor concluded in his latest report issued on Thursday, April 30. According to the 82-page report, numbers were "exaggerated," and blame was placed unfairly