On Sept. 15, the United Auto Workers (UAW) launched a “Stand Up Strike,” against Detroit’s Big Three automakers — marking the first time in history that the union is striking against all three domestic auto giants.
The labor union, representing close to 150,000 workers in American vehicle manufacturing companies, has been actively involved in labor negotiations with the Big Three since July. Their demands include higher wages, a 32-hour work week, improved pension benefits, and the elimination of tiered compensation.
Local and national leaders, including Bernie Sanders and President Joe Biden , have made trips to Michigan during the ongoing strike in support of UAW workers and suppliers. Former president Donald Trump also visited Macomb County to speak at a non-union auto plant.
The current strike is far from the first one against the Big Three though, as UAW employees have been gathering to fight for better conditions for decades. Here’s a timeline of photos from 1936 through 1982 showcasing an array of 20th-century UAW strikes and prominent events in Detroit.
Dec. 31, 1936: Flint auto workers on strike at Flint Chevrolet Plant #2. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University March 17, 1937: Men gather outside the Dodge plant in Detroit during a sit-down strike. One man stands next to a picket sign that reads, “Welcome Sheriff, we are here to stay!” Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University March 17, 1937: Striking auto workers walk a picket line near the Chrysler plant on Jefferson Avenue in Detroit. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University June 5, 1937: U.A.W. vs. Ford Mass Meeting Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University June 5, 1937: Mass meeting at Baby Creek Park to protest Ford fight. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University June 7, 1937: In a one-day general strike called by U.A.W. in Lansing, a group of people gather in an unidentified city building, with signs for Police and Garbage departments in the background, and uniformed police officers standing against the back wall, one man and one woman wear hats with “UAW” on them and many people appear to be reading aloud from pamphlets. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Feb. 4, 1938: UAW labor unions hold a mass meeting at Detroit’s Cadillac Square. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University March 30, 1938: A group of men walk in the street, escorted to the Federal Screw Works plant in Detroit by uniformed police officers on foot and mounted, with houses in the background. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University March 31, 1938: Large group of people picket for UAW march in Detroit near City Hall. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University March 31, 1938: People march at the UAW picket line near Detroit’s City Hall. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University March 5, 1939: UAW officials Irvan Carey, Homer Martin, Frank Tucci and Lester Washburn. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Aug. 5, 1939: Officers George F. Addes, James F. Dewey, R.J. Thomas, and Walter P. Reuther with papers, signed by officers of GM ending tool and die strike. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Nov. 9, 1939: Chrysler strike conference among officials. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University April 3, 1941: Violence broke out among automobile workers during the strike against Ford Motor Company. In response to union activity, Ford fired eight workers at the Ford plant. As word spread, 50,000 employees stopped working and the first Ford strike began on April 10. Henry Ford, with some reluctance, eventually consented to allow a vote on the matter of unionization. The workers overwhelmingly supported the formation of a union, and the UAW drafted an agreement outlining the terms of engagement between the workers and the company. However, Ford initially refused to sign this agreement. It was only when Mrs. Ford intervened that a resolution was reached. Frustrated by the ongoing conflict and turmoil, she insisted that her husband sign the agreement and threatened to leave him if he didn’t. Ford realized that his stubbornness would cost him a lot more than money, so Ford and the workers signed the agreement and the triumphant Ford employees returned to work. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University April 3, 1941: Violent scene of UAW members attacking a man trying to cross a picket line at Ford Motor Company in Dearborn. This photograph taken by Detroit News photographer Milton Brooks won the first Pulitzer Prize for photography in 1942. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University April 11, 1941: Strike ends! A man stands on top of an automobile and speaks through loudspeakers as a group of men stand on the ground near the car, some wearing UAW hats. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Nov. 4, 1941: Members of American Mothers picket at Masonic Temple. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Oct. 24, 1945: UAW members line up to vote on whether to strike General Motors. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Nov. 21, 1945: A group of men run from the Chevrolet Gear and Axle plant in Detroit as the UAW-CIO strike against General Motors is launched. The strikers walked, ran, and leaped as they left to begin the walkout, which affected about 100,000 workers in Michigan. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Dec. 10, 1945: In Detroit, striking UAW members, carrying windblown signs, hunch into their overcoats as they picket in front of the General Motors Building, which is decorated for Christmas. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University June 6, 1955: Mass meeting of UAW-CIO for Ford Motor Company. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University March 6, 1958: A night scene of the UAW Solidarity House in Detroit. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 13, 1958: Ford Motor Co. negotiators gather. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University April 27, 1961: Civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., stands at the podium and addresses a huge crowd of people at an unidentified stadium in Detroit. He was in the city to attend and speak at the 25th Anniversary Dinner of the UAW. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 6, 1967: Ford Motor Co. employees strike at Rouge Plant City Gate 4. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 6, 1967: UAW Local 600 employees strike at City Gate 4, Rouge Plant. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Oct. 29, 1969: Marc Stepp, dandidate for Common Council with UAW Vice-President William R. Keast. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University July 15, 1970:UAW President Leonard Woodcock shakes hands over a conference table with General Motors Vice-president Earl Bramblett. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 14, 1970: UAW member Ivory Jackson carries a sign during the 67-day strike against General Motors. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 16, 1970: Outside the Fleetwood plant during the strike against General Motors, UAW President Leonard Woodcock chats with a fellow picket as he walks a picket line along with other sign-carrying UAW members. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Oct. 12, 1970: A crowd of union members fills a large hall as they take a voice vote during the 1970 General Motors strike. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Oct. 23, 1970:
UAW President Leonard Woodcock pickets with a group of General Motors retirees carrying signs demanding coverage for prescription drugs. Several of the marchers wear buttons proclaiming “Senior Power.” Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Oct. 24, 1970: UAW President Leonard Woodcock stands at a podium addressing union delegates during the 1970 General Motors strike. He is asking them to vote to increase union dues to finance the strike. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 7, 1972: Shriver, R. Sargent: Candidate for United States Vice President with Douglas Fraser at UAW meeting. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 14, 1976: UAW member Patrick Murphy preparing strike posters to assure job security. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 15, 1976: UAW pickets on the Rouge River in boats attempting to block boats from reaching dock. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 15,1976: UAW pickets on the Rouge River in boats attempting to block boats from reaching dock. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Sept. 11, 1977: Local 600 UAW President Mike Rinaldi with Clement H. Kern, Marty King, and Rosa Parks. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University Aug. 7, 1981: UAW President Doug Fraser chats with pickets at air traffic controller strike, carrying signs at Detroit Metro Airport. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University July 12, 1982: Close headshot of Marc Stepp, United Auto Workers Vice President, Chrysler Corporation. Credit: Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University
Related
