(Axios)
Joann Muller October 2, 2019
The UAW strike against GM is now in Week 3, and the longer it lasts, the worse Michigan's fragile economy becomes — with huge potential consequences for the 2020 presidential race.
Why it matters: Michigan, which voted twice for Barack Obama then narrowly flipped to Donald Trump in 2016, will be a key battleground state in next year's election. A loss in Michigan would raise the stakes for Pennsylvania or Wisconsin. Meanwhile, other states with large auto-worker populations are watching.
"If the strikes goes on, the economic ripples will threaten Trump’s presidency," says Anderson Economic Group CEO Patrick Anderson, who has been studying the effect of local pocketbook issues on national elections since 2004.
Where it stands: The GM strike is now 17 days old, and the pain is starting to spread across Michigan — home to about half the 46,000 striking auto workers — and beyond.
Workers faced their first payday without a check last Friday, but $250 in weekly strike benefits kicked in this week. Employees at some supplier companies as well as GM plants in Canada and Mexico have been laid off due to parts shortages.GM is losing an estimated $25 million a day, and $113 million in profits to date.
Catch up fast: The strike is the first at GM since 2007, and the longest since 1998.
Unresolved issues include wage increases, health care contributions, job security and the use of lower-paid temporary workers.
The bottom line: Workers argue that they gave up a lot to help GM through bankruptcy a decade ago and haven't gotten their share of the company's record profits since.
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