Autoworkers at Tesla, BMW and more move to join UAW, union says
Thousands of employees at 13 non-union automakers -- including Tesla, Toyota, BMW and Nissan -- have moved to join the United Auto Workers, according to the union.
Autoworkers are signing union cards online at the UAW's website as part of simultaneous campaigns across the 13 automakers, the union said Wednesday, calling it an "unprecedented move."
"To all the autoworkers out there working without the benefits of a union: Now it's your turn," UAW President Shawn Fain said in a video statement.
The drive encompasses nearly 150,000 autoworkers across BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Lucid, Mazda, Mercedes, Nissan, Rivian, Subaru, Tesla, Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo, according to the union.
The push comes after UAW's weekslong labor dispute with the Big 3 U.S. automakers -- General Motors, Stellantis and Ford -- which brought tens of thousands of its union members to picket lines.
The dispute ended with similar labor deals across the Big 3, which called for a roughly 25% raise over four years, as well as significant improvements on pensions and the right to protest the closure of plants.
Addressing UAW members at an event in Illinois earlier this month, President Joe Biden described the deals as a model that he hoped would fuel a wave of unionization across the auto industry.
"I'm a little selfish," Biden said. "I want this type of agreement for all auto workers."
