As much as Elon Musk is looking to push his overly vocal keyless vehicles onto the nation, the electric car just doesn’t seem to be starting. And there’s another harbinger of the sci-fi EV future going off rails, look no further than Detroit and its very retro kind of auto revolution: A union-led revival of middle class wages.
Over in Michigan, United Auto Workers employees are on the brink of victory after 44 days of striking for better wages and a slice of the big three’s massive profits from the past couple of years. It’s no secret that wages have stagnated since the 1970s, the last time American unions roared loudly, with the median wage barely budging when adjusted for inflation. And even though union membership is just 10% of all wage and salary workers nationwide, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the ones remaining in the blue-collar field are about to end a historic strike with a historically large wage increase. First Ford, then Stellantis and now General Motors have all agreed to the same deal with the UAW: a 4.5-year contract that introduces 25% general wage increases and cost of living adjustments that bring total pay raises up to 30%.
