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As the United Auto Workers union barrels toward a Sept. 15 labor strike against America’s Big Three automakers General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, a new Morning Consult survey finds that public opinion is largely on labor’s side despite its demands for an effective 46% pay increase and a shortened workweek, which industry critics have panned as unrealistic.
By a 2-to-1 margin, U.S. adults surveyed said they would support a Sept. 15 strike by the UAW if they are unable to reach an agreement with the Big Three.
The potential strike, which would go into effect at 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 14, may be generating lots of attention among industry watchers, but it’s not yet breaking through to Americans: Only 14% have heard “a lot” about it.
The same share (14%) of U.S. adults says they are very concerned about the strike, and slightly more (20%) believe it’s very likely to happen.
So while support for a strike is ample, it’s also clear that relatively few Americans are paying close attention to the talks, which may help explain why they’d back a strike even though not all of the union’s proposals are as popular as industry’s.
The UAW’s push to be compensated for a 40-hour work week that only included 32 hours of labor was the most divisive proposal among the public, with 46% in favor and 35% opposed. The other provision that drew at least 30% opposition was the union’s push for an effective 46% pay raise, though a 53% majority nonetheless supported it.
The union’s most popular demand is its push for an increase in retirement benefits.
Last week’s counteroffer from General Motors for a 10% immediate pay raise and a one-time payment meant to cover inflation costs were also backed by majorities of U.S. adults.
And though a slim majority of U.S. adults back a strike by the UAW, the survey also makes clear that labor wouldn’t be blameless if both sides are unable to reach an agreement.
While 68% of U.S. adults say they’d blame the Big Three automakers for a labor strike on Sept. 15, 56% would blame the UAW.
A slim majority said President Joe Biden, who said last week that he didn’t expect a strike to happen, would face some blame if it were to occur, while 62% would attribute the strike to the rise of automation in U.S. manufacturing.
Another 52% said the success of other unionized efforts in 2023 would factor into the occurrence of a labor strike by the UAW.
The strongest labor market in years has emboldened workers as they push for better wages and benefits, and Morning Consult trend data suggests they’re also growing more popular in the eyes of U.S. voters.
Almost 3 in 5 U.S. voters (58%) said they generally support labor unions, up from 51% last year, while only about 1 in 5 voters oppose unions. The uptick in backing is largely driven by Democratic voters, who measured a 10-percentage-point increase in support for unions.
The bottom line
While public opinion looks to generally be on the UAW’s side at this moment, it’s also clear that relatively few are paying attention, providing some room for automakers to shape public opinion by focusing on the UAW’s most aspirational demands.
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