It would be interesting to see which seasoning some of the UAW haters would like on their crow – salt, pepper, or both. During the recently concluded negotiations between the Big 3 automakers and the UAW one criticism from uninformed labor haters was that paying workers a fair wage would raise the price of automobiles. Rebuttal was easy as we pointed out that CEO pay had gone up 40%, auto prices were up 30%, Inflation up 18% all while autoworker wages had only increased 6% during the last four year agreement. Of course, facts did not have any impact on these unfounded arguments.
Now, CNN adds to the discussion with Here’s Why the Big Three Won’t Need To Raise Prices For These Labor Deals…
Part of the reason is that labor makes up only about 7% of the overall cost of building a car. Raw materials, like the steel and aluminum in the bodywork, the rubber in the tires and the dozens of computer chips that control so many aspects of a modern auto,have a much greater impact.
The new labor contracts between the United Auto Workers union and General Motors, Ford and Stellantis will make a big difference in the paychecks of 145,000 autoworkers. It will raise their pay at least 11% immediately, and likely more than 30% over the life of the contract. But it’s not going to make much difference in the prices you have to pay when buying your next car.
(graphic courtesy of grammarist.com)
