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Shawn Fain

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Shawn Fain
Fain in 2024
15th President of the United Automobile Workers
Assumed office
March 26, 2023
Preceded byRay Curry
Personal details
Born (1968-10-30) October 30, 1968 (age 55)
Kokomo, Indiana, US
Occupation
  • Labor leader
  • Electrician
Shawn Fain's voice
Fain speaking on the benefits of unionization
Recorded November 14, 2023

Shawn Fain (born 1968) is an American labor unionist who has served as president of the United Auto Workers (UAW) since March 2023. An electrician by trade, he worked at a Stellantis automotive parts plant in Kokomo, Indiana. He has been a UAW member for 29 years, and is a member of the reform caucus, Unite All Workers for Democracy (UAWD).[1][2][3][4] Fain was the first UAW president directly elected by the union's members, and was a central figure in the 2023 United Auto Workers strike.

In 2023, Fain ran for the presidency of the union against incumbent Ray Curry, leading a slate named UAW Members United that focused on opposing corruption, concessions, and tiered pay structures.[5] In the first election in which members of the union directly elected the president, Fain won the election by 477 votes[6] and took office in March.[7]

In office, he advocates a more aggressive negotiating style, more member participation, and for the union to actively support politicians who share the union's agenda.[2][3] Fain's relative labor militancy and bargaining style contributed to the UAW's decision to authorize the 2023 United Auto Workers strike.[8]

Early life

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Fain was born in Kokomo, Indiana, on October 30, 1968.[9][10][11] He is the grandson of two UAW GM retirees. His grandfather started at Chrysler in 1937, the year Chrysler workers joined the UAW after a sit-down strike.[4][12] His father served as the police chief of the Kokomo Police Department.[13] Fain is a graduate of Taylor High School.[14]

2023 United Auto Workers strike

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Main article: 2023 United Auto Workers strike

A few days after his election, Fain told the automakers that the UAW was "fed up with the status quo".[15] During 2023 contract renegotiations, Fain has advocated for an immediate wage increase of 20 percent for workers followed by yearly gradual increases for a total of 46 percent, which he argues would simply be a way to keep up with the enormous CEO wage increases of auto companies in recent decades. The UAW has since lowered the demanded increase to 36 percent.[16] Fain is also calling for the end of tiered wages and benefits, and the roll-back of concessions made by the UAW during the 2007–2008 financial crisis, including the reinstatement of cost-of-living adjustments and robust pensions.[17][18] Fain's hard line stance during contract renegotiations contributed to the union's decision to begin the 2023 United Auto Workers strike on September 15.[8] It is the first time in the UAW's 88-year history that the union has launched a simultaneous strike against the Big Three automakers.[19]

Fain has garnered significant attention for his unorthodox approach to organizing, with analyst Daniel Ives telling Reuters, "This is not your grandfather's UAW ... Fain is playing this like a chess player. He's leading 21st century negotiations for unions".[20] Fain has embraced social media platforms during the negotiations, publishing short form documentary style videos.[20]

In a profile in The New York Times of October 5, 2023, he stated: "Billionaires in my opinion don't have a right to exist." He is also attributed with: "There's a billionaire class, and there's the rest of us."[9]

He appears in frequent Facebook Lives where he directly addresses UAW members, quoting from the Bible and Malcolm X.[20][21] In a livestream from early August 2023, Fain can be seen throwing an offer from automaker Stellantis into a waste basket, stating: "That's where it belongs – in the trash – because that's what it is".[22][23] In September 2023, he said "The September strikes are so far proving effective, and should give employers second thoughts."[24]

2023 mass auto organizing drive

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At the end of the 2023 United Auto Workers strike, Fain pledged to unionize more automotive companies, saying, "When we return to the bargaining table in 2028 it won't just be with the Big Three, but with the Big Five or Big Six."[25] On December 7, 2023, the UAW announced that autoworkers at the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, had begun a unionization effort, with over 1,000 members signing union cards.[26]

References

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  1. ^ Boudette, Neal (March 25, 2023). "President Is Ousted in United Auto Workers Election". The New York Times.
  2. ^ a b Wayland, Michael (March 25, 2023). "Historic UAW Election Picks Reform Leader Who Vows More Aggressive Approach to Auto Negotiations". CNBC. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Gonyea, Don (April 7, 2023). "Newly Elected United Auto Workers Leader Strikes Militant Tone Ahead of Contract Talks". NPR. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  4. ^ a b "UAW President Shawn Fain". UAW. August 24, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
  5. ^ Boudette, Neal E. (December 2, 2022). "United Auto Workers Appear to Rebuke Leaders in First Vote by Members". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 2, 2022. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  6. ^ "2023 UAW Officers Runoff Results" (PDF).
  7. ^ Boudette, Neal E. (March 27, 2023). "United Auto Workers Usher In New Era of Leadership". The New York Times. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Everything You Need to Know About the Potential UAW Strike". NBC News. September 14, 2023. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Streitfeld, David (October 5, 2023). "New U.A.W. Chief Has a Nonnegotiable Demand: Eat the Rich". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
  10. ^ "UAW reaches deal with General Motors that ends strikes against Detroit automakers pending votes". AP News. October 30, 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2023. The deal UAW President Shawn Fain closed on his 55th birthday is modeled on the ones agreed to with crosstown rivals Ford and Jeep-maker Stellantis, and would give workers higher raises than they've received in years.
  11. ^ Sainato, Michael (September 26, 2023). "The UAW Leader Fighting to Defend Autoworkers from 'Corporate Greed'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved October 10, 2023.
  12. ^ "UAW Locals Map – Mapping American Social Movements". depts.washington.edu. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
  13. ^ Krisher, Tom (March 26, 2023). "Kokomo Native Wins Close Race to lead United Auto Workers Union". Kokomo Tribune. Kokomo, Indiana. Associated Press. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  14. ^ "Fain-Harrison". The Kokomo Tribune. Kokomo, Indiana. October 20, 1991. p. 12.
  15. ^ White, Joseph; Shepardson, David; White, Joseph (March 27, 2023). "New UAW Leader Tells Automakers: 'Our Membership Is Fed Up'". Reuters. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  16. ^ "How Much Do UAW Workers Make? What to Know About Today's Strikes". The Washington Post. September 15, 2023. Archived from the original on September 15, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2023.
  17. ^ Kay, Danielle (September 15, 2023). "The UAW Launches a Historic Strike Against All Big 3 Automakers". NPR. Archived from the original on September 15, 2023.
  18. ^ Vlasic, Bill (December 3, 2008). "U.A.W. Makes Concessions to Help Automakers". The New York Times. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  19. ^ "Workers Strike at All 3 Detroit Automakers, a New Tactic to Squeeze Companies for Better Pay". AP News. September 15, 2023. Retrieved September 18, 2023.
  20. ^ a b c Flowers, Bianca (September 9, 2023). "UAW Union Embraces Social Media as Labor Talks Toughen Ahead of Deadline". Reuters. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  21. ^ White, Joseph (September 14, 2023). "Auto Union Chief Shawn Fain Quotes Malcolm X, Shines on Facebook as Takes on Detroit Three". Reuters. Retrieved September 18, 2023.
  22. ^ Shepardson, David (August 9, 2023). "UAW Calls Stellantis Contract Offer 'Trash'". Reuters. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  23. ^ "Live Update | Live Update UAW President Shawn Fain Live Stream Update 8/8/23 from Detroit, MI | By UAW International Union | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved September 16, 2023.
  24. ^ "»Vi bruger en ny strategi«: Tusindvis af ansatte i usædvanlig strejke på tre store amerikanske bilfabrikker" (in Danish).
  25. ^ Bomey, Nathan (November 2, 2023). "UAW promises to deliver where it's failed before: the South". Axios. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  26. ^ Shepardson, David (December 7, 2023). "More than 1,000 VW workers in Tennessee sign union representation cards -UAW". Reuters. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
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