190 Tuscaloosa Plant Workers Hit Picket Line As UAW Strike Spreads Beyond Detroit

Nearly 200 employees at a Tuscaloosa automotive plant took to the picket line Wednesday and went on strike to demand higher wages and better healthcare.

The workers at ZF Chassis Systems supply engine components to Mercedes Benz U.S. International and are members of the United Auto Workers union's Local 2083 chapter.

They walked off the job Wednesday even as around 13,000 other UAW simultaneously strike against Detroit's "Big Three" automakers - Ford, GM and Stellantis.

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That large-scale walkout is being called the UAW's Stand Up Strike, and union leadership warned more workers will picket beginning Friday if bargaining for better contracts does not yield better results soon.

The UAW says like many industries, automotive manufacturers are enjoying record-setting profits and that should translate to record-setting contracts for the workers upon whom they rely.

Of the Tuscaloosa strike, the UAW said members have voted down several proposed contracts and are holding out for a better deal from ZF.

"It’s not just Big Three UAW members fighting for justice. Autoworkers across the supply chain, across the country, are on the move," UAW said in a release announcing the strike. "In Alabama, workers at ZF who make parts for Mercedes have voted down the company’s latest contract offer and are holding out for a better deal."

As of Thursday, the plant in Tuscaloosa County was still operational.

For more on the worker's strike for better contracts, stay connected to the Tuscaloosa Thread.