(NewsNation) — Stellantis, the parent company of Jeep, Chrysler and Ram, says it has laid off 1,100 autoworkers in Warren, Michigan.
The United Auto Workers union says 2,000 people have been laid off, with more to come.
Michigan is known as car country, so when an auto company management starts laying people off, the workers can fear firings can become widespread across automakers.
As part of NewsNation’s “Going Broke: The Forgotten Americans” series, special correspondent Charlie LeDuff spoke with autoworkers in Michigan who say “everybody’s angry” and some are “scared to death.”
Autoworkers hold an important voice in politics. However, in the last 25 years, America has lost 260,000 auto worker jobs.
Machine worker Bob Murray told LeDuff his industry feels forgotten by politicians.
“I think our governor (Gretchen Whitmer) has left us hanging, for sure. I don’t think she cares about business in this state right here. She needs to,” said Murray, who has been a UAW member for 30 years.
In September of 2023, about 13,000 workers at three U.S. vehicle assembly plants went on strike, after the United Auto Workers union and Detroit’s Big Three automakers failed to reach an agreement on a new contract.
The United Auto Workers reached a tentative deal with General Motors, capping a whirlwind few days in which GM, Ford and Stellantis agreed to generous terms that would end the union’s six weeks of targeted strikes.