In recent weeks, one of the top news stories has been the auto workers’ strike in the United States, not because of its consequences but because of the sheer audacity of the United Auto Workers’ (UAW) demands.

Workers Ford, General Motors (GM), and Stellantis (formerly Chrysler) plants in the U.S., along with their union, are sticking to their guns. The demands, among other things such as job security against layoffs, the right to strike during the life of the contract to object to a plant being closed (a first in auto-worker contracts), and two years’ of salary and health benefits for laid off workers reportedly include a 40 per cent salary increases spread over the four years of the contract. READ MORE