– The economy is not quite in balance – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries

Time’s up. At 06.00 on Friday morning the strike began. Ford, General Motors, Stellantis failed to agree with the United Auto Workers (UAW) union. 12,700 employees have gone on strike in the first round, an unusual sight in the modern USA. – Tonight, for the first time in history, we are striking at all three of the big ones at once. This is our defining moment, says UAW leader Shawn Fain. In the long run, all of the UAW’s 146,000 members may be withdrawn. – If we have to go all the way, then we will, says Fain. Unequal wage growth The strikers point to the fact that car manufacturers’ revenues have increased by 92 per cent between 2013 and 2022, to a total of 250 billion dollars. In the same period, the salaries of the top managers in the companies have increased by 40 per cent. But adjusted for inflation, the employees’ wages have fallen by almost 20 percent since 2008, if you adjust for inflation. The UAW is therefore now asking for a 40 percent wage increase, as well as a 32-hour work week. The strike has received broad support from other unions, including the truck drivers’ Teamsters. They have promised not to supply vehicles for the car manufacturers during the strike. – An important signal Chief economist at Sparebank1 Markets, Harald Magnus Andreassen, says it is unusual. – It is not often that there are large strikes in the USA, but there are strikes. But that is particularly unusual for the car industry, says Andreassen. Chief economist at Sparebank1 Markets, Harald Magnus Andreassen Photo: CF-WESENBERG He believes that the strike is unlikely to have major consequences for the US economy as a whole, nor the world economy. But this type of incident is confirmation that all is not as it should be in the world’s largest economy. – It is a clear signal that the economy is not quite in balance. There is very low unemployment in the United States; there is a labor shortage. This means that wage pressure is higher, and it often leads to strikes, explains Andreassen. In order to keep inflation low, the central bank in the USA has thus initiated a number of interest rate hikes. It also causes growth to be lower, says the chief economist.



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