Auto Strikes Lead to Decrease in U.S. Payrolls in October – Government Report by Reuters

By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON – Strikes by members of the United Auto Workers (UAW) union, particularly against major car manufacturers in Detroit, could lead to a reduction of at least 29,000 jobs from U.S. nonfarm payrolls in October, according to government data released on Friday.

The Labor Department’s monthly strike report indicated that 25,300 workers were idle at assembly plants owned by Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Chrysler’s parent company, Stellantis, during the payrolls count period.

Additionally, another 4,000 UAW members were on strike at Mack Trucks facilities in Florida, Maryland, and Pennsylvania in mid-October. Around 1,100 other UAW members also left their jobs at Blue Cross Blue Shield in Michigan during the same timeframe. It remains unclear if these workers in the health insurance sector were part of the wider strike action against the automakers.

Workers who are on strike and do not receive pay during the government’s employment survey period are classified as unemployed. The UAW initiated limited strikes on September 15, which expanded into October. These work stoppages have disrupted supply chains, leading the three automakers to furlough and lay off thousands of non-striking employees.

The impact of the strikes is expected to manifest as a decline in manufacturing employment, which had been experiencing moderate increases. The government will release its key employment report for October next Friday.

Based on a survey of economists, nonfarm payrolls are projected to have increased by 172,000 jobs last month, marking a significant decrease from the 336,000 jobs added in September, which represented the highest growth in eight months.

Despite this decline, job growth would still surpass the approximately 100,000 positions needed monthly to keep up with the growth of the working-age population, highlighting the resilience of the labor market amid substantial interest rate hikes aimed at cooling economic demand.

This week, Ford and the UAW reached a tentative agreement, while General Motors and the UAW were engaged in intense negotiations on Friday. Discussions with Stellantis are expected to resume shortly.