By Doug Cunningham

Hundreds of workers are expected in Cleveland, North Carolina today at a rally demanding reinstatement of five UAW local bargaining committee members fired by Freightliner. Allen Bradley is one of the workers fired over a year ago after staging a strike against concessions.

[Bradley]: “The workers are tired of being ran over. And we're tired of corporate unionism."

Freightliner is shutting down it’s operation today. Bradley says he's not sure if it's connected to the rally.

By Doug Cunningham

GM says it doesn’t want any part in settling the American Axle strike, despite the fact that the strike has cost GM $800 million and the lost production of 100,000 vehicles. The UAW strike was triggered by American Axle’s demand to slash wages in half and end future retiree pensions and health benefits.

By Doug Cunningham

The GM layoffs of roughly 3500 workers at four truck and SUV factories in the U.S. and Canada is the latest blow to autoworkers as the U.S. economy slips into recession. Thanks to UAW contracts, the workers will get supplemental income that together with unemployment benefits will equal about 80 percent of their pay. One shift each is being eliminated at each of the four factories – and that will cut production of GM trucks and SUV’s by about 50,000 this year.

By Doug Cunningham

American Axle’s corporate annual meeting is underway today as UAW strikers threatened with plant closures continue to walk the picket lines. GM is curtailing production at two more plants because it can’t get parts from American Axle. Roughly 48,000 GM workers have been affected by the strike. American Axle is trying to slash wages in half and abolish future retiree pensions and health care benefits. UAW Striker Chris Workman says this is a fight for good American jobs

[Workman]: "We are losing jobs at a fast rate and if we don't stop this country is going to go into a recession - and a continued recession - because the jobs are not going to be here to keep buying the products anymore.

By Doug Cunningham

American Axle’s corporate annual meeting is underway today as UAW strikers threatened with plant closures by the company continue to walk the picket lines. GM is curtailing production at two more auto plants because it can’t get parts from American Axle. Roughly 48,000 GM workers have been affected by the strike, that's half their work force. American Axle is trying to slash wages in half and abolish future retiree pensions and health care benefits. UAW striker, Chris Workman says this is a fight for good American jobs.

[Workman]: "We are losing jobs at a fast rate and if we don't stop, this country is going to go into a recession, and a continued recession, because the jobs are not going to be here to keep buying the products anymore.

By Doug Cunningham

The UAW and American Axle will soon be talking again in an effort to end the strike that started February 26th. The company has given the union some of the financial information the UAW says it needs to adequately bargain with the company. The strike was called over unfair labor practices for the company’s refusal to provide such information. American Axle is trying to force down wages and eliminate pensions and healthcare for future retirees. The strike is now threatening GM production of cars because eighty percent of American Axle’s business is supplying GM and the strike has cut off the supply of those parts.

By Doug Cunningham

If the UAW strike at American Axle doesn’t end soon, GM will be forced in April to shut down the first auto plant shuttered by the strike. GM has already stopped or slowed down production at 29 plants involved with making trucks, vans and SUV’s. UAW workers at American Axle are the victims of an assault by the company on their wages and benefits. Because the profitable American Axle wants to cut wages in half and slash benefits, as many as 40,000 jobs could be cut from U.S. payrolls in March according to economist Brian Bethune. Bethune says that would cut three tenths of a percent from U.S.

By Doug Cunningham

Tension is growing in the American Axle strike as dozens of GM plants remain closed by the UAW strike at the auto parts maker. Over the weekend two people were arrested for disorderly conduct on the picket lines in Detroit. Bill Alford is Vice-President of UAW Local 235. He says morale is high on the picket lines, but the company is at times taunting picketers.

[Alford]: “We've got, you know, people trying to come out here and picket in peace and they're being taunted and things like that, you know. And you know all my picketers are just tryin' to come out here - you know they're hard-workin' people. They work nine to five and they come out here and picket. And then you've got the company, you know, does tactics - things that they know will probably incite people and make them upset."

By Doug Cunningham

The UAW is supporting Boeing's decision to appeal the awarding of a $35 billion U.S. Air Force contracts to a French company. UAW President, Ron Gettelfinger says it’s a bad deal for U.S. taxpayers, sending money overseas and putting 40,000 U.S. jobs at risk.

By Jesse Russell

Communication continues at American Axle, but not negotiations. Reportedly, the United Autoworkers and the auto parts maker are no longer sitting down at the bargaining table and they are instead communicating by phone. Workers have been on strike since February 26th.

By Doug Cunningham

The power of the UAW strike against American Axle is being felt and the impact is growing every day as GM is forced to close plants. Eighty percent of American Axle’s business is supplying GM. Despite being profitable American Axle is demanding wages be cut in half and is out to eliminate pensions and health benefits for future retirees. Seven GM plants have already been closed by workers strike power. Five more face shutdown on Monday. Talks between the UAW and American Axle are underway again as workers resist deep concessions.

By Doug Cunningham

The UAW says workers striking American Axle are fighting to preserve good-paying manufacturing jobs. The union says the company continues to make unreasonable and unnecessary demands, attacking wages, pensions and health care benefits. UAW workers on the picket lines are fed up with those attacks.

[American Axle Strikers]: "They were saying that he has on the table $14 an hour. We make around $23.84 plus COLA now. And now, Corporate America just wants to keep all the money for themselves. When you hear about all the bonuses and stuff that they have, why take a wage cut if they’re still reportin’ so many profits? If they attack the people that make the cars, who will buy the cars? If the people that make 'em can’t afford to buy 'em, how do they expect the Wal-Marts, the K-Marts, the Super-Mart people to be able to buy the things that we make? …

By Doug Cunningham

A strike by the UAW at American Axle caused by the company attacking wages and benefits, is forcing the shutdown of GM’s Pontiac, Michigan Truck and Bus plant. The unfair labor practices strike is about defending the livelihoods of thirty-six hundred workers and their families. American Axle is profitable; it made $37 million last year, but it’s trying to cut wages in half and wipe out retiree health benefits and as well as defined benefit pensions for future retirees. Eighty percent of American Axle’s business is with GM. So if the strike is a long one, it could shut down GM production.

By Doug Cunningham

The UAW is on strike against American Axle and Manufacturing in Michigan and New York. Thirty-six hundred workers hit the picket lines on Tuesday. The company is attacking wages and benefits, demanding a $14 an hour pay cut and elimination of future retiree health care. It also wants to wipe out defined benefit pensions for active workers. The UAW says such deep sacrifices can’t be expected from workers without offering something substantial in return.

By Doug Cunningham

A worker fired by Freightliner, but fighting to get his job back was arrested while attending a meeting of his union local over the Presidents' Day weekend. Allen Bradley, one of the "Cleveland Five" UAW members fired after a one-day strike at Freightliner's North Carolina plant, was cited for trespassing. Bradley and the other four workers were on the bargaining committee of UAW Local 3520 when the local decided to reject a contract last year and stage a one-day strike. The one-day strike was not authorized by the UAW International, the workers were fired, and the UAW refused to represent the workers in their struggle to get their jobs back.

Where does one of the country's oldest and most storied unions come down as nearly half of the states vote on Super Tuesday? Jesse Russell takes a look.

While many unions on the national and international level have come down for one of the two Democratic candidates running for the Presidential nomination, nearly just as many have stayed silent, choosing instead to let their locals decide on their own who they support or if they support anyone at all. At a conference in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, United Autoworkers President, Ron Gettlefinger said his union would not be backing either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama as they battle for the nomination.

The heated battle between the United Auto Workers and Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut intensified on Friday when the UAW filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board. The UAW alleges that the casino forced employees to testify during recent hearings concerning a union election at the casino. According to the complaint a dealer said she did not testify for Foxwoods voluntarily. The union alleges that the casino interrogated employees prior to their testimonies. The UAW is seeking to represent the dealers at the casino.

Lede: UAW workers are on strike at a Volvo truck plant in Virginia to defend health and safety protections. Doug Cunningham has more on the story.

The UAW says despite the union’s willingness to work with Volvo on issues, the company is continuing to make unreasonable demands that would erode the wages and benefits that workers have fought for years to achieve and protect. And the UAW says health hand safety protections in the current contract are under attack. Workers say the strike is about basic health and safety protections – an unfair labor practice strike. More than 2400 workers walked off their jobs at the Dublin Volvo truck plant in southwest Virginia, closing the plant. Senator Barack Obama said over the weekend that he supports the striking UAW workers at Volvo. Obama says the UAW demands for health and safety and job security are things all workers should expect and UAW members deserve. Volvo claims it’s committed to the collective bargaining process and will bargain in good faith until an agreement is reached.

By Doug Cunningham

Ford and the UAW drove another nail into the coffin of good middle-class U.S. auto jobs Thursday with the announcement of a buyout offer going to all 54,000 UAW Ford workers. Ford is offering the one-time cash lump sums to get rid of well-paid autoworkers so they can be replaced with workers earning half the wages. Ford says it lost $2.7 billion in 2007. The Ford buyout offer comes on top of GM’s similar new buyouts this year – part of a strategic plan by the automakers to destroy good wages and benefits won through decades of struggle by the UAW rank and file. Similar buyouts were offered in 2007.

General Motors is expecting low auto sales this year and in anticipation 46,000 workers will be eligible for early retirement buyouts. If the trend continues, the company has not been shy about suggesting capacity could be cut resulting in more plant closures. The company is finalizing details with the United Auto Workers.