UAW president Shawn Fain slams free trade policies, supports tariffs, during speech given in Detroit
Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers, took to social media Thursday to give a policy speech explaining that the union agrees with President Trump on some issues, but disagrees on others.
The speech, given from the UAW Solidarity House in Detroit, was called "Our Economy, Our Country, Our Union." His presentation was provided via livestream on social media.
"There's a lot of uncertainty over what this moment holds," he said, referring to the current political environment.
Fain said the UAW stands for the rights of the working class, whether they are employed in the automotive industry, in aerospace technology, or in higher education. With that perspective, he said union leadership is free to address specific political issues and debates as to how they affect working people.
That approach, he admitted, has led to frustration in political circles and from both liberal and conservative corners. His message was that neither political party nor the current administration has taken policies that completely agree with what the union would prefer.
"We aren't Democrats. We're not Republicans. We're trade unionists," he said. "If we were running the show, it would look a lot different."
Much of his presentation focused on the impact of what he repeatedly referred to as the "free trade disaster" of the past three decades.
The North American Free Trade Agreement, known as NAFTA, was signed by Canada, Mexico and the United States in 1992. The intention was to reduce tariffs and facilitate trade among the three nations. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, known as USMCA, took effect in 2020. That contract builds upon and updates NAFTA, and is scheduled for review in 2026.
The overall impact, Fain claimed, has been devastating for workers in the United States, with plants closing and jobs lost, even when compared to the workforce numbers of just 10 years ago.
"Free trade has been the most harmful government policy of my entire work life," he said. "We have to end this free trade disaster, and we don't care if it's a Democrat or Republican who ends it."
Fain said the union believes 50,000 autoworker jobs could be added very quickly in this country, based on a review of current operating levels, as compared to manufacturing capacity at plants currently run by Ford, General Motors, Stellantis and Volkswagen. That number doesn't include sites that are considered closed, such as Lordstown Assembly in Ohio.
"We could bring back tens of thousands of jobs in a matter of months," he insisted.
The auto tariffs that the Trump administration has been taking steps to implement are a step in turning the situation around for autoworkers in Detroit, Fain said.
Fain said, in the long run, there needs to be an updated labor and trade policy that provides minimum wages and labor protections across North America.
"It's the labor movement that will save the American dream, but our laws have to change to do that," he said.
