Wyoming, MI – On day 20 of their strike, workers waved “UAW on strike!” signs as they walked back and forth, October 5. Six groups of determined United Auto Workers of Local 167 stood outside and blocked entrances at the enormous General Motors (GM) plant in Wyoming, a working-class Michigan town. A total of 46,000 union strikers are out 24 hours a day, seven days a week, across the United States. GM is losing millions of dollars while negotiations with the UAW continue.

Every few minutes, men and women passing by in cars and pickup trucks honked and yelled out their windows in solidarity. One UAW picketer said, “People flash their lights at night, instead of honking, so as not to wake the neighbors.” At one point a group of 25 motorcyclists roared past at funeral speed, fists raised in the air.

This West Michigan GM plant makes lifters, cam phasers, and axles for light duty trucks. In days gone by it employed over 3000. Today there are 700 to 800 workers on three shifts.

“The members out walking the picket line are in high spirits,” said Scott Poole, a UAW member who works in the plant. “Members from other UAW locals are coming down to support us. A group of four UAW retirees from Flint were here to walk the line in solidarity.”

The big issues for union members on the picket lines are health care costs going up and the fact that most temporary workers are now past three years of employment. Temps make about half the pay of full-timers. Temporary workers now comprise 7% of the GM workforce.

Negotiations are ongoing, with pay increases, pay progression for temporary workers, and pensions reportedly being haggled over. With GM making record profits in four recent years – a net income of $27.5 billion – workers are expecting to do far better than the past two UAW contracts.

#WyomingM #WyomingMI #SpecialCoverage #PeoplesStruggles #AutoworkersFightBack #UnitedAutoWorkers #GeneralMotors #Strikes #2019UAWGMStrike

Wyoming, MI – Discrimination against a two-year-old girl with a disability brought close to 150 people to Rogers Plaza Town Center for “Walking with Claire” on January 27.

On a Sunday afternoon, the normally empty mall was filled with family, friends and disability rights activists wearing, “Walking with Claire” t-shirts. Some held signs reading, “Disabled lives matter!” and “We heart our community! Everybody belongs!”

The large crowd gathered to walk slowly behind Claire and her parents, Andrew Dykstra and Hiliary Goddard-Dykstra, to the far end of the mall. There everyone sat down on the floor together to rest, and make an important point.

In December, a Rogers Plaza employee ejected Claire, who is learning to walk with a walker, and with great effort. The agitated employee demanded Claire leave, along with her grandfather and a therapist who were assisting her in learning. The mall is upset that Claire sat down to rest on the floor. There is video footage of the confrontation.

“I have communicated with the owner and he is backing the manager’s decision,” said organizer Lily Cheng Shulting, with Disability A-TEAM. The owner is Stanley Spigel of Spigel Properties in San Antonio, Texas.

Lilly Cheng Shulting continued, “We would like to see some positive changes. We would like to see this mall reflect what our community is about. We are a community that is compassionate and kind, and we want to be able to love everyone, including people with disabilities, and this mall should reflect that.”

Surprisingly, the mural behind the sit-in by Claire’s supporters included a single quote, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”

#WyomingMI #disabilityRights