President Joe Biden joined the UAW’s strike demands when he was pressed at the White House on the eve of his trip to Detroit.
The president was asked point-blank whether he supported the union’s demands as its workers strike at auto plants across the country.
Biden referenced workers’ sacrifices during the Obama administration’s auto industry bailout — then came close to saying he supported his negotiating position without answering completely directly.
“I think the UAW gave up an incredible amount of money when the auto industry went under. Think of everything, from pensions onwards. And they saved the auto industry,” Biden told reporters Monday at an event at historically black colleges and universities.
“And I think now that the industry is roaring back, they need to get in on the benefit. And look at the significant increase in executive salaries and industry growth. They should benefit from it,” he continued.
“Yes, I support — I always support the UAW,” Biden said.
“Yes, I support — I always support the UAW,” President Joe Biden said when asked if he supports the United Auto Workers’ bargaining position
His comments came just minutes after White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden will “stand on the side of workers” when he visits a UAW picket line in Detroit — without saying whether he would commit to will adhere to their specific negotiating requirements.
Jean-Pierre repeatedly asked whether Biden supported the United Auto Worker’s position during negotiations over their extended strike against auto companies.
But she declined an immediate answer when asked if he supported the union’s call for a 32-hour workweek with 40 hours of pay, a 40 percent increase over time.
Biden heads to Detroit on Tuesday, where he will stand on the picket line during a strike that began on September 15 against three auto companies: Ford, General Motors and Stellantis.
UNION GUY: “As the industry comes roaring back, they need to join in the benefit,” President Biden said. That came after White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said “the president is a union man” but declined to say whether he supports the specific demands of striking UAW workers. He is visiting Detroit on Tuesday
“This is the president standing by the workers… It’s not confusing. What he’s saying, and we’ve been very clear about it, he’s standing firm. He stands with the workers,” Jean-Pierre said at the White House press conference on Monday.
She called him “the most union president in history.”
The White House would not provide details of Biden’s visit, but he is visiting a state where workers have been striking at the Ford assembly plant in Wayne, Michigan.
“The president is a unionist,” she said, calling him the “most unionist president of modern times.”
But when pressed for the details of the negotiations, Jean-Pierre said that “we’re not going to talk about what’s on the table.”
“From here I will not enter into negotiations,” Jean-Pierre said when pressed for specifics
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre (L) was hit with a series of questions about Biden’s trip to Michigan. She appeared at the White House on Monday with Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack
‘I will not enter into negotiations from here. This is for the parties to negotiate,” she said. She said the UAW “should have a record deal” to match the company’s profits.
She also brushed off a question about former presidents who have acted as mediators in resolving strikes, fearing that labor action could drag on and damage the economy.
She pushed back when asked whether Biden’s trip, announced late last week, had anything to do with former President Donald Trump’s decision to meet with striking workers in Michigan on Wednesday.
That event pits Trump against the Republican presidential debate taking place in Los Angeles. Trump will deliver a prime time speech from Michigan that will compete with the debate.
Biden’s own visit comes ahead of a trip to San Francisco.
“Absolutely not,” she said. “This is what the president wanted to do to stand with our workers.”
The unions voted to strike after talks with the companies failed.
Their demands include a wage increase of up to 40 percent, changes in contract length, a 32-hour work week with full pay for the current 40-hour week, along with changes to pension and health care plans.
The companies counteracted with a salary increase of 19.5 percent, compared to a previous offer of 17.5 percent.
“What drives members’ expectations are the profits of the Big Three,” UAW President Shawn Fain said this month.
Annual gross profits are up 34 percent at Ford and 50 percent at GM since 2019 and 19 percent at Stellantis between 2021 and 2022. NBC reported. The company was founded when Fiat Chrysler merged with Peugeot.
Jean-Pierre’s comment comes after Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller said his trip was “nothing more than a cheap shot as he finds himself between a rock and a political hard place.” He claimed that the “only reason Biden is going to Michigan on Tuesday is because President Trump announced he is going on Wednesday.”
White House guidelines on the trip state that “the President will join the picket line and stand in solidarity with the men and women of UAW as they fight for their fair share of the value they helped create.”
Biden’s tone was light when asked Monday afternoon if he had a message for auto companies.
“Stay under the speed limit,” he joked.