UAW President Shawn Fain, sporting an “EAT THE RICH” T-shirt, passionately denounced auto executives for trying down on working-class auto staff in a speech on Facebook Live on Friday.

But first, Fain touted a significant win: He mentioned that GM had agreed to cowl battery staff in the identical contract as meeting line staff. That’s a big breakthrough in talks, one automobile firms had beforehand mentioned can be a non-starter.

The progress meant Fain didn’t announce an growth of the strike as he has in every of the earlier two weeks.

But the information that negotiations are shifting alongside didn’t include any leisure of the extreme, combative rhetoric that has turn into a trademark of Fain’s UAW presidency.

Here are six issues to find out about Fain’s fiery speech.

There’s no deal but

Fain touted substantial progress in talks with the Big Three automakers, together with on issues like wages and temp conversions, however he additionally made clear there was not but a tentative take care of any firm.

The Big Three and the union stay far aside on pensions and post-retirement healthcare, which the union needs restored and the businesses say are financially untenable.

The vegetation and warehouses which might be at present placing will stay on the picket line till a tentative settlement has been reached.

Fain is doubling down on class rhetoric …

Fain has beforehand described this strike as a conflict between the working class and the billionaire class, a framing he leaned laborious on all through his speech.

“I’ll tell it to you straight. The billionaires and company executives think U.S. autoworkers are just dumb,” he advised UAW members. “They think we don’t get it.”

“They look at me and they see some redneck from Indiana,” he added. “They look at you and see somebody they would never have over for dinner or let ride on their yacht or fly on their private jet.”

UAW members strike on the General Motors Lansing Delta Assembly Plant in Lansing, Mich., on Sept. 29, 2023. Fain is leaning laborious on class rhetoric as he fights with the Big Three automakers over a brand new contract.

Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

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Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

UAW members strike on the General Motors Lansing Delta Assembly Plant in Lansing, Mich., on Sept. 29, 2023. Fain is leaning laborious on class rhetoric as he fights with the Big Three automakers over a brand new contract.

Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

… and sticking along with his strike technique

Fain was additionally desirous to reassure UAW members that the union’s unprecedented strike technique is working. The union struck all three firms without delay, however began with only a handful of vegetation.

“They think they know us, but us autoworkers know better,” he mentioned. “We may be foul mouthed, but we’re strategic. We may get fired up, but we’re disciplined. And we may get rowdy. But we’re organized.”

The strike started with simply three meeting vegetation earlier than increasing to the elements distribution facilities of Stellantis and GM, and two extra meeting vegetation at Ford and GM.

The firms’ most worthwhile vegetation stay working for now. Fain mentioned that was very intentional, a technique that leaves the union with extra playing cards left to play. Striking at these vegetation is a “bazooka” the union can use later, he says.

“We’re not here to start a fight,” he mentioned. “We’re here to finish one.”

The union claimed a giant win from GM on battery vegetation

In a strike that is been haunted by historical past, the United Auto Workers simply landed a win that is all concerning the future.

During his speech, Fain mentioned General Motors had agreed to cowl future battery staff underneath the identical profitable contract as meeting plant workers.

“We’ve been told for months that this is impossible,” Fain mentioned. “The plan was to draw down the engine and transmission plants and permanently replace them with low-wage battery jobs. We had a different plan, and our plan is winning.”

President Biden addresses placing UAW members at a picket line outdoors a General Motors Service Parts Operations plant in Belleville, Mich., on Sept. 26, 2023. Biden attended a picket line final month in a rare present of help for placing staff.

Jim Watson/AFP through Getty Images

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President Biden addresses placing UAW members at a picket line outdoors a General Motors Service Parts Operations plant in Belleville, Mich., on Sept. 26, 2023. Biden attended a picket line final month in a rare present of help for placing staff.

Jim Watson/AFP through Getty Images

In truth, Fain mentioned he had been planning to announce a significant strike at a profitable GM plant in Arlington, Texas, however determined to not given this substantial and sudden concession from GM.

GM didn’t affirm the provide, issuing a quick assertion that may be summed up with its first three phrases: “Negotiations remain ongoing.”

The UAW’s battery demand was seen by many as unrealistic

Many of the union’s core calls for have been about clawing again concessions they made across the time of the monetary disaster, and bringing again the enviable pay and perks {that a} earlier technology of autoworkers loved.

Covering battery jobs is concerning the subsequent technology, because the auto business prepares for a future with much more batteries and rather a lot fewer engines. Battery vegetation thus far have usually supplied decrease pay and advantages in comparison with different autoworker jobs.

The union needed ensures about job safety and job high quality at these battery vegetation. Companies say they should preserve flexibility, and a big money cushion, to drag off that transition.

Directly negotiating the phrases of these battery plant jobs in these explicit UAW talks had been seen as a non-starter, partially as a result of a lot of these future vegetation are run as joint ventures with others as a substitute of instantly operated by GM. Auto firms argued that the vegetation wanted to unionize one after the other as they’re established, and negotiate their very own contracts.

It’s unclear if Ford and Stellantis will observe

Ford not too long ago mentioned battery vegetation have been the sticking level in that firm’s talks with the union.

“Keep in mind, these battery plants don’t exist yet,” Ford CEO Jim Farley mentioned final week. “They’re mostly joint ventures. They’ve not been organized by the UAW yet because the workers haven’t been hired and won’t be for many years to come.”

Ford execs additionally argued that overlaying battery staff underneath the identical settlement as different staff wouldn’t enable them to be aggressive throughout completely different areas within the U.S. Many future battery vegetation are being inbuilt famously anti-union areas within the South the place wages are usually decrease.

A Stellantis government, in an electronic mail to workers, mentioned he was “optimistic” that the negotiations have a “pathway” to an settlement. The assertion didn’t point out battery vegetation.