United Auto Workers strikes spread to Chicago and Lansing as 7,000 more workers join the picket line

United Auto Workers are on strike across the nation, including here in the metro Atlanta area where UAW Local 686 holds a picket line in front of a Stellantis Chrysler parts distribution center in Morrow, Ga on Wednesday, September 27, 2023. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)

The United Auto Workers union says its two-week strike against Detroit automakers will spread to 7,000 more workers at a Ford plant in Chicago and a General Motors assembly factory near Lansing, Michigan.

Union President Shawn Fain told workers on a video appearance Friday that negotiations haven’t broken down but Ford and GM have refused to make meaningful progress. Jeep maker Stellantis was spared from the third round of strikes.

The GM plant in Delta Township, near Lansing, makes large crossover SUVs such as the Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave. A nearby metal parts stamping plant will remain open, Fain said.