Nevada’s U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto on Saturday joined United Auto Workers members who went on strike Friday. The UAW nationally has gone on strike at various locations around the country. The GM parts and distribution center north of Reno was one of 38 locations where workers walked off the job.
Cortez Masto said she was there to support organized labor.
“UAW right now is fighting for reasonable contracts,” she told This Is Reno. “I know over the years UAW … retirees gave up benefits so that GM can stay afloat.”
About 60 employees went on strike Friday, shutting down the GM warehouse.
“What they’re asking is not unreasonable,” Cortez Masto said. “Now that GM is making record profits, the families that gave up so much [should] get to benefit from this. That’s what this is all about.”
Alan Carrillo, president of UAW Local 2162, said the strike is about fair wages and benefits. UAW members are calling on all labor movement members and community allies to join them on the picket line.
“We’re getting the short end of the stick,” Carrillo said. “We’re not just doing it for us, for our union. We’re doing it for the American worker.”
