Current:Home > BackHow much does an average UAW autoworker make—and how much do Big Three CEOs get paid?-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
How much does an average UAW autoworker make—and how much do Big Three CEOs get paid?
View Date:2024-12-23 19:18:23
When their existing labor contract expired at midnight Thursday, United Auto Workers began a strike against Detroit's Big Three automakers after being unable to navigate a major speed bump in what have been contentious negotiations: pay.
Ford, General Motors and Stellantis (formerly Fiat Chrysler) have spent weeks in talks with the UAW, mulling over details of a new labor contract that also has major implications for the U.S. automotive industry. UAW President Shawn Fain said members deserve hefty pay raises, emphasizing that the auto companies have brought in billions of dollars in profit and boosted CEO pay in recent years.
What is the average U.S. autoworker's wage?
In general, factory workers are not salaried, but receive an hourly wage. On average, U.S. autoworkers on manufacturing production lines earned about $28 an hour in August, up $1 from the previous year, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Individual auto workers' pay varies depending on their tenure at a car manufacturer. Under the industry's tiered wage system, more recent hires start at lower rates of pay than longer-tenured workers.
Top-tier workers — meaning anyone who joined the company in 2007 or earlier — make roughly $33 an hour on average, contract summaries for the Big Three show. Those hired after 2007 are part of the lower tier and earn up to $17 an hour based on a buildup of 6% annual raises under the last contract.
Unlike top-tier employees, lower-tier employees don't receive defined benefit pensions, and their health benefits are less generous. UAW members want the two-tiered pay system abolished, arguing that it reduces lower-tier coworkers to the equivalent of second-class citizens.
Adjusting for inflation, autoworkers have seen their average wages fall 19.3% since 2008, according to Adam Hersh, senior economist at the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute. That's because autoworker "concessions made following the 2008 auto industry crisis were never reinstated," Hersh said in a recent blog post, "including a suspension of cost-of-living adjustments."
How much money do the Big Three automaker CEOs make?
Ford CEO Jim Farley earned $21 million in total compensation last year, the Detroit News reported, while Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares made $24.8 million, according to the Detroit Free Press. GM CEO Mary Barras tallied nearly $29 million in 2022 pay, Automotive News reported.
Overall CEO pay at the Big Three companies rose 40% from 2013 to 2022, according to EPI.
Barras makes 362 times more than the typical GM worker, while Tavares makes 365 times more, according to company filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Farley at Ford makes 281 times more, filings show.
- In:
- United Auto Workers
Khristopher J. Brooks is a reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering business, consumer and financial stories that range from economic inequality and housing issues to bankruptcies and the business of sports.
TwitterveryGood! (2342)
Related
- What are the best financial advising companies? Help USA TODAY rank the top U.S. firms
- Verizon says network disruption is resolved; FCC investigating outage
- Two boys, ages 12 and 13, charged in assault on ex-NY Gov. David Paterson and his stepson
- A Michigan Senate candidate aims to achieve what no Republican has done in three decades
- Chris Evans Shares Thoughts on Starting a Family With Wife Alba Baptista
- Bachelor Nation's Clare Crawley Shares She Legally Married Ryan Dawkins One Year After Ceremony
- NFL’s Buccaneers relocating ahead of hurricane to practice for Sunday’s game at New Orleans
- Billie Eilish setlist: See the songs she's playing on her flashy Hit Me Hard and Soft tour
- Best fits for Corbin Burnes: 6 teams that could match up with Cy Young winner
- Supreme Court rejects Republican-led challenge to ease voter registration
Ranking
- Republican Gabe Evans ousts Democratic US Rep. Yadira Caraveo in Colorado
- Week 5 fantasy football rankings: PPR, half-PPR and standard leagues
- Aaron Rodgers injury update: Jets QB suffers low-ankle sprain vs. Vikings
- Guster, Avett Brothers and Florence Welch are helping bring alt-rock to the musical theater stage
- Federal judge denies request to block measure revoking Arkansas casino license
- Another aide to New York City mayor resigns amid federal probe
- Sister Wives' Janelle Brown Claims Ex Kody Hasn't Seen His Grandchildren in More Than 3 Years
- 'SNL' skewers vice presidential debate, mocks JD Vance and Tim Walz in cold open
Recommendation
-
Round 2 in the Trump-vs-Mexico matchup looks ominous for Mexico
-
Andrew Garfield Reveals Sex Scene With Florence Pugh Went “Further” Than Intended
-
Salmon swim freely in the Klamath River for 1st time in a century after dams removed
-
Mistrial declared again for sheriff accused of kicking shackled man in the groin
-
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a long record of promoting anti-vaccine views
-
How AP Top 25 voters ranked the latest poll with Alabama’s loss and other upsets
-
Connecticut Sun force winner-take-all Game 5 with win over Minnesota Lynx
-
NFL Week 5 injury report: Live updates for active, inactive players for Sunday's games