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Welcome to Thursday as we say farewell to November. Today we talk about Shawn Fain’s return to the headlines as well as a letter that was signed by 4000 dealers and sent to the President. We also pay our respects to a legend.
He’s baaaaack! After a hard fought and successful effort in recent negotiations with Detroit’s Big 3, Shawn Fain and the UAW are putting on a full court press to unionize every other non-union automaker with a rather public initiative as workers at 13 non-union automakers will be announcing simultaneous campaigns
- Even the new EV entrants are being looped in as Tesla and Rivian are in the mix
- Fain said in a video: "To all the auto workers out there working without the benefits of a union, now it's your turn." The money is there. The time is right," he added. "You don’t have to worry about how you’re going to pay your rent or feed your family while the company makes billions. A better life is out there."
- Tesla CEO Elon Musk, said when asked about the union effort, "I disagree with the idea of unions." and continued that if Tesla is unionized, "it'll be because we deserve it and we failed in some way."
- Multiple other OEMs released statements pointing to their history of treating employees well and saying unions will make it more challenging to do so
Nearly 4,000 U.S. dealerships have collectively urged President Biden to reconsider aggressive EV targets, focusing on current challenges in consumer adoption and infrastructure readiness.
- The initiative, led by Mickey Anderson, CEO of Baxter Auto Group and a broad group of Dealers, representing various states and car brands, expressed concerns over the EPA proposal pushing EV sales to 60% by 2030 and 67% by 2032.
- The letter, sent on Tuesday begins with appropriate title “Voice of the Customer” and continues; "What I and other dealers identified early on is that the voice of the customer was really absent from this entire conversation, and there's no way that we'll have a scalable solution if we don't have consumer adoption."
- "Electric vehicle demand today is not keeping up with the large influx of BEVs arriving at our dealerships prompted by the current regulations. BEVs are stacking up on our lots."
We’re going to take a moment to pay our respects to a legend. Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett's right-hand man and a pivotal figure in building Berkshire Hathaway Inc., passed away at 99. Renowned for his simple yet profound advice on business and life, Munger's three key rules for success are timeless and instructive.
- First rule: Don't sell anything you wouldn't buy.
- Second rule: Don't work for anyone you don't respect and admire.
- Third rule: Only work with people you enjoy.
Join Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier every morning for the Automotive State of the Union podcast as they connect the dots across car dealerships, retail trends, emerging tech like AI, and cultural shifts—bringing clarity, speed, and people-first insight to automotive leaders navigating a rapidly changing industry.
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