UAW launches first simultaneous strike against all three Detroit automakers Ford GM and Stellantis

The United Auto Workers, led by newly elected President Shawn Fain, launches targeted strikes at one assembly plant each at Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis, the first time in UAW history that workers strike all three major Detroit automakers simultaneously. The union calls it the "Stand Up Strike," beginning with walkouts at 146,000 workers' contracts expiring at midnight. Workers demand 40% wage increases, cost-of-living adjustments, and restoration of benefits cut during the 2009 bankruptcy restructuring. Biden endorses the workers' demands publicly, saying "record profits mean record contracts." White House senior advisers Gene Sperling and acting Labor Secretary Julie Su are dispatched to assist negotiations. Biden visits the picket line on September 26, becoming the first sitting US president to join a strike line.