The Detroit automakers and the United Automobile Workers continued to negotiate on Saturday, company representatives said, a day after the union expanded strikes in a way that could curtail the supply of spare parts for vehicles made by General Motors and Stellantis, which owns Jeep and Ram, the New York Times reported. U.A.W. members walked off the job at G.M. and Stellantis parts distribution centers on Friday but spared Ford, saying the company had done more to meet its demands. “Our pressure on Ford is starting to pay off,” the U.A.W. told members Saturday. While there was no indication a deal with Ford was imminent, an agreement with the company could put pressure on the other two to offer similar terms and lead to a speedy end to the strike, analysts said. “The moment you get a deal with Ford that includes much or all of what the U.A.W. is looking for, that puts a lot of pressure on G.M. and Stellantis,” said Michael Duff, a professor at the Saint Louis University School of Law and a former attorney for the National Labor Relations Board. “They are putting them in a position of having to argue why they’re different, why they can’t give anything more.” A short strike would be good news for the economy. About 200,000 people work in auto manufacturing, according to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, an industry group. That figure does not include jobs that are indirectly dependent on car making, which is several times higher.
