What Could Workers Win in a New NAFTA?

[Omaha Steve]

Members of the independent union at the Saint Gobain factory in Mexico took part in a press conference about the organizing opportunities that labor law reforms have opened up. Photo: The Independent Union of Free and Democratic Workers of Saint Gobain Mexico

https://labornotes.org/2025/01/what-could-workers-win-new-nafta

January 24, 2025 / Natascha Elena Uhlmann

In his nine years in the auto industry, Ben Hinsey has seen a lot of misplaced blame. The threat of job cuts is always looming.

In fact, Hinsey transferred into his current job at the Stellantis Jeep factory in Toledo, Ohio, when his previous one at the Chrysler Toledo Machining Plant evaporated in a 2017 wave of layoffs. He now installs instrument panels and serves as a float, moving from job to job to cover absences.

Hundreds of thousands of auto jobs have disappeared from the U.S. since the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994 and its successor, the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), often known as NAFTA 2.0. Wages plummeted as bosses threatened to close plants and move work south of the border.

Many U.S. auto workers resent Mexican workers. “A lot of the spin on NAFTA is just like, ‘It screwed the U.S.,’” Hinsey said. “But not really; it screwed over the workers everywhere.”

President Trump recently announced he wants to renegotiate the USMCA now, well ahead of the required review in 2026.

FULL story at link above.