COVID-19 Update 4/3/2020

My Brothers and Sisters,

Today brought more news of members and hard-working men and women stepping up to help our first line responders and their families and communities during these difficult days. We have members who have courageously volunteered their time, going through rigorous safety training at the GM Kokomo, Indiana, facility as they begin their work to make ventilators that will save lives. One of the first UAW workers to volunteer there said that she thought of her elderly mom as someone who might need this life-saving equipment.

We have members making masks and brothers and sisters all over this nation stepping up to help one another in so many ways. Just like we always do. The fortitude of this UAW family has seen us through hard times in the past, and it will see us through this. It is during these times that test us all, that we truly see the power of our Solidarity.

Sadly, with every one of these messages I write, there is always tragic news to deliver. Today, we lost a committee person at the FCA Warren Stamping Plant; a member who worked at AK Steel in Dearborn, Michigan; a brother from GT Technologies in Toledo, Ohio, and a sister who worked at the Department of Corrections in Detroit, Michigan.

On behalf of the President’s Office and the entire International Executive Board, our support and sympathies go out to their families and friends.

I will have more to report in the coming days of our continued work with companies in all sectors and local and federal agencies to keep our members and our communities safe. And I will share more stories of our members and frontline responders who are making tremendous sacrifices to help our nation during this terrible pandemic.

As always, I urge everyone to stay safe and continue to support one another and adhere to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV.

For more updates and questions that you may have about your worksite, visit UAW (https://uaw.org/coronavirus/).

Remember — we are all in this together.

In solidarity,

Rory L. Gamble