A leadership election reveals the leftward shift at the United Auto Workers under president Shawn Fain. For a lesson in why labor unions have declined in America, take a look at the re-election challenge to UAW president Shawn Fain. While championing left-wing political causes, Mr. Fain has squandered worker dues.
The UAW is holding an election for executive offices with a Monday deadline for submitting member ballots. Mr. Fain won election in 2023 by fewer than 500 votes on a promise of reform, but his tenure has been marred by allegations of misconduct and financial mismanagement. In June the monitor, Neil Barofsky, alleged that Mr. Fain retaliated against union vice president Rich Boyer.
Mr. Fain denied wrongdoing and accused the monitor of waging a vendetta against him for his anti-Israel activism. While the UAW has struggled to unionize auto plants in the U.S. South, it has had success organizing on college campuses including the University of California, California State University, Columbia, Harvard, New York University, the University of Southern California and Penn State.
The election is a test of whether the UAW exists to help workers, or the interests of union bosses and the priorities of the university left.
Source: Wall Street Journal US Business · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing