Worker strikes hit multiple industries

Roughly 10,000 employees at Deere and Co. plants across the country arrived for first shift on Thursday morning to protest and form picket lines. The United Auto Workers union rejected a contract offer from the farm equipment company on Wednesday, claiming 5 percent salary raises were too small. Employees complained of working too many hours without sufficient pay as they struggled to cope with rising costs from inflation.

What other strikes are going on? About 1,400 Kellogg workers are still on strike since walking out last week, but the company says the union’s claims of losing benefits and being forced to work mandatory overtime are false. Over 1,000 sanitation workers in Orange County, Calif., are prepared to go on strike unless contractors offer higher wages soon. The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees announced its 60,000 members will strike on Monday morning unless companies and producers change hours and pay rates. The IATSE has never had a large-scale strike in its 128-year history, but leaders said set crews, artists, animators, and designers work too many hours without enough break time for meals or time between shifts. Laborers are in a prime negotiating position because employers cannot fill their positions quickly while the national worker shortage continues.

Dig deeper: Listen to financial analyst David Bahnsen discuss listener questions about inflation on The World and Everything in It podcast.