UAW launches union campaigns at Tesla, 12 other automakers in the U.S.

The United Auto Workers union is launching an unprecedented campaign to organize 13 non-union automakers in the U.S. after securing record contracts with the Detroit automakers.

The union said Wednesday the drive will cover nearly 150,000 autoworkers across BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Lucid, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Rivian, Subaru, Tesla, Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo.

As part of the campaign workers are signing electronic cards in support of union efforts to potentially organize U.S. plants from those automakers.

It is not guaranteed that the union would push to organize every plant or automaker that participates in the campaign. Overall, workers would need to vote in support of UAW representation.

UAW President Shawn Fain has said the union’s next mission after ratifying record contracts with General Motors, Ford Motor and Stellantis was to expand its ranks. The contracts ratified by the “Big Three” Detroit automaker include at least 25% hourly pay raises, the reinstatement of cost-of-living adjustments and enhanced profit-sharing payments, among other benefits.

“To all the autoworkers out there working without the benefits of a union: Now it’s your turn,” Fain said in a video posted online.

Fain previously vowed to move beyond the “Big Three” and expand to the “Big Five or Big Six” by the time its 4½-year contracts with the Detroit automakers expire in April 2028.

Launching major organizing campaigns simultaneously breaks with tradition for the union. Typically, it would spend months, if not years, gaining support of workers inside factories to eventually vote on UAW representation.

But Fain has repeatedly rewritten the rules of engaging with automakers during his short time as UAW president — he negotiated deals with Ford, GM and…