The U.S. auto strike hinges on two competing visions at a time of industry upheaval. For the automakers, the challenge is the costly transition to electric vehicles, which is occurring without a clear sense of how fast consumer adoption will occur or how profitable the EVs will become.

The workers, for their part, say they bore concessions and hardships to help the Detroit automakers survive the Great Recession, and that restorative boosts in pay and benefits are long overdue.

The union is demanding a 36% rise in income and the elimination of two-tier pay and temporary worker status that at present keep new UAW members from being compensated as well as their longtime counterparts.

“There is a very different kind of spirit right now” in the UAW, Tod Rutherford, professor of geography and the environment, tells Christian Science Monitor. “People are just saying, ‘That’s enough. We’ve got to do something, make a stand.’”

Rutherford was also quoted in the Barron's article, “Detroit and Hollywood Are Just the Advance Guard. Expect More Strikes.”