United Auto Workers Members Oust President

Supporters wave signs during an address at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, on September 5, 2012 on the second day of the Democratic National Convention (DNC).Mladin Antonov | AFP | Getty ImagesDETROIT – United Auto Workers members have ousted their president in the union’s first direct election, ushering in a new era for the prominent organized labor group ahead of negotiations later this year with the Detroit automakers.The union’s new leader will be Shawn Fain, a member of the “UAW Members United” reform group and local leader for a Stellantis parts plant in Indiana. He came out ahead in a runoff election by hundreds of votes over incumbent Ray Curry, who was appointed president by union leaders in 2021.Fain, in a statement Saturday, thanked UAW members who voted in the election. He also hailed the results as a historic change in direction for the embattled union, which he says will take a “more aggressive approach” with its employers.“This election was not just a race between two candidates, it was a referendum on the direction of the UAW. For too long, the UAW has been controlled by leadership with a top-down, company union philosophy who have been unwilling to confront management, and as a result, we’ve seen nothing but concessions, corruption, and plant closures,” Fain said.Curry, who previously protested the narrow election results, said in a statement that Fain will be sworn in on Sunday and that he is “committed to ensuring th …