Pahrump dealership addresses impact of national UAW strike

The Pahrump Valley Auto Plaza won’t run out of vehicles manufactured by General Motors Company anytime soon, as the strike that sent over 49,000 General Motors workers from the factory floor to the picket lines in mid-September continues.

The Pahrump dealership that sells a variety of new vehicles from Chevrolet, Buick and GMC is well-stocked and ready to weather the storm of a strike, according to management at the location.

“For right now, for the foreseeable future, we have a very strong new vehicle inventory,” said Greg Mier, general manager at Pahrump Valley Auto Plaza. “One benefit we have here locally is we have multiple locations. We have locations in Las Vegas and Henderson as well.”

The Pahrump Valley Auto Plaza is part of the Hero Auto Group, which owns four dealerships in Southern Nevada: Fairway Chevrolet and Fairway Buick GMC on East Sahara Avenue in Las Vegas, Henderson Chevrolet and the Pahrump Valley Auto Plaza, according to the company’s website.

Hero Auto Group has been doing business in Southern Nevada since 1969, according to the company’s website. The group started selling GM vehicles on a 1.5-acre lot on East Charleston Boulevard in Las Vegas, later growing its empire to four dealerships.

“New inventory between all of our stores is really strong right now,” Mier said.

Mier said, “We don’t anticipate any real disruption for 30 days, at least. We can probably sustain longer than that. For the foreseeable future, in any case, there shouldn’t much of an impact.”

Mier is also confident that a deal will occur between the United Automobile Workers (UAW) union and GM to get workers back on the line. “We’re pretty confident in the GM team,” Mier said. “They’ve offered the UAW leadership a pretty substantial offers. They’ve made a commitment to work around the clock until there’s a resolution.”

GM issued a release on Sept. 14, prior to the strike’s beginning: “We continue to work hard on solutions to some very difficult challenges,” GM said on its website. “We are prepared to negotiate around the clock because there are thousands of GM families and their communities – and many thousands more at our dealerships and suppliers – counting on us for their livelihood. Our goal remains on building a strong future for our employees and our business.”

Talks between UAW and GM broke down in mid-September, resuming the first day of the strike on Sept. 16.

GM issued a statement when talks resumed on Sept. 16: “Negotiations have resumed. Our goal remains to reach an agreement that builds a stronger future for our employees and our business.”

This is the first nationwide strike by the UAW since 2007. That strike ended after two days. UAW and GM have been battling over several issues for workers at the bargaining table, including health care costs and wage increases and other points.

According to a report in Reuters, “GM said in a statement that its offer to the UAW during talks included more than $7 billion in new investments, 5,400 jobs — a majority of which would be new — pay increases, improved benefits and a contract-ratification bonus of $8,000.”

“We have negotiated in good faith and with a sense of urgency,” GM said in the Reuters report.

In the early days of the strike, GM stopped paying the striker’s health care payments. Health care payments for GM workers are now coming out of UAW’s strike fund.

Workers shut down 22 parts distribution warehouses and 33 manufacturing plants in nine states: Michigan, Ohio, New York, Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas, Missouri, Indiana and Kansas.

Contact reporter Jeffrey Meehan at jmeehan@pvtimes.com on Twitter @MeehanLv