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"We are very much telling this story that it has to be about independence or not independence. But there's all of this story that is in between, that people want independence, but not at any cost. There's a living standard that has to be maintained. There's trade that has to be maintained. There are living ways that have to be maintained."

If you get a salary increase this year that just about keeps pace with rising prices, your living standard is exactly the same, even though your paycheque is bigger.

UAW leadership is demanding living standard improvements, the elimination of the two-tiered employment system as well as a historic 40% wage increase.

But UAW President Shawn Fain says that it’s necessary to maintain a decent living standard for union workers.

Despite efforts to align income, employees in former East Germany still make less money and have a lower living standard.