Trump treats UAW President Shawn Fain as a threat to his agenda because Fain can move autoworker votes and openly campaigns against him. The United Auto Workers is the union representing U.S.
auto-factory workers, and Fain used that platform to back Trump's rivals. Trump said at the July 18, 2024 Republican convention that the UAW leader should be fired immediately while urging autoworkers to vote for him, according to Kentucky Lantern's account of the convention speech. That attack followed Fain's January 2024 endorsement of Joe Biden and Fain's charge that Trump was a scab who would side with companies.
Table of Contents
- What started the Trump-Fain feud?
- Why did the 2024 endorsement fight matter?
- Where do Trump and Fain agree on autos?
- Where did they break over union rights?
What started the Trump-Fain feud?
Fain endorsed Biden in January 2024 and called Trump a scab and a billionaire company man against autoworkers, Kentucky Lantern reports. Trump answered at the Republican convention by calling for Fain's firing and appealing directly to union and nonunion autoworkers.
Fain had fresh leverage from leading the 2023 stand-up strike against Ford, GM and Stellantis to record contracts, Kentucky Lantern reports. That victory made his support valuable in Michigan and other auto states.
Why did the 2024 endorsement fight matter?
After Biden withdrew, the UAW board endorsed Kamala Harris on July 31, 2024. Fain then wore a Trump is a scab.
Vote Harris shirt on the Democratic convention's opening night and praised Harris as a fighter for labor, according to LegalClarity's account of the Democratic convention. The shirt and speech turned a policy dispute into a direct voter appeal. For readers tracking government accountability, the key point is electoral influence rather than personal insult.
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Where do Trump and Fain agree on autos?
On March 26, 2025, Trump imposed a 25% tariff on foreign autos and parts. Fain praised the move as a major step against free-trade policies he blames for harming blue-collar communities, LegalClarity reports.
That praise does not mean a broader alliance. It reflects Fain's long criticism of trade policy that shifted auto work abroad.
Where did they break over union rights?
One day after the tariff order, Trump signed an order excluding more than one million federal workers from collective-bargaining protections. Fain condemned the order as trampling union rights and pledged UAW solidarity with federal unions, according to UAW's March 28, 2025 statement.
The order plus related 2025 actions ended bargaining rights for about 84.4% of the unionized federal workforce, affecting workers at VA, Energy and HHS, according to Center for American Progress analysis. Fain pursues an issue-by-issue stance, disagreeing with Trump on virtually everything except tariffs, LegalClarity reports. For autoworkers and federal employees, that split creates mixed signals:.
- Tariff support does not equal support for federal labor cuts.
- Federal bargaining changes affect agency workers, not private auto contracts.
- Watch UAW statements separately on trade, spending cuts and bargaining rights.
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