CHICAGO – State Senator Javier Loera Cervantes released the following statement after the recent strike by the United Auto Workers seeking pay increases, shorter workweeks and improvements to retiree plans:

“The United Auto Workers are seeking to improve the value given to their labor. More than a decade ago they sacrificed pay and benefits to help the automakers stay afloat. Now its time for those workers to share in the success they help create.

“As a career advocate for workers’ rights, I will continue to support groups like the United Auto Workers in their fight for fair wages and better working conditions. Working people are standing in solidarity, with inflation and cost-of-living pressures at an all-time high, leveraging this power has never been more urgent.

“I support the United Auto Workers in their fight. Autoworkers in Toledo, OH, Wayne, MI, and the rest of the Midwest, are not just fighting for themselves, but for working class people across this country. I will continue to support our working class families in Illinois to make sure their voices are heard.”