“Our family, friends and co-workers injured on the job or in athletics or even a household accident find themselves in the grip of opioid addiction” — Rory Gamble, UAW Vice President
“Every day, more than 130 people in the United States die after overdosing on opioids,” states the National Institute of Drug Abuse.
The numbers of deaths in the U.S. due to overdoses is staggering—more than 70,000 in 2017—and the “economic burden” of prescription opioid misuse alone in the United States is $78.5 billion a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
The opioid addition problem is something that the United Auto Workers is hoping to address in its upcoming negotiations with the Detroit Three.
Opioid addiction is on the rise in America and the United Auto Workers wants to confront the problem in its next round of collective bargaining. While the issue is most visible in parts of the Western United States, large pockets of the Midwest, South, and Northeast have cited an influx of drug overdoses since 2002.
The UAW, knowing that prescription medications are being increasingly abused by factory workers (as heroin simultaneously makes a comeback), wants to nip the issue in the bud. In addition to promoting job security, higher wages, and healthcare, union officials have identified combating opioids as an important element of future contract negotiations.
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