On January 22, 2024, Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers (UAW), issued a historic call for a nationwide general strike on May 1, 2028. Speaking with unflinching clarity, Fain described a vision not just for labor solidarity, but for a structural reset of American priorities. “We want everybody walking out,” he said, inviting all unions and working people to synchronize their labor contracts and grievances for a collective stand on International Workers’ Day (Sainato, 2024).

The timing—three and a half years from the announcement—may appear distant, but its purpose is deliberate. This runway allows unions across the nation to strategically align contract expirations to maximize leverage and solidarity. The goal is a massive, coordinated pause of America’s labor engine—one that cannot be ignored by corporate power or a hostile administration (Fain, 2024; Rosenblum, 2023).

This is no idle threat. The UAW itself has already scheduled its next major contract expiration with the Big Three automakers for May 1, 2028. This move signals the seriousness of the effort: a general strike is not just possible—it’s being planned (Fain, 2024).

Labor organizers and sympathetic unions are responding. The American Federation of Teachers and the Chicago Teachers Union have expressed support for aligning their contracts to join this action (Health Justice Monitor, 2024). The grassroots campaign generalstrikeus.com is also mobilizing digitally, aiming to gather 11 million “strike cards”—a threshold inspired by research suggesting that movements need at least 3.5% of the population to ensure success (Unite All Workers for Democracy, 2024).

But this is not a drill. Organizers and participants must understand the stakes. Retaliation from extremist political factions—including MAGA-aligned groups—is likely. Disinformation, counter-protests, and legal intimidation are all predictable backlash tactics. This makes it essential for participants to be legally informed, strategically coordinated, and unflinchingly committed.

This isn’t a game. It’s a reckoning. And if the Trump administration—or any administration—is unresponsive to the needs of workers, then May Day 2028 could become a milestone in American history: the day the working class showed up not just at the bargaining table, but at the gates of power.

If you are a worker, unionized or not, the time to organize is now. Talk to your coworkers. Contact your union. Align your contracts. Sign a strike card. Mark the date.

May 1, 2028 is not just a day on the calendar. It’s a deadline.

APA References

Fain, S. (2024, April 30). May Day 2028 Could Transform the Labor Movement—and the World. In These Times. https://inthesetimes.com/article/may-day-2028-general-strike-working-class

Health Justice Monitor. (2024, April 5). May Day 2028 National Strike: Focus on Medicare for All. https://healthjusticemonitor.org/2024/04/05/uaw-may-day-2028-national-strike-focus-on-medicare-for-all/

Rosenblum, J. (2023, December 28). Shawn Fain’s New Year’s Resolution Is to Lay the Ground for a National Strike. The Nation. https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/shawn-fain-uaw-organizing-national-strike/

Sainato, M. (2024, January 22). ‘We want everybody walking out’: UAW chief outlines mass strike for May 2028. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/jan/22/autoworkers-uaw-shawn-fain-may-2028-national-strike

Unite All Workers for Democracy. (2024, October 13). Resolution: Promote the UAW’s Commemoration of May Day in Preparation for the May 1, 2028 General Strike and beyond, beginning in 2025. https://uawd.org/project/resolution-promote-the-uaws-commemoration-of-may-day-in-preparation-for-the-may-1-2028-general-strike-and-beyond-beginning-in-2025/