An auto worker suspended following a widely publicized dustup with President Donald Trump has drawn significant support, to the tune of more than $800,000 in two separate GoFundMe pages, as of this publication. The Ford Motor Co. employee also has the public backing of one of the nation’s largest unions, highlighting the growing role of unions in a polarized work environment.
The now-viral interaction happened during Trump’s Tuesday visit to Ford’s Dearborn plant. The worker, identified as T.J. Sabula, was about 60 feet away from Trump when he yelled “pedophile protector,” seemingly in reference to Trump’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case, prompting the president to give him the middle finger and mouth “f— you.”
Sabula, a member of United Auto Workers’ Local 600, was reportedly suspended later that day.
“Workers should never be subjected to vulgar language or behavior by anyone—including the president of the United States,” UAW Vice President Laura Dickerson said in a Wednesday statement. “We stand with our membership in protecting their voice on the job.”
See also: Employee protests in the new Trump era: What HR needs to know
Sabula told media that the incident was under investigation, while a Ford spokesperson this week declined to “get into specific personnel matters,” yet stated the company doesn’t “condone anyone saying anything inappropriate like that within our facilities.”
Dickerson said the union would ensure Sabula “receives the full protection of all negotiated contract language safeguarding his job and his rights as a union member.”
The incident comes as HR braces for what is expected to be a year of rising labor activity and ongoing political division.
A recent Littler survey found that about one-quarter of employees whose workplaces are not fully unionized report an uptick in organizing activity since 2023. It’s a trend RedThread Research’s Stacia Garr pointed to during HR Tech last year, noting union support is at a 60-year high, according to Gallup. Rising labor activity is one byproduct of the broader breakdown of trust in the employer-employee relationship, Garr said.
Yet, many employers aren’t prepared: Littler found that only 9% of organizations that are not unionized feel equipped to respond to organizing activity.
Many unions are focused on “turning employee curiosity into actual support,” according to Jonathan Levine, co-chair of Littler’s Labor Management Relations Practice Group, and are using high-profile campaigns to do so. Levine cautioned employers, however, that employees prefer a direct relationship with an employer, urging HR to help their organizations prioritize supporting and engaging the workforce.
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