Week of September 29, 2025
The Teamsters’ rich contract with UPS drove Amazon, a significant customer, to walk away. Now, UAW’s costly Big Three deal negotiated in 2023 is triggering layoffs. When unions overreach, short-term gains often lead to long-term strain. For investors, expect higher labor costs to accelerate productivity-enhancing automation, benefit non-union competitors, and pressure margins at legacy players. This likely accelerates US GDP growth. For now, our Signals remain unchanged.
Bob Bilkie, CFA
