Paula Gardner

The UAW contracts expire at 11:59 p.m. Thursday, leaving major automakers as potential targets. Here is a primer on the issues surrounding the debate.

Michigan’s large investment in automotive manufacturing makes it more vulnerable than other states to a strike against Ford, GM or Chrysler — or all three. Here’s what’s at stake as the negotiators try to beat a strike deadline next week.

The Thursday report estimated the cost of a 10-day strike by 143,000 United Auto Workers members against Ford, GM and Stellantis as business and political leaders weigh in on what must happen.

The tentative contract, announced Tuesday, will provide $7.50 per hour in wage increases over five years. With the deal, the rest of the U.S. can relax in knowing that 24 million daily packages won’t face delay during a national strike.

A citizens group filed a lawsuit against the city, seeking to force a vote on rezoning. Their request to stop work on the property until a decision is made was declined. The judge has yet to rule on the requested referendum.

A court ruling the week of July 17 will decide if work can continue on the eventual site of Ford Motor Co.’s $3.5 billion battery factory in Marshall. A citizens group is asking a judge to issue a temporary restraining order on site work during litigation over whether they can force a public vote on the property’s zoning.

The utility, which is Michigan’s largest electricity provider, will get off coal by 2032, three years earlier than previously planned. That still lags two years behind the goals set forth in Gov. Whitmer’s climate plan.

With another phase of cleanup starting at the former McLouth Steel plant in Downriver area near Detroit, the state is adding a new area of concern after a spring fish kill and contaminant plume.

In an appeal to blue-collar voters, former President Donald Trump told Michigan supporters the Biden administration’s push toward an electric vehicle future will kill jobs and cost state taxpayers ‘hundreds of billions’ of dollars.

The committee that leads national security reviews of foreign investment in the U.S. overseen by the Department of Treasury determined the EV battery plant deal is not within its jurisdiction, Gotion said, clearing the way for the $2.3 billion project near Big Rapids.

The automakers, among Michigan’s largest public companies, say they are eying 2025 and beyond to make money on EVs as they shift away from internal-combustion engines.

John Rakolta, a Republican megadonor and Trump-nominated ambassador, will co-chair Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s new council focused on developing solutions to Michigan’s population crisis.

Focusing on college towns, education and targeted research will increase vitality in the state while giving the auto industry the tools it needs to expand its tech base in Michigan, according to a report from celebrated and controversial urbanist Richard Florida.

Ohio's capital has been a Midwest leader for 50 years, and projections call for ongoing growth through 2050. Detroit and many other Michigan metros are on a different path. Here’s how Columbus is doing it.

Improving education and increasing the number of residents with degrees will be key to reversing trends that jeopardize the state’s competitiveness.

Almost every state in the nation is growing faster, causing economic hardship for Michigan residents and businesses. State leaders are looking to reverse the trend. If we can’t be Florida, can we at least be Indiana?

The state needs to up its economic development game to compete among states that are growing, Business Leaders for Michigan says. Doing so will require setting a long-term education and business development plan.

The latest reliable news about the Feb. 13 shooting that killed three students and injured five others before the suspected gunman killed himself.

The state’s affordable housing, beautiful lakes and reproductive rights are some of the selling points Michigan may use in a new ad campaign hoping to convince young professionals to put down roots in the state.

Economists are watching how Congress addresses the latest battle over the federal debt limit. A default could prove catastrophic for the economy and for individuals in Michigan and across the country.