Auto Industry’s Electric Transition Sparks Tension With Autoworkers: The Kiplinger Letter
DoE announces $12 billion to support electric transition and factory retrofits — autoworkers fear it may mean the end of numerous auto manufacturing jobs.
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Want to add more newsletters?
Delivered daily
Kiplinger Today
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more delivered daily. Smart money moves start here.
Sent five days a week
Kiplinger A Step Ahead
Get practical help to make better financial decisions in your everyday life, from spending to savings on top deals.
Delivered daily
Kiplinger Closing Bell
Get today's biggest financial and investing headlines delivered to your inbox every day the U.S. stock market is open.
Sent twice a week
Kiplinger Adviser Intel
Financial pros across the country share best practices and fresh tactics to preserve and grow your wealth.
Delivered weekly
Kiplinger Tax Tips
Trim your federal and state tax bills with practical tax-planning and tax-cutting strategies.
Sent twice a week
Kiplinger Retirement Tips
Your twice-a-week guide to planning and enjoying a financially secure and richly rewarding retirement
Sent bimonthly.
Kiplinger Adviser Angle
Insights for advisers, wealth managers and other financial professionals.
Sent twice a week
Kiplinger Investing Weekly
Your twice-a-week roundup of promising stocks, funds, companies and industries you should consider, ones you should avoid, and why.
Sent weekly for six weeks
Kiplinger Invest for Retirement
Your step-by-step six-part series on how to invest for retirement, from devising a successful strategy to exactly which investments to choose.
President Biden’s Investing in America agenda stated aims are to: leverage historic levels of private sector investments in the U.S., bring manufacturing back to America and create new, good-paying jobs, including union jobs. But autoworkers fear they’ll be left at the altar. To help you understand what is next for the auto industry’s transition to electric, our highly experienced Kiplinger Letter team will keep you abreast of the latest developments and forecasts (Get a free issue of The Kiplinger Letter or subscribe). You'll get all the latest news first by subscribing, but we will publish many (but not all) of the forecasts a few days afterward online. Here’s the latest…
A new round of funding aims to ease the auto industry’s electric transition. The Department of Energy (DoE) has announced $12 billion to support factory retrofits, primarily loans, so older facilities can produce hybrid and/or electric vehicles (EVs). An additional $3.5 billion will promote domestic battery manufacturing.
But this assistance for automakers is stoking tensions with autoworkers who fear being left behind. Electric vehicles have fewer parts than gas-powered ones, which could result in the elimination of numerous auto manufacturing jobs.
From just $107.88 $24.99 for Kiplinger Personal Finance
Become a smarter, better informed investor. Subscribe from just $107.88 $24.99, plus get up to 4 Special Issues
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
Moreover, it’s still unclear how well these various policies will work. Electric vehicles accounted for 8.7% of new car sales in the first quarter of 2023, up from 2.7% in the same period of 2022. But despite some advantages, including lower maintenance costs and faster acceleration, they still cost more and have a shorter range than conventional vehicles, limiting consumer uptake.
Related
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.

-
How Much It Costs to Host a Super Bowl Party in 2026Hosting a Super Bowl party in 2026 could cost you. Here's a breakdown of food, drink and entertainment costs — plus ways to save.
-
3 Reasons to Use a 5-Year CD As You Approach RetirementA five-year CD can help you reach other milestones as you approach retirement.
-
Your Adult Kids Are Doing Fine. Is It Time To Spend Some of Their Inheritance?If your kids are successful, do they need an inheritance? Ask yourself these four questions before passing down another dollar.
-
Humanoid Robots Are About to be Put to the TestThe Kiplinger Letter Robot makers are in a full-on sprint to take over factories, warehouses and homes, but lofty visions of rapid adoption are outpacing the technology’s reality.
-
Trump Reshapes Foreign PolicyThe Kiplinger Letter The President starts the new year by putting allies and adversaries on notice.
-
Congress Set for Busy WinterThe Kiplinger Letter The Letter editors review the bills Congress will decide on this year. The government funding bill is paramount, but other issues vie for lawmakers’ attention.
-
The Kiplinger Letter's 10 Forecasts for 2026The Kiplinger Letter Here are some of the biggest events and trends in economics, politics and tech that will shape the new year.
-
Disney’s Risky Acceptance of AI VideosThe Kiplinger Letter Disney will let fans run wild with AI-generated videos of its top characters. The move highlights the uneasy partnership between AI companies and Hollywood.
-
AI Appliances Aren’t Exciting Buyers…YetThe Kiplinger Letter Artificial intelligence is being embedded into all sorts of appliances. Now sellers need to get customers to care about AI-powered laundry.
-
What to Expect from the Global Economy in 2026The Kiplinger Letter Economic growth across the globe will be highly uneven, with some major economies accelerating while others hit the brakes.
-
The AI Boom Will Lift IT Spending Next YearThe Kiplinger Letter 2026 will be one of strongest years for the IT industry since the PC boom and early days of the Web in the mid-1990s.