CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The United Auto Workers strike sent shockwaves through the automotive industry.
Local auto workers are managing the issues they’ve faced to keep their customers happy.
Anthony Espinoza is the owner of Collision One body shop. He said that he works daily to make sure his customers are happy.
“So, it had some deep scratches on it, so we’re repainting,” he said.
However, many people in the Coastal Bend don’t know that Anthony is among many repair shops that are having issues with product demand because of the UAW strikes taking place.
“When I usually order parts from one of my vendors, parts usually take a day or two to get here,” he said. “I think with this strike going on, parts can sometimes take weeks or months now. Several months,” Espinoza said.
The ripple effects of the UAW strike are being felt far beyond the assembly lines. Local businesses like Anthony’s rely on the automotive industry to supply products for car repairs.
“I’m having to pay a little bit more for parts, just because my vendors are charging me more because it’s harder for them to get the parts,” he said. “They are having to go to other people who sell part and so, they buying it at cost, so in essence, we have to pay more.”
Espinoza said he is taking a cut from his earnings to make sure his customers are happy.
“I think it’s going to affect the customer,” Espinoza said. “Of course, customers want the cheapest price they can get as far as coming out of pocket for a collision repair. We’re having to charge them more for parts.”
In fact, he is trying to keep them lower to maintain his business, but he said he is seeing an increase in delay of products.
“It hasn’t really affected it yet, just the timing of the parts I need to get to shop is the only affecting me,” he said.
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