UAW Defends Worker Who Heckled Trump During Ford Plant Tour — Union Vows Job Protections

The United Auto Workers publicly defended a Michigan autoworker who heckled President Donald Trump during a Tuesday tour of Ford's River Rouge Complex in Dearborn, saying workers should not be subjected to vulgar language or behavior from anyone, including the president.

Union Statement and Reaction

UAW Vice President Laura Dickerson said in a Wednesday statement that "workers should never be subjected to vulgar language or behavior by anyone — including the President of the United States." She added that the autoworker "believes in freedom of speech, a principle we wholeheartedly embrace," and that the union will "stand with our membership in protecting their voice on the job."

"We will ensure that our member receives the full protection of all negotiated contract language safeguarding his job and his rights as a union member," Dickerson said.

What Happened

A video published by TMZ appears to show President Trump mouthing an expletive and raising his middle finger toward a worker who was shouting from below during the plant tour. After the incident, White House communications director Steven Cheung described the worker as "a lunatic" who was "wildly screaming expletives in a complete fit of rage," and said the president gave "an appropriate and unambiguous response."

The worker, identified in reports as TJ Sabula, can be heard calling Trump a "pedophile protector," an apparent reference to the administration's handling of federal documents related to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Epstein Files and Government Response

The Trump administration has released several thousand files related to the government's investigation into Epstein, but millions more documents remain unpublished. The Department of Justice missed a December deadline to publish the files in full, a release schedule required by a bill that was signed into law in November.

Donald Trump has denied any wrongdoing connected to the Epstein allegations, and no evidence has emerged tying him to Epstein's sex trafficking operation. He has also said that he and Epstein — who was once a frequent visitor to Mar-a-Lago — had a falling out years ago.

Aftermath

Following the incident, Sabula was suspended, according to a GoFundMe page set up on his behalf. The fundraiser had raised more than $360,000 as of Wednesday afternoon. Sabula later told The Washington Post that he felt he was being "targeted for political retribution" for what he described as "embarrassing" the president.

This confrontation is not the first public clash between Trump and the UAW. After the union endorsed former President Joe Biden in his 2024 reelection campaign, Trump publicly called the union's president a "dope."

The UAW has emphasized it will defend the worker's contractual rights and due process while the matter is reviewed.