A typical UAW worker earns between $28 and 32 dollars an hour. Here is the great disparity in the press quoted rates and the actual. The big three are caring on a legacy of costs.

Why is the figure cited as hourly labor costs by the companies so much higher than the wage rates?

In addition to regular hourly pay, the labor cost figures cited by the companies include other expenses associated with having a person on payroll. This includes overtime, shift premiums and the costs of negotiated benefits such as holidays, vacations, health care, pensions and education and training. It also includes statutory costs, which employers are required to pay by law, such as federal contributions for Social Security and Medicare, and state payments to workers’ compensation and unemployment insurance funds.The highest figures sometimes cited also include the benefit costs of retirees who are no longer on the payroll.

Wages and labor costs - UAW Bargaining 2007