Southern states in the US are home to various foreign automakers, such as European automakers Mercedes, BMW, and Volkswagen, as well as Asian automakers, such as Honda, Hyundai, and Nissan. Foreign automakers chose to establish factories in the South because of significant state incentives as well as strong union opposition. States offered automakers millions in tax breaks, as well as new roads and other benefits. The current United States administration has pushed these automakers to manufacture electric vehicles in America, and it is predicted that new EV factories will be built in the South. Southern automotive workers are not unionized, but could still be impacted by the current UAW strike. These workers will not receive any direct benefits from the UAW negotiations, but foreign automakers will likely raise wages in order to compete with unionized Northern automotive factories.
See "Southern automotive workers aren’t unionized, but could still benefit from the United Auto Workers strike", Stephan Bisaha, NPR, September 25, 2023