http://www.huffingtonpost.com/diane-..._b_144481.html

Good interview from our Autoextremist.com friend . . . .

 

Pete nearly always gets it spot on, as he does here. But he didn't press the need for union changes (read they are paid far too much.) hard enough, IMHO. But then again we are talking about a HuffPo article.

 

[The UAW is calling for "no concessions."]


The UAW is one of the major problems with this industry. There was once a time for Unions but not so much anymore....they only serve the Union upper management first and the member second and they have successfully cut into the automakers deep enough to cause massive bleeding which will result in their death if not dealt with.

They showed that an auto worker makes $78 per hour in wages and benefits while at Toyota here in the U.S. they make $35 per hour. I am sorry but $78 per hour is ludicrous money for the job being done and completely unfair to the companies and the consumers....this is one reason cars are as expensive as they are today and one important reason why the Big 3 are in such trouble. A bailout only supports problems such as this and puts off an inevitable issue that needs to be dealt with. The Teamsters are corrupt and that's a fact proven time and again....they don't care about the company and they act like they care about the employees but the fact is they only use those employees as pawns for their benefit in the bigger scheme of things.

Look at the auto transport industry...one of the biggest auto transport companies roughly 6 months ago tried to make changes to survive with the high fuel prices and they went to the Union(Teamsters again) and asked them to help with some cutbacks temporarily so that they could weather the storm and keep the company alive....the same response came back as above "No Concessions!".....guess what? The company shut down completely and all those Union members lost their jobs....so just WHO's best interest do the teamsters have in mind? not their members obviously.

 

WHAT! They make $78/hr. That is insane. I agree that this day and age Unions are not required like they use to be. We lose out on a lot of work in my area due to high labour costs due to the unions.

 

I'm not 100% convined that the unions need to completely go, but what DOES need to go are their rediculous compensation plans, their benefits and the rediculous pensions. Hand these people a shared healthcare plan (like everyone else gets) and hand them a 401K plan (like everyone else gets) and then pay them between $20 and $25 an hour (like tons of other Americans get paid). I believe the unions can still have their use to keep detroit from really kicking the members in the teeth, but Motown will soon be Ghosttown if this crap keeps up.

 

I think that includes salary, all benefits and pensions.

 

Yeah, I see people saying between $75 - $85 per hour as the rate that UAW workers get, but people don't usually say that that is salary and benefits....

But I don't know what to believe anymore. What do UAW workers really make in salary? I'm sure there are some autoworkers here who could give a us a reality check...

 

I have heard the $78/hr for the big 3 for an assembly line worker. Whoever said it also said the foreign automakers who build cars here in non-union states and plants pay on average $48/hour for the same job. And the typical everyday American wage earner for similar skill gets $25/hour. I don't have anything to back this up though. Couple this with what the board is paying the executives to lose the company money and well you've got them pleading in Washington with their hands out.

 

That is pretty insane to be making that much in wages and benefits. I bet atleast 35k or about 17 an hour of it is benefits, but that still means wages of over $60 an hour... I don't get it. maybe i am even under estimating benefits costs.

 

I did state Wages AND benefits.....but I ask you this...How many of YOU HERE make $78/hour in wages and benefits?!?.....and if you do I bet you do a lot more than a simple task like screw in these 4 nuts on each car as it passes.

The problem is the corruption in the Union....until you get rid of that(and good luck with THAT) the Unions are of NO use...period. I even heard a paid ad on the radio today here in Alabama paid for by a Michigan group pleading with people to call Senator Shelby and ask him to support the bailout....they tried to paint a patriotic picture of the automakers and what they did in WWII etc, etc....I guarantee that the group that paid for that ad was using Union money to do it....they know that the only way they will keep their hands in the cookie jar is if the govt. bails them out...otherwise their contracts can be eliminated.

 

Its only a matter of time now...

Ford Mo. Co. NYSE: F - Last Trade:1.26

The market is pricing in a no confidence vote for a bailout.

 

So lets make it $80.00/hr. $640.00 per day x 5 days= 3200.00 a week? That's insane money for any union worker. Why go to college if you can make that kind of money .

 

figure 20 to 30 of it is benefits, that's still a lot of money, plus you get a FULL PENSION

 

+1
Amen



____________

 

Interesting.

 

Still...

 

Agree completely.

I am in favor of the "bailout", if we wanna call it that. But I also agree with what many Republicans are saying, that is: Sure, this rescue may help the automakers in the short term, but unless they deal with the UAW the systemic problems will simply mean that in another four years the automakers will need help again because no matter how good their products become, they're not competing on a level playing field.

I hate to say it, but if ever there were a time to deal with the UAW once and for all, THIS is it.

 

I watched the Hearings with the Big three Last Night on CNN. The Union Rep Stated By 2010 the UAW Workers Pay would Be Inline with the Non Union Workers at Toyota & Nissan Car Plants Here in the States. I would Certainly Like to See that in Black & White to confirm. If it is True Then we are on our way to where we need to be.

KC

 

Didn't we "bail out" Chrysler back in the seventies?
Yet here they are again with their hand out.
It appears to me, based on this example, that bailouts don't work.
A forced re-structuring and improved business plan through bankruptcy proceedings might be a better option.
Seems to work for the airlines.

 

You just don't get it! Bankruptcy by GM is curtains for the American ecomomy PERIOD!! There is a fantastic editorial on the cover of this week's Automotive News. Its a great read!! The fallout if GM were to declare would be over 1 million jobs lost, just from that (this includes GM workers in corporate, factories, dealers, and GMAC)! Then you have the major suppliers, who would have no one to supply parts to, and they would close. a few of the companies are Johnson Controls, Delphi, Lear, etc. They can't survive without GM gone. Then you have the suppliers to the suppliers. The range of lost jobs are rumored to be in the 2 million range, give or take! Unemployment would rise to over 10%, its highest number in years and years! And even in the article, they say bankruptcy for re-structuring won't happen either, as it would lead to Chapter 7 liquidity! ITS BAD if this happens!!!

When I get to work, I'll get the subscription number from our copy of Auto News, and I'll copy the article. Its a site that is really restricted but I can download a copy of the article.