Post by TonyV on May 28, 2010 12:17:22 GMT -5
Hello, I would like to bring your attention on a new post published on the
UAWLAP.org Site.
Details of the post follow.
In Solidarity,
Steven M. Stone
UAW Aims To Go Back On Offensive
Forbes.com
Autos
Joann Muller, 05.27.10, 7:06 PM ET
DETROIT -
Under ordinary circumstances, the bankruptcies of General Motors and Chrysler
ought to have killed the United Auto Workers union.
The 75-year-old union is one-fourth the size it was at its peak 30 years ago,
and with both companies near collapse in 2009, members voted to give back years
of hard-fought benefits.
Yet, with its political clout still intact, the UAW has emerged as the big
winner of the Great Detroit Meltdown of 2009. It preserved generous pension and
health care benefits for retirees, and--along with U.S. taxpayers--its trust
fund for retirees now owns big chunks of both GM and Chrysler, whose fortunes
are on the upswing. When the companies go public again, perhaps before the end
of the year, the UAW trust will undoubtedly look to cash out as quickly as
possible.
Now, as members prepare to elect a successor to President Ronald Gettelfinger,
the UAW is looking to restore those concessions and rebuild its membership.
The challenge will likely fall to Robert King, 63, the union's chief bargainer
at Ford Motor Co., who was nominated by the union's leadership committee to
replace Gettelfinger when delegates convene next month in Detroit.
"Ron preserved the core of the union, the core of Detroit, through brilliant
negotiating and brilliant politics in Washington," said Sean McAlinden, chief
economist at the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich. "Despite the
hatred of the rest of the country, he pulled it off. He saved the core. Now,
he's handing it over to Bob to see if he can grow it again."
Gettelfinger says he doesn't regret making concessions to help the companies
survive, nor does he accept blame for putting the automakers into bankruptcy. It
was the collapse of the credit markets after Lehman Brothers failed, along
with the recession, that led to the crisis, he says. The UAW had been making
concessions to help the carmakers since 2005, he says.
"We did what we had to do to get to tomorrow," Gettelfinger says. "I can get the
best contract in the world, but if you don't have a job to go with it, what have
you got?"
As he prepares to retire, Gettelfinger sees brighter days ahead for the industry
and his union. GM, Ford and Chrysler are "on a roll now," he says, and he's
encouraged that electric car makers Fisker Automotive and Tesla Motors have
taken over former UAW factories, offering potential for more U.S. auto jobs.
Meanwhile, as the U.S. automakers recover, the UAW aims to recoup some of what
it lost. "We have never been in the business of putting any company out of
business," Gettelfinger says. "We always want the companies to grow. We just
want to share in that growth."
Link to the post:
uawlap.org/building-chairpersons-report/uaw-aims-to-go-back-on-offensive.php
Link to UAWLAP.org: uawlap.org
UAWLAP.org Site.
Details of the post follow.
In Solidarity,
Steven M. Stone
UAW Aims To Go Back On Offensive
Forbes.com
Autos
Joann Muller, 05.27.10, 7:06 PM ET
DETROIT -
Under ordinary circumstances, the bankruptcies of General Motors and Chrysler
ought to have killed the United Auto Workers union.
The 75-year-old union is one-fourth the size it was at its peak 30 years ago,
and with both companies near collapse in 2009, members voted to give back years
of hard-fought benefits.
Yet, with its political clout still intact, the UAW has emerged as the big
winner of the Great Detroit Meltdown of 2009. It preserved generous pension and
health care benefits for retirees, and--along with U.S. taxpayers--its trust
fund for retirees now owns big chunks of both GM and Chrysler, whose fortunes
are on the upswing. When the companies go public again, perhaps before the end
of the year, the UAW trust will undoubtedly look to cash out as quickly as
possible.
Now, as members prepare to elect a successor to President Ronald Gettelfinger,
the UAW is looking to restore those concessions and rebuild its membership.
The challenge will likely fall to Robert King, 63, the union's chief bargainer
at Ford Motor Co., who was nominated by the union's leadership committee to
replace Gettelfinger when delegates convene next month in Detroit.
"Ron preserved the core of the union, the core of Detroit, through brilliant
negotiating and brilliant politics in Washington," said Sean McAlinden, chief
economist at the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich. "Despite the
hatred of the rest of the country, he pulled it off. He saved the core. Now,
he's handing it over to Bob to see if he can grow it again."
Gettelfinger says he doesn't regret making concessions to help the companies
survive, nor does he accept blame for putting the automakers into bankruptcy. It
was the collapse of the credit markets after Lehman Brothers failed, along
with the recession, that led to the crisis, he says. The UAW had been making
concessions to help the carmakers since 2005, he says.
"We did what we had to do to get to tomorrow," Gettelfinger says. "I can get the
best contract in the world, but if you don't have a job to go with it, what have
you got?"
As he prepares to retire, Gettelfinger sees brighter days ahead for the industry
and his union. GM, Ford and Chrysler are "on a roll now," he says, and he's
encouraged that electric car makers Fisker Automotive and Tesla Motors have
taken over former UAW factories, offering potential for more U.S. auto jobs.
Meanwhile, as the U.S. automakers recover, the UAW aims to recoup some of what
it lost. "We have never been in the business of putting any company out of
business," Gettelfinger says. "We always want the companies to grow. We just
want to share in that growth."
Link to the post:
uawlap.org/building-chairpersons-report/uaw-aims-to-go-back-on-offensive.php
Link to UAWLAP.org: uawlap.org