UAW fails to give serious concessions to the 'Big Three'

The UAW has failed to give serious concessions to the Big Three as part of a deal to satisfy the terms of the automotive bailout. They have only offered token reductions that will mean very little to Detroit's bottom line. According to the Associated Press the UAW agreed to limit overtime, reduce cash bonuses, forgo cost of living pay increases and limit supplemental pay for laid-off workers. Are they serious? Who in the automotive manufacturing sector is working overtime now? Auto production is down almost 40% this year. Also, they are going to reduce their cash bonuses? How do you get a cash bonus when you have helped drive your company bankrupt? Who do they think they are? Bank executives? No one I know gets supplemental pay from their former employer when they are laid-off. When a company can not afford to pay their current employees, they should not be giving money to laid-off employees. The UAW have refused to take a cut in their base wages. The retiree health care cost issue is still not resolved. The 'Big Three' want the UAW to take half of their 20 billion dollar payment as stock. The UAW only wants to delay the payment, but this issue is still not settled. The CEO's of GM and Chrysler LLC should be embarrassed to beg for another 17 billion in taxpayer dollars. There is something unjust about taking money from a worker struggling by on 20 or 30 thousand dollars a year and using it to save the job of someone with a $70,000 wage and benefit package. The UAW will declare this deal a major concession. The leaders of the 'Big Three" will stay silent because they need more bailout money. The Obama Administration will look the other way and hand over more of our tax dollars.

AP: UAW, Big Three Reach Deal On Concessions
By Tom Krisher and Kimberly S. Johnson, AP Auto Writers
Manufacturing.Net - February 18, 2009

DETROIT (AP) -- The United Auto Workers' deal with Detroit's three automakers limits overtime, changes work rules, cuts lump-sum cash bonuses and gets rid of cost-of-living pay raises to help reduce the companies' labor costs, people briefed on the agreement said Wednesday.

The UAW announced Tuesday that it reached the tentative agreement with General Motors Corp., Chrysler LLC and Ford Motor Co. over contract concessions, as GM and Chrysler sent plans to the Treasury Department asking for a total of $39 billion in government financing to help them survive.

Concessions with the union are a condition of the $17.4 billion in government loans that the automakers have received so far.

Base wages for UAW workers will remain the same, but the deal limits supplemental pay that laid-off workers receive while they collect unemployment benefits, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity because union members have not been told about the terms.(excerpted) read more at manufacturing.net