Of course Bond is happy about it. He’s a Republican who hates unions, and Bush’s version of the bailout is like the Corker version - it stipulates massive wage cuts for union workers.

No, Bond is actually one of the “few” Republicans who supported the bailout. He and Bush and liberal Democrats have now forced me to give money to an industry that is no longer competitive. Why should I (who makes $17 and hour) be forced to give money to an UAW worker so he can continue to makie $47/hour?????

Which UAW member makes $47 an hour?

Frank,

Two things:

1) is it their fault that you make $17 an hour???

2) Who would you rather give money to help us get out of this
recession? Middle class people or the fat cats on Wall Street?

John2

John2,

That is the most patently ridiculous argument I’ve ever heard. “is it their fault that you make $17 an hour???” Now, I’m a different person, but it’s not their fault that I make only $12-$13 an hour. Then again, I’m also not asking for a bailout, which will constitute taking money from the rest of the American citizenry. They, on the other hand, are asking for MY money, which means that I should be able to take a look at their business plan and give them instructions before they take MY money. It’s not MY fault that they make $47 an hour. It’s not MY fault that the auto company management signed completely unreasonable contracts with the UAW. So, if that’s not MY fault, then why should I be forced to bail them out?

And, FWIW, I wouldn’t be in favor of giving it to either-until they, at the very least, restructure their business models. If they have managed to go to the point of bankruptcy, it means that they are not running their business in a constructive manner. And, if they’re not running their business in a constructive manner, why should we trust them with billions in taxpayer money?

First of all Frank, UAW members do not make $47 per hour. Second of all the UAW has made concessions in 2005 by taking a 3% cut in pay and restructuring the retiree healthcare and pensions. In 2007 the UAW took more wage concessions that allow the companies to hire entry level assemblers at $14 per hour and also took concessions on their health care. Third, the CEO of GM and Ford make more than $10,000 per hour each. Any ideas about cuts in pay and benefits for them? Fourth of all, the Big 3 have requested a “Loan” in the amount of 36 billion dollars. The Financial industry is getting $760 BILLION with very few strings attached.

The UAW wages comprise of less than 10% of the cost of the auto, same today when things are bad as they were the the big 3 were earning record profits.

From the LA Times “When one compares how the auto industry and the financial sector are being treated by Congress, the double standard is staggering. In the financial sector, employee compensation makes up a huge percentage of costs. According to the New York state comptroller, it accounted for more than 60% of 2007 revenues for the seven largest financial firms in New York.

At Goldman Sachs, for example, employee compensation made up 71% of total operating expenses in 2007. In the auto industry, by contrast, autoworker compensation makes up less than 10% of the cost of manufacturing a car. Hundreds of billions were given to the financial-services industry with barely a question about compensation; the auto bailout, however, was sunk on this issue alone.”

SMC my guess is your going to be a very busy man for a while……..”They, on the other hand, are asking for MY money, which means that I should be able to take a look at their business plan and give them instructions before they take MY money.”

Bubba,

Get real! Employee compensation is irrelevant when looking at the failures in the financial sector. Risky investments are the cause of the problems on Wall Street.

When you add healthcare and pension benefits, the average union worker is receiving about $41.00 per hour. When combined with legacy costs (the pension and health care costs for retired workers) the Big 3 have big problems.

The obligations of the Big 3, due to union contracts, prevent them from being competitive. As the late Johnny Cochran would have probably said “If you can’t compete, admit defeat”.

Look! I don’t care what union workers make an hour. They could make $100.00 per hour, and I wouldn’t complain. However, if the money being paid out to the workers is causing you to go out of business, the wages must be cut. Where else do you think a cost cut can come from? I guess they could cut jobs.

Would you rather see 10% of union workers lose their jobs (Can the company operate with 10% less employees?), or have 100% of union workers (including retirees) take a 10% pay cut?

I’m all for cutting the income of the CEOs, CFOs, and the like. I don’t think any company officer should make more than $100K (including bonuses) per year unless the company can pay it while continuing to operate in the black.

If you want the American consumer to buy American, give them an equal product, of equal quality, for a competitive price. -The Big 3 have failed to do that. -In 1999, I ordered a 2000 Dodge Durango. By using my connections, my vehicle was selected to be the subject of an internal audit. Guess what!! Even though it passed; they put the wrong lubricant in my limited-slip differential, and the metallic part of my front bumper started to rust (the only place on the vehicle to do so). When I paid to get my bumper repainted, the body shop noted that my bumper had been painted numerous times, in other colors, before it was put on my vehicle. It only rusts on the ends. Why? Most likely because it sat outside in the salt used to clear the parking lot of the New Jersey plant. The salt leached into the metal. -When Dodge was asked about it, they played dumb. -Now I’ve got to replace the bumper due to their QA failure.

What the union workers forget is that everybody in this country works for their money. Their obligation is not to keep the unions alive. Only about 12% of the American workforce is unionized, yet the unions imply that they are the “American working family”. –Have a little respect for the 88% that don’t belong to the union, and you’re more likely to see a compassionate majority.

I’ve got a suggestion. Have all the union workers create their own company. They can share in the profits (and the expenses). Stop living off of somebody else’s innovation. Are there any union owned, unionized companies?

The Truth “Get real! Employee compensation is irrelevant when looking at the failures in the financial sector. Risky investments are the cause of the problems on Wall Street.” Mr. Truth, the 10% of wages on an American made auto are not the problem, like I said they were the same 10% when the companies were making record profits. Wages are not the issue, Toyota, Nissan, Honda all have slumping sales. Nissan is offering buyouts in their Tenn. Plant. Toyota suspended the building of the Prius plant. Since when did our government get into setting wages? That sounds a lot like socialism.

One of the problems is the un-fair trade imbalances that have been put into place by the previous 4 presidents. Reagan, Bush, Clinton and Bush II. To think that fair trade is allowing Korea to sell more than 600,000 autos in the USA and and the USA to sell less than 7,000 in Korea is not right. To negotiate a trade deal with China that allows them to place a 25% tarif on US auto imports to their country while the US only puts a 2.5% tarif on Chinese built autos coming into the US is unbelieveable.

That doesn’t even include the propped up profits put in place with Value Added Taxes that the European and Asian countries use to protect their indstries.

The Truth “The obligations of the Big 3, due to union contracts, prevent them from being competitive. As the late Johnny Cochran would have probably said “If you can’t compete, admit defeat”.

The UAW and the Big 3 do compete. Defeat is not an option.
“The Harbour Report released today reveals that the Big 3 gained major ground in closing the productivity gap with Japanese automakers building vehicles in North America last year. The report found that Chrysler had actually improved enough to tie Toyota as the most productive multi-plant manufacturer on the continent, with both automakers spending an average of 30.37 hours to build a vehicle. The most productive single plant in North America also belongs to Chrysler, as the once experimental Toledo Supplier Park takes just 13.57 labor hours to build a Jeep. For their parts, General Motors plants averaged 32.29 hours per vehicle and Ford plants averaged 33.88 hours per vehicle, both an improvement over last year’s numbers.”