Strike! Auto Workers Demand Job Security
For the first time since 1976 a nationwide strike has been called by the United Auto Workers (UAW) after failing to reach an agreement with GM. The UAW has ordered the 73,000 GM workers that it represents at 82 U.S. facilities not to report to work. This promises to be an interesting test of the effectiveness of the strike in ensuring that these workers can avoid pay cuts and stay in the middle class.
Some reports point to GM’s effort to have the UAW manage a trust to pay for retiree’s health care as a major sticking point. (See my earlier post on this topic). But at a news conference, Ron Gettelfinger, president of the UAW, denied that the strike was about health care issues.
Others suggest that the key issue is actually job security and wages. Automakers have been promising to move jobs offshore (or across the border) if labor costs do not drop in the U.S. In response, the union has demanded that the automakers agree to certain investment levels in their US plants.
Analysts are suggesting that this will be a “short strike.” But it seems that the auto companies are pushing for the union to accept pay cuts for its workers. And some of the interviewed workers have mentioned that it will not be easy to come off the picket line to receive a pay cut. All strikers are expected to receive $200 per week (some reports say $180) plus medical benefits from the union’s strike fund, which is reported to total nearly $800 million. So, UAW arguably does have the capacity – at least financially – for the strike to go on for some time. We will have to wait and see how it unfolds...
And automaker CEO's demand automated production
systems that don't take sick days...
September 29, 2007 11:51 PM | Reply | Permalink