In spite of UAW president Ron Gettelfinger's publicly stated confidence in his members' support for the new GM contract proposal, some of his union brothers and sisters aren't exactly happy with the health care component of the deal. The Soldiers of Solidarity (SoS) has been– and continues to be– opposed to the creation of a union-controlled VEBA health care superfund. They claim VEBA stands for "Vandalizing Employee Benefits Again." In a statement on the SoS website that would bring tears (of joy) to Walter Reuther's eyes, three former UAW executive board members state "We believe it irresponsible by the parties to this negotiation to shift the burden of risk to the retired workers and their families and release General Motors from its commitment to the full and perpetual coverage of healthcare for the workers who built the wealth of the corporation in the first place." Not surprisingly, they're urging UAW members to vote against the new contract this weekend. If the signing bribes work members ratify the contract, the SoS' next move will most likely be a call for new union leadership.
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If it wouldn’t devastate more families it would be fun to watch GM file chap 11 or 7 and then SoS would be on welfare. See how the health benefits are then!
Saw Jim “Mad Money” Cramer talking about the strike and saying the only way for GM to become profitable was to, like Caterpillar, break the union. Guess they decided colluding was easier.
“We believe it irresponsible by the parties to this negotiation to shift the burden of risk to the retired workers and their families and release General Motors from its commitment to the full and perpetual coverage of healthcare for the workers who built the wealth of the corporation in the first place.”
Anyone want to bet that he recognizes that his union is largely responsible for destroying that same wealth?
Interesting cartoon, but i really don’t get the indignation about “investing” their lives. They were paid by the hour, rather well, and that’s pretty much the end of the deal. Did they pass up rewarding careers in medicine or rocket science?
On one level, I totally agree with the SoS – American workers are completely and consistently screwed sideways by greedy corporate employers that could easily afford to pay comfortable wages and offer good benefits but instead pay inept management millions of dollars. I live this nasty reality every day.
However, the SoS is wrong because this is the economic reality of today. We’re not socialists so our employers are allowed to grind us into dust with no regard for quality of life or living wages. Like it or not, that’s what we’re all faced with and SoS should just take what they’re offered or start working for someone else.
Considering the UAW has a better deal than 95% of other American workers it would be better for them to STFU and take the deal offered. Clearly everyone involved is hoping for a government plan to replace it with next time around. There already is PBGC plan to force GM and Ford to pony up money to cover a bailout, this is designed to ward off evil spirits. Better to go VEBA than pay into the government system.
None is possible with falling market share. Smart workers are moving down the deck towards the lifeboats now.
There is not a lot of sympathy for the UAW out there, even ardent liberals and socialists are saying the 375K retires and spouses are well taken care of by only 73K workers at GM.
1/2 a loaf is better than none.
The Titanic band plays on…
Everybody be sure to tell your own companies that they can never fire you, that if their mission changes they have to ensure you get 80% of your pay indefinitely, and that you get your health benefits paid forever whether you contribute anything or not. That’s organized socialism.
-Jeff
http://www.DrivingEnthusiast.net
GM is not breaking the union, it decided to just make it go away slowly, little by little. it will not be many more years until it is just gone as more and more work is shipped overseas.
with GM employees earning less with the new pay-rates, the transplants will lower their payscales then GM will lower its again. this lowering of pay in manufacturing will also affect others here in the states that work for a living until the corporations big shots and those on wall street have made the U.S.A. the first 4th world nation. the haves and the have nots.
This is exactly why the strike was not a good idea.
It just goes to show you that whatever the UAW does is strictly for the enrichment of the UAW leadership.
The reason GM stock shot up is not just because of VEBA. The big fraud is somewhere else.
Wall Street speculators know that the U$S is falling like a rock and they already have inside knowledge that the FED will further lower rates. This will cause runaway dollar devaluation and inflation as foreign holders dump it.
By having cost of living adjustments diverted into funding the VEBA it will cost GM virtually nothing other then the bribes to the UAW leadership.
LOL, Tony Soprano really was pretty primitive.
Maybe SoS should start their own competitive car company instead of being angry-n-childish beggars. They might become less miserable…They would not have the time to be miserable. If you don’t create your own jobs then you will be forever at the mercy of others that create jobs for you. Creating jobs is honorable. Threatening violence against the creators/owners of jobs is not. See Soviet Union.
“Saw Jim “Mad Money” Cramer talking about the strike and saying the only way for GM to become profitable was to, like Caterpillar, break the union.”
Cramer needs to talk to Our Fearless Leader Farago. Controlling labor costs is necessary, but not sufficent. They also need to control other costs like marketing (i.e. the 3x too many dealers) and development (8 brands instead of 2). But, most importantly, they need to build vehicles that Americans will want to buy in LARGE NUMBERS, at full price.
Without revenue, all of the cost cutting in the world won’t help.
“We believe it irresponsible … to shift the burden of risk to the retired workers and their families …”
Hello, anybody home? If you rely on somebody else for something, you cannot eliminate the risk that when the time comes for him to deliver, he will not be able to do it. An individual can grow old and die. A corporation cannot, but it can go bankrupt. In a dynamic capitalist economy it happens — often. Maybe the first time it happened union members could claim they were surprised, but after the liquidation of the steel, airline, and trucking companies, among others, the risk should be obvious.
So, if the SoS wants to reject GM’s offer, fine. But, it won’t change the risk. Cash in a VEBA would swap the risk for the certainty of the cash., even if it is less than the value of the GM commitment.
My advice to SoS is take the money and run.
Maybe these responses should be sent to the UAW and SoS.
Unions have a lousy track record for honestly and competently managing member health and welfare benefits. Google “union pension frauds”.
unohugh
“Maybe these responses should be sent to the UAW and SoS.”
And this would change things?
I didn’t need any news story to tell me how SoS would respond. I hope the rank and file are far closer to this planet.
Future of the Union has the same angle on the contract:
http://www.futureoftheunion.com/
Maybe we should send the SoS and UAW a copy of Ayn Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged”.
The GM fiasco is just a small example of how this country and our industrial base are going down the toilet. If the Japanese and Koreans can make a quality product in the US and make a profit, why cant they ? Both management and the Unions are fat bloated pigs.