Saving the US Auto Industry

[tw]

Originally Posted by lookout123

The Unions pushed contracts in the '70's and '80's that they knew were not sustainable - but they sure looked good at the time.

It's not the union's job to protect the company. That is management's job. If unions were so overpaid, then why was the largest featherbedding in management? Why did management in GM grow to 52 layers? Oh. Unions should take a lower pay because executive salaries were growing exponentially AND GM was adding management layers?

It is management's job to agree to responsible contracts. Why did management agree to those concessions? Because they had already decided those health care costs would be covered by future management. If those union concessions were paid by current management into trust funds, then current management would have not conceded.

I forget the name of the two brothers and a third union executive who negotiated those 1970s contracts. But later they also were appalled at how GM, et al conceded. Appalled, but it was not their job to make concessions or protect the company. They were paid to get unions a best contract. Meanwhile, GM executives took even larger pay increases - a fact that is ignored by lookout123. Corporate management constantly took pay, bonuses and benefits that always were greater than union compensation.

If compensated equally, then unions would have been paid even more. Oh. Unions also made numerous concessions to save the company while top executives are taking increasing and record high bonuses. Why does lookout123 also forget that fact?

Well, when a car guy replaced bean counters, then the car guy took only $1 per year until the company was finally profitable. Why does lookout123 also ignore what good people do? Why does his post not blame GM's only problem - Rick Wagoner?

How bad was GM? Comic pictures were carefully mounted where management could not remove them. GM was claiming profits in the spread sheets. However the spread sheets were manipulated so that the profits did not appear in auto operations. The cartoon showed Chrysler and Ford employees with massive bonuses in wheel barrows. However the GM employee was carrying his wang as a Christmas bonus.

That year, GM claimed a large profit. GM management was reaping record bonuses. But the employees got no Christmas bonus that year. lookout123 also forgets those stories. No matter how much the union was compensated, GM management always took home increasing amounts of money. Large Christmas bonuses even in years that GM lost money and when employees got none.

Rick Wagoner said GM has no plans to restructure. GM, Ford, and Chrysler executives all said the same thing in late 1970s as they campaigned for government restructiion on imports. Deja vue.

When did Ford and Chrysler finally plan a restructure? When bankrputcy threats finally removed America's enemies: Townsend and Richardo in Chrysler and Henry Ford in Ford. Once replaced by car guys, only then did each company get profitable. Bean counters will only protect their incomes at the expense of the company which is what MBA trained management does. Deja vue.