Topic: Politics
If it's going to happen anyway, lets do it now. Millions of jobs hang in the balance.by donspoliticalblog
(libertarian)
Monday, November 17, 2008
Well it looks like the auto makers are going to get their 25 Billion. It will happen, whether it's in the lame duck session or when Obama gets in, but it will happen. I would like to propose a compromise;
To put everything on an even keel I believe the unions should make concessions so that the companies are capable of survival. I also think the auto execs should follow the example of Goldman Sacs execs and guaranty absolutely no bonuses until the company becomes profitable and pays back this debt. I know it's hard to get unions and their workers to give up gains but these are ill gotten gains and have put the companies in jeopardy from the gitgo. If you take the example of Toyota and Nissan here in the states you can find a happy medium, if the union doesn't want to go along, then offer no money to bail them out. Maybe they have become so powerful they no longer see the plight of the workers they represent. I know the big three companies have some great Hybrids on the production floor now, and more in the works, but changes in design philosophy need to be made to steer them once again into the black. I'm not saying no to more SUVs' and pickups, that should never happen, but build them with the mileage capabilities that exceed the rules. Nothing being built for common use should get less than 25 to 30MPG. You can understand their reluctance to building cars to compete in the mileage category as they tried that before and lost big timein the 80's, but with the technology that is available to the companies today, these would be easy milestones to achieve and competitive hybrids are certainly within their capabilities.
The government should make this decision quickly as it either is going to be a yes or no and millions of jobs hang in the balance. If they are going to do it regardless after January, let's get it done now with these modifications installed, there will be no real modifications if we wait.
And that's my opinion,
Don
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You got it right Don, they have gotten too big to care about what their members think. I hope it don't come to a show down though as they will probably strike and ruin the company totally.
I used to be in the auto industry. The sense of entitlement within the employees is horrible. The big auto companies and their employees have become a big socialistic comune of their own. That is one of the many reasons why it is failing.
Here are my views as an employee of Chrysler and GM in the last 12 years:
They company spend like crazy at all levels as does our government. They are extremely beurocratic like our government. They have a 'job banks' where union guys can't be fired so when plants shut they get paid to go to a warehouse do do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING like our welfare system. Some union workers have been in these job banks getting paid to do NOTHING for over a decade because there are no more positions for 'wood modelers' inside the company. UAW President said that the job banks is non-negotiable and these stupid executives granted their wish.
The top-level executives take the company down while sucking millions in 'bonuses' for the crapy job they have done and they cave into the ridiculous unions agreements like our politicians do with the voters. Performance is based on how well you kissed your supervisor's ass and not on actual performance like our career Senators kissing our asses in the voting booths.
Of those employees who are not union or high paid execs, there is a sense of entitlement for the number of years devoted to the company as if the company owes them. In reality other than pension benefits which are no longer there for the new guys, the company has already paid and overpaid them for all those years so there really is no debt due.
In GM, while they are reducing the workforce, they still have more managers than needed. You have a huge company with a lot of low level managers earning more than six figures managing just about 5 people, sometimes less, sometimes managers with NO people reporting under them. All of these managers and those above them in a hierarchy of about ten levels deep from the CEO have a perk of getting a new car as a company paid lease every four months including insurance, gas, maintenance, car washes. These cars are then sold as used cars through the dealerships with only four months used. There are lots of these managers who on the good days were promoted solely on seniority and entitlements. These managers ask for suggestions on cost cutting efforts. Most employees below them suggest to get rid of these free car lease program. ..and most of those managers reply: "I have been here for over 20 years, I deserve this perk" the entitlement kicking in again.
It is the sense of entitlement at the CEO level, at the low-level manager, at the non-union low level employee, and at the union level that in addition to all the other factors have ruing the auto industry.
See the similarities now between GM and the U.S. Government?
Let them strike. Then get rid of their union positions and then hire a new workforce. There used to be $30 per hour janitors at some point. Today there are plenty of ex-Walmart employees replacing those union jobs with non-union jobs at the auto companies. They have interviewed some of them and were very happy with their $12-$14 per hours new jobs because it was huge increase from their $7 or less Walmart jobs.
Also:
Replace the upper management. When replacing the upper management, promote the people who were under them at a much lower salary than the upper management who is replaced. Consolidate several low-level managers by laying off un-necessary and redundant managers (there are plenty) and have the remaining ones managing at least 20 employees instead of just 5. Get rid of the union. Get rid of the free car lease every 4 months and other company entitlement programs. Get rid of beaurocracy. Spend heavily on Engineering but cut all employee's salaries by 10%-15% with no employee layoffs at the lower levels. Those who don't like the salary cuts can freely leave the company as some have already done.
Those should be the strings attached to the bailout.
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