GM prepares to shut Indianapolis plant after workers reject concessions

General Motors Co. has started the wind-down of its Indianapolis stamping plant after UAW-represented workers yesterday overwhelmingly rejected a proposed 50 percent pay cut that was sought by a potential new owner of the plant.

GM spokeswoman Kim Carpenter said GM has ended its search for a potential buyer.

“We are disappointed that UAW Local 23 was not able to ratify the proposed labor agreement,” Carpenter said in an e-mail.

“As previously announced, we will continue steps to wind down the facility, which will cease production in mid-2011 and close by December 2011.”

Gregory Clark, UAW Local 23 shop chairman, said last week that the cuts were too deep and the plant's 650 workers would take their chances transferring to another GM plant should jobs open. He said about one-third of the hourly work force is eligible to retire.

Clark was critical of the intervention by the UAW International into the issue. In May, the workers overwhelmingly said they did not want to initiate concession talks with the potential new owner, stamper J.D. Norman Industries.

Despite that, the UAW International picked up negotiations and tried to sell the workers on the merits of the new contract. The vote yesterday was 457 no to 96 voting in favor.

The contract proposed to cut production wages from $28 an hour to $14 an hour. A 14-an-hour wage equates to straight-time annual compensation of less than $30,000.

The proposed contract also contained a “buydown” provision that would have paid workers a total of $25,000 over two years to compensate them partially for the wage and benefit cuts.

Clark said the massive plant makes large stampings, such as hoods, doors and fenders, for several GM cars.

Read more: http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100928/OEM/100929849/1424#ixzz10wY0R47d

Mindset is better to lose jobs then lose 50 % of salary.

 

They are going to collect unemployment benefits

 

Doesn't the UAW have the Jobs Bank?.... where union members make 95% of their former salary while they sit on their butts and watch Oprah?

 

Absolutely, they will! Agreed

This is why the depression hasn't been a "Great Depression" due to all of the government band aids over massive wounds...

 

Wait till gold hit 2600, then $28 per hour will become $14 per hour automatically..

 

Unemployment in indiana pays $390 per week. Not much less than what they were offered to work.

 

Are the corporate exec's going to take a 50% pay cut? Is all senior management going to take a 50% pay cut? Better yet, ALL employee's top to bottom, make 14 dollars per hour. When they do, then they can ask the people to work for 14 bucks an hour. Personally, I'd stay on and make as many future recalls as I could. Bleed'em for every last buck until the company folded.

 

$390/wk vs. $560/wk... plus the job probably pays all/some of health care and contributes to some sort of retirement... The job could actually pay about twice the UE benefit. (Not to mention the fact that having a job in the private sector means you are no longer a parasite on the social system... should that matter to any union worker.)

 

Exactly! The crooks at the top keep putting the screws to the working/middle class.

UNTIL the top assholes who screwed the US & its middle class start getting 50% pay cuts, nobody will take a pay cut! And no, I'm not talking about the bullshit pretentious $1/year pay ala Pandit/Citi.

Doesn't Bernanke say there's deflation? How come the fuckers at the top only get INFLATION of their salaries/bonuses/shares/401k/benefits, etc????

US will not get it's house in order UNTIL the top crooks are either behind bars, under 6ft of dirt or on more equal footing with middle class.

 

Better get used to it. Thanks to globalization and a HUGE world oversupply of labor, LOTS of people in the US will have to learn to make ends meet on half of what they used to earn... the reality of which has not yet been recognized.