AP GM Says UAW Calls National Strike Monday September 24, 11:54 am ET By Dee-Ann Durbin and Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writers GM Says UAW Has Launched a National Strike Against the Automaker DETROIT (AP) -- The United Auto Workers has launched a national strike against General Motors Corp., GM spokesman Dan Flores said Monday. It's the first nationwide strike during auto contract negotiations since 1976. Workers walked off the job and began picketing Monday outside GM plants after UAW's late morning strike deadline passed. It remained to be seen what effect the strike would have on the automaker and consumers. The company has sufficient stocks of just about every product to withstand a short strike, according to Tom Libby, senior director of industry analysis for J.D. Power and Associates. Charlie Coppinger, who has worked at GM's powertrain plant in Warren for 31 years, walked the picket line along with a handful of others shortly after the deadline passed. The 51-year-old Rochester Hills resident said he hoped a strike could be settled quickly, but that union members were on the line to back the union and its bargainers. "We're just here to support them," said Coppinger, who said leaflets were passed out indicating that the strike was on. It's the first nationwide UAW strike during contract negotiations since 1976, when Ford Motor Co. plants were shut down. Flores said the automaker is disappointed in the UAW's decision to call a national strike. "The bargaining involves complex, difficult issues that affect the job security of our U.S. work force and the long-term viability of the company. We remain fully committed to working with the UAW to develop solutions together to address the competitive challenges facing GM," Flores said. Included in the negotiations was a groundbreaking provision establishing a UAW-managed trust that would administer GM's retiree health care obligations. GM pushed hard for the trust -- known as a Voluntary Employees Beneficiary Association, or VEBA -- so it could move $51 billion in unfunded retiree health costs off its books. GM has nearly 339,000 retirees and surviving spouses.
The UAW won't be happy until the Big 3 offshore almost all manufacturing to Asia, and kiss goodbye to all retiree healthcare.
The UAW should get their heads out of their azzes with their "guaranteed employment" crap. They are driving the Big 3 closer to Chapter 11.
I think it's time for American automakers to sell their manufacturing business and start focusing on their core business: providing pension benefits. Perhaps they can invest the proceeds in Toyota.
I think Crysler is going to start selling a car designed and manufactored in China under the Crysler brand. A harbinger of things to come. The UAW is as out of touch as the execs that create so much red tape to take care of their own job security and pensions.
After the big 3, Toyota will probably be making headlines with the UAW sometime in the not so distant future. Toyotaâs Kentucky Plant Is a Test for Organizers
I am full support of the union. What I hate more is lousy management run the company to the ground and still manage to take home huge bonus. Company make money => more money for the executives Company lost money, lay off workers, take away their benefit => more money for the executives. I just don't understand why the society allowing this to continue.
We'll see how long they strike once the paychecks stop coming in and they are unemployed after the plant closes. GM is a buy Americans HATE being unemployed. Some consider it worse than prison.
Agreed, it wasn't joe sixpack that wanted to build an ugly ass unreliable car it was management, who gets a bonus no matter what. The public telecom co. I sold for, the pres. only got a big check when we did good. His salary was like 300k, but on good years his bonus was 1 mil or so. That's the way it should be.