:rofl: UAW killing themselves...:ugh: this shit has to end...

[6SpeedTA95]

By Kevin Krolicki and David Bailey

DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Corp (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) union workers at a Kansas assembly plant making the hot-selling Chevrolet Malibu went on strike Monday morning, the automaker and the union said.

The plant in Fairfax, Kansas, employs about 1,800 hourly workers who walked out at 10 a.m. EDT Monday morning. The strike came after GM and United Auto Workers Local 31 failed to reach agreement on plant-level rules following a four-year national contract approved last year.

The Kansas strike is one of several labor disputes to hit GM in recent weeks, crimping production for the No. 1 U.S. automaker and threatening some of its better-selling vehicles.

GM shares fell 3 percent after news of the strike broke.

UAW workers remain on strike at GM's Lansing Delta Township plant in Michigan where the company builds its crossover vehicles, like the Buick Enclave.

GM makes the 2008 Malibu in Kansas and at a second plant in Orion, Michigan. UAW workers at the Michigan plant also assemble the Pontiac G6 and have reached a local contract agreement with GM.

The Malibu has been a commercial and critical success for GM at a time of slumping overall demand, selling for higher prices on average and at a faster rate than the model it replaced since its launch late last year.

"We are disappointed that UAW Local 31 has taken the strike action at Fairfax," GM spokesman Dan Flores said. "From a GM perspective, we are going to remain focused on reaching an agreement as soon as we can and hope this is a very short disruption."

The union notified GM of the strike deadline on Sunday.

Flores said GM would look at its options in terms of production for the Malibu, but the priority was to resolve the dispute at the Kansas plant.

GM is negotiating with the UAW at other plants where talks have been extended indefinitely. Those plants include a transmission facility in Warren, Michigan; a stamping plant near Grand Rapids, Michigan; and a stamping plant in Mansfield, Ohio.

About 30 GM facilities have also been idled or partly idled due to a UAW strike against supplier American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings (AXL.N: Quote, Profile, Research) that has run for more than two months. That strike has cut production of GM's slow-selling full-sized pickup trucks and SUVs.

GM shares fell 3.02 percent, or 70 cents, to $22.50 in late morning New York Stock Exchange trading.

Not sure how many of you guys follow the auto industry but I do, I've been a car guy my whole life. This new Chevy Malibu is a FANTASTIC car, but once again the UAW is going to try and tarnish its reputation just as the car really starts to hit its stride. The UAW is killing their own companies and destroying their own jobs yet htey're too short sighted to understand what they're doing. It's pretty unbelievable IMO.



How about they let their workers earn a true market wage instead of these 60 and 70 dollar an hour compensation packages? They also need to get rid of all the stupid rules that destroy productivity. This union madness has got to end or our industry/manufacturing will continue to leave this nation.



UAW strikes GM Kansas plant making Chevy Malibu | Reuters

[Kytro]

[quote=6SpeedTA95;182864]
How about they let their workers earn a true market wage instead of these 60 and 70 dollar an hour compensation packages? They also need to get rid of all the stupid rules that destroy productivity. This union madness has got to end or our industry/manufacturing will continue to leave this nation.[quote]

The question is why would they want to do that? They don't *really* believe that the industry will leave, they believe the bosses are simply being greedy. How do you change that sort of attitude?

I fear that they may only learn the hard way.

[kombayn]

The Unions are at it again? I have a feeling they're not going to learn. I also don't think they really know that these conflicts cause major crisis' with-in their own work-force when the company ships the jobs over-seas. The only Union with any leverage that I can think of right now is the Grocery Stores.

[kinggovernor]

but only not from my thread but from the last 30-50 years, unions are unbelievable.

[WickedLou9]

I hope they do take down GM. Maybe that way they will learn, and maybe other makers will learn from GM's mistakes not to always roll over and give in to every UAW demand. The free market at work. Unsuccesful systems are doomed to failure.

[7960]

Originally Posted by WickedLou9

I hope they do take down GM.

I'd like to see GM take down the union by firing all the employees and and replacing them.

[Scrum]

Originally Posted by 7960

I'd like to see GM take down the union by firing all the employees and and replacing them.

I don't understand why this has never happened.

[WickedLou9]

Originally Posted by 7960

I'd like to see GM take down the union by firing all the employees and and replacing them.

Either-or. I'd be fine if they did that. It would teach them a lesson.
Don't get me wrong, I fully support unions and the right to unionize, but if a union makes ridiculous demands, that union deserves to suffer the consequences of it's actions. Same as any other business/group that makes bad decisions.

[7960]

Originally Posted by Scrum

I don't understand why this has never happened.

If they fire everyone they're not going to get anyone to replace them all. 3,500 people work in the factory, another 10,000 work in a directly-related business. There are only 50,000 people in the area so we've got 1/4 of the workers in a commuting radius working in or supplying the factory.

They are all family and friends, and nobody (well, few) would "cross" their family/friends to take a job that someone they know was fired from.

[Scrum]

Originally Posted by 7960

If they fire everyone they're not going to get anyone to replace them all. 3,500 people work in the factory, another 10,000 work in a directly-related business. There are only 50,000 people in the area so we've got 1/4 of the workers in a commuting radius working in or supplying the factory.

They are all family and friends, and nobody (well, few) would "cross" their family/friends to take a job that someone they know was fired from.

Then the problem isn't the union, it's replacing all the people they would have to fi

Let them move the factories overseas where they can pay workers $4 a day and not give benefits.

[7960]

Originally Posted by Scrum

Then the problem isn't the union, it's replacing all the people they would have to fire

tom-A-toe / tom-AHHHH-toe

they go hand-in-hand

Let them move the factories overseas where they can pay workers $4 a day and not give benefits.

the factory probably cost *at*least* a few hundred million to build and then another few hundred million to guarantee supplies..........you can't just "move a factory overseas" without what appears to be nearly a billion dollar investment.

[WickedLou9]

Gm probably needs to shrink, go bankrupt, declare chapter 11 and then re-emerge without all of the baggage. Ford is sort of doing that, but not going under. Ford is also making money.

[wanna be drummer]

Originally Posted by WickedLou9

I hope they do take down GM. Maybe that way they will learn, and maybe other makers will learn from GM's mistakes not to always roll over and give in to every UAW demand. The free market at work. Unsuccesful systems are doomed to failure.

Yeah, I hope Michigan gets taken down too

[WickedLou9]

Originally Posted by wanna be drummer

Yeah, I hope Michigan gets taken down too

Toyota would be more than happy to move in and offer them new, non-union, jobs.

[6SpeedTA95]

Originally Posted by WickedLou9

I hope they do take down GM. Maybe that way they will learn, and maybe other makers will learn from GM's mistakes not to always roll over and give in to every UAW demand. The free market at work. Unsuccesful systems are doomed to failure.

I hope htey dont, they already took down chrysler and ford and GM have been on hte verge for years now.

[WickedLou9]

Originally Posted by 6SpeedTA95

I hope htey dont, they already took down chrysler and ford and GM have been on hte verge for years now.

Something has to give. I think it's obvious that they can't continue down this path forever. We can either socialize our health care system, GM can go out of business, or the UAW can give in... Which one do you think is most likely to happen?

[Scrum]

Originally Posted by 6SpeedTA95

How about they let their workers earn a true market wage instead of these 60 and 70 dollar an hour compensation packages?

I meant to ask this earlier...

How is this not a true market wage? They can't fire all of these people and replace them, and it's too expensive to move, isn't this how the market works?

[6SpeedTA95]

Originally Posted by Scrum

I meant to ask this earlier...

How is this not a true market wage? They can't fire all of these people and replace them, and it's too expensive to move, isn't this how the market works?

Umm no they're tied to union contracts, they can fire all the workers and pay huge severence packages in the process (thanks UAW )

Toyota is paying market wages, as a result their total cost is about 65% what GM's is per worker.

[Scrum]

Originally Posted by 6SpeedTA95

Umm no they're tied to union contracts, they can fire all the workers and pay huge severence packages in the process (thanks UAW )

Toyota is paying market wages, as a result their total cost is about 65% what GM's is per worker.

But GM signed the contract that gave those packages. If they could have signed them for less they would have. I'll ask again, isn't that the market at work?

[6SpeedTA95]

Originally Posted by Scrum