I mean, how often does an administration lead by a Congress controlled by Republicans for years (unitl 2006) allow deregulation of the financial industry, arguably causing issues like Madoff:

They join a list of more powerful investors that have come forward, all worried about the extent of their losses. The roster of names include former Philadelphia Eagles owner Norman Braman, New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon and J. Ezra Merkin, the chairman of GMAC Financial Services, among others.

So, in a climate of DEREGULATION, a well respected captain of financial markets gets to pull off the scam of all scams, including DEFRAUDING the likes of GM (GMAC is a subsidiary of GM and provides financial services, including mortgages). Now that GM is out BILLIONS (Madoff scammed at least $50 billion that we know of now), does it make it more likely that Republican Senators will be willing to assist the ailing auto industry? Afterall, helping GMAC is a financial services company and seemingly so much more Republican like, as opposed to dirty, hard working, loud, uneducated, unskilled autoworkers represented by a union.

Hmm, the only ones here I think of as dirty, uneducated and unskilled are Republicans in the Seante lead by the likes of Senators Corker and Shelby. Just writing their names makes me want to go take a shower. I feel so dirty.

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The video comes to us by way of the Dailybeast who gets it from MSNBC last week.

What I find interesting, is that Citi, AIG and others didn't really have to present any plans for their bailouts and AIG continues to pay out bonuses and has extravagant trips even after they get a bailout.

So, I'm a little confused how a company like Citi can say they went a little too far in lending and that got them into trouble, but the Auto Industry can't say hey, there's a serious market down turn caused by the mess from the financial sector and we need help. Hell, you can even hear what Citi thinks caused their mess, again, from the Dailybeast:



The current financial mess this country is in comes in part from lending to borrowers who couldn't pay, popular know by underwriters as Liar Loans. These are loans with no required documentation. So, we have a freeze in the credit markets, it's harder to get loans for houses and cars and this hurts companies like Citi (companies that actually helped cause the problems) and they get a bailout, but the Auto-Industry can't even get a loan? Somehow, I think this has more to do with Union-Bashing than anything and the comments from President-Elect Obama are very disappointing to me. Very, very disappointing.

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I've been watching the hearings, hearing the testimony and pulling for the bridge loan. Then there was this tidbit, reported by Dana Milbank in the Washington Post:

So it was hard to feel sorry for the executives when Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.), late in the hearing, reminded them again that "the symbolism of the private jet is difficult," and mischievously asked the witnesses whether, in another symbolic gesture, they would be willing to work for $1 a year, as Nardelli has offered to do.

"I don't have a position on that today," demurred Wagoner (2007 total compensation: $15.7 million).

"I understand the intent, but I think where we are is okay," said Mulally ($21.7 million).

"I'm asking about you," Roskam pressed.

"I think I'm okay where I am," Mulally said.

And don't even think about asking him to fly commercial.

CEO pay is a hot issue. AIG is goind out of its way to pay out for their "top managers" and then you have the big 3. The emphasis has been on the income of workers represented by the UAW (think Mitchells smarmy comments from Sunday's Meet the Press) and then there's reality:

Chrysler $29-$33:
More contract info by company here: http://uaw.org/contracts/index.php

TOYOTA
$30/hour

EXECS
Alan Mulally
Chief Executive Officer
Ford Motor Company
$22,750,385 in total 2007 compensation

G. Richard Wagoner
Chief Executive Officer
General Motors Corporation
$19,761,874 in total 2007 compensation.

Assuming a 40 hour work week, that's $9,615 an hour for Wagoner - 150% of the average CEO salary of $6,153/hour.

Chrysler isn't traded, but here's this article from the weekend about how Chrysler is paying about $30 million in retention bonuses to keep top executives while cutting thousands of jobs.

How much does the average AIG worker make? What's the median? How about the other "bailed out" organizations? Ones where they sent their IT operations off shore to India and elsewhere and canned all of their IT people like IndyMac (they weren't bailed out, just belly up)?

It's fine to get these numbers, but the issue isn't how much the average autoworker makes or the average Toyota or Honda worker, the message should be that these are American Workers who WORK. They produce American jobs, they contribute to their communities, they raise their kids, they vote and yeah, their represented by a union but they don't deserve anything less than what Wall Street has already gotten. That includes the Executives because not to do it means a destruction of local economies, not just detroit, we're talking Parma Ohio, Lordstown, St. Louis and this doesn't include the rolling effect on suppliers.

But let's take another look at AIG, again, from the Washington Post:

American International Group plans to pay out $503 million in deferred compensation to some of its top employees, saying it must tap the funds to keep valuable workers from exiting the troubled insurance giant.

News of the payments to top AIG talent comes as the federal government has just put more money into saving the company from bankruptcy, beefing up the total public commitment to $152 billion. Meanwhile, members of Congress are questioning the company's expenditures -- including lavish business trips to resorts -- during a time when taxpayers are on the hook for the bailout.
snip

Companies over the past 20 years have increasingly use deferred compensation as a way to attract and retain highly paid executives. Under these plans, top talent can postpone taking some of their large annual salaries for years -- often until a set date -- and can put off being taxed on it. Some wait to take the funds until they retire, when they would presumably be in a lower tax bracket.

Few executives seem to understand the correlation we common Americans make with failure and excess. I for one see their salaries and wonder, WTF?

But after watching what's been going on with AIG (and the scandalous behavior AFTER their bailout-not a loan), it's just incredible that these executives from the big three flew to DC on private corporate jets. But for Mullaly and Wagoner to say no to taking a massive ONE YEAR pay cut as Nardelli has said he'd do, well, damn, I wouldn't have given them a bridge loan either, because they aren't a good risk. Of course, that's me speaking as a former home loan underwriter. If I had a homebuyer with this kind of credit, this kind of debt load while arriving in a vehicle well beyond what should be their means, I'd have to really think long and hard about those combined factors and here and now, it'd be one tough call.

What's saddest of all, it seems only Nardelli really gets what's at stake in this financial melt down, survival.

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I tend to read the stupidity of folks like Gerson because, it's important to know who stupid and inane they are, makes for nice entertainment and laughter. Well, entertainment until I read today's slop:

The coming bailout will be a major challenge for Obama. If he caves in to the auto unions that helped elect him and merely shores up a failing industry, he will start his presidency on a note of weakness. If he insists on a serious restructuring that creates sustainable companies -- including large pay and benefit cuts, and massive downsizing -- he could gain a reputation for toughness similar to Ronald Reagan's after his early firing of striking air traffic controllers in 1981.

Okay, so I highlighted what I think you should see. This is the right wing talking point of folks like Brokaw and Mitchell and here Gerson does it, too. He's blaming the union.

Unions are not monolithic creatures.

Unions do not provide the work.

Unions are not out to kill industry.

Unions ARE made up of their membership: WORKERS.

Unions ARE responsive to their membership.

The UAW IS NOT THE VILLAIN.

In the case of the auto industry, these workers have given up things that someone at Wal-Mart has never had the option to ever have and things that Gerson can't begin to think about going without; from pension cut backs to two tiered hiring to health care. They've given up a lot including cutting hours, retraining to leave the big 3 or other routes to make it easier for the big 3 to survive and not only survive, but to prosper.

Consumerism wasn't fueled by GM and certainly not by the UAW. There is a major issue right now in the financial markets and it's meant a lot of people are out of work, fuel prices caused a lot of people to cut back, me included. GM has been doing cutting edge research that they have funded in terms of fuel cells (unfortunately would mean a retooling and supply of the energy industry and we aren't there yet even if GM were able to produce the fuel cell cars now enmasse) and I'm looking forward to the Chevy Volt in 2010 even with a possible $40k price tag.

Blaming workers and their union representation for the problems caused by Wall Street is not only ridiculous, it's dangerous.

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I have been surfing the tubes for more on the e-mail but only seem to find Wing nuts who keep calling this bridge loan a bailout (dudes, seriously, it's NOT a bailout). But in my wanderings, I came across this:

You made the right choice when you put your confidence in General Motors, and we appreciate your past support. I want to assure you that we are making our best vehicles ever, and we have exciting plans for the future. But we need your help now. Simply put, we need you to join us to let Congress know that a bridge loan to help U.S. automakers also helps strengthen the U.S. economy and preserve millions of American jobs.

Despite what you may be hearing, we are not asking Congress for a bailout but rather a loan that will be repaid.

The U.S. economy is at a crossroads due to the worldwide credit crisis, and all Americans are feeling the effects of the worst economic downturn in 75 years. Despite our successful efforts to restructure, reduce costs and enhance liquidity, U.S. auto sales rely on access to credit, which is all but frozen through traditional channels.

The consequences of the domestic auto industry collapsing would far exceed the $25 billion loan needed to bridge the current crisis. According to a recent study by the Center for Automotive Research:

• One in 10 American jobs depends on U.S. automakers
• Nearly 3 million jobs are at immediate risk
• U.S. personal income could be reduced by $150 billion
• The tax revenue lost over 3 years would be more than $156 billion

Discussions are now underway in Washington, D.C., concerning loans to support U.S. carmakers. I am asking for your support in this vital effort by contacting your state representatives.

Please take a few minutes to go to www.gmfactsandfiction.com, where we have made it easy for you to contact your U.S. senators and representatives. Just click on the "I'm a Concerned American" link under the "Mobilize Now" section, and enter your name and ZIP code to send a personalized e-mail stating your support for the U.S. automotive industry.

Let me assure you that General Motors has made dramatic improvements over the last 10 years. In fact, we are leading the industry with award-winning vehicles like the Chevrolet Malibu, Cadillac CTS, Buick Enclave, Pontiac G8, GMC Acadia, Chevy Tahoe Hybrid, Saturn AURA and more. We offer 18 models with an EPA estimated 30 MPG highway or better — more than Toyota or Honda. GM has 6 hybrids in market and 3 more by mid-2009. GM has closed the quality gap with the imports, and today we are putting our best quality vehicles on the road.

Please share this information with friends and family using the link on the site.

Thank you for helping keep our economy viable.

Sincerely,

Troy Clarke

Now, I'd link to it, but ugh, right wing sites and the comments made my eyes bleed. So, I decided to look a little further and pull in information that really needs to be out there, and that information is about the consequences of DOING NOTHING.

Should we taxpayers extend a loan to GM so that it can operate until the U.S. economy recovers? I say yes!

If you think a bridge loan to GM so that the lights can stay on through this economic tsunami is expensive, then think about the cost of a GM failure.

Let's be clear, the alternative for GM and the domestic industry is not a cake walk through the bankruptcy courts, resulting in a reorganization that some think would put dealers and the UAW in their place and ensure future success.

No, even if GM could get debtor-in-possession financing to keep the lights on (which is extremely unlikely in today's credit crisis environment), Chapter 11 means a collapse of sales and a downward spiral into a Chapter 7 liquidation.

snip

Do these "instant experts" who call for the implosion of the domestic industry have the faintest clue as to what it means if it were allowed to happen?

GM's 100,000 American jobs will die. Health care for a million Americans will be lost or at risk. Hundreds of GM's 1,300 suppliers will fail.

There are 14,000 domestic-oriented dealers in the U.S. that employ approximately 750,000 Americans with a payroll of around $35 billion. Blink — they are gone.

Take just Texas, for instance. GM builds vehicles, including Tahoes, in a plant in Arlington, just outside of Dallas. The company has a major parts distribution warehouse in Fort Worth. These 4,289 Texans would lose their jobs, the suppliers to these operations would fail, the communities would lose their tax bases, and the state would lose its tax revenues.

The effect of the collapse of the U.S. automobile industry would be devastating in ways in which these "experts" are not considering. Nearly 3 million jobs would be lost in the first year alone — with another 2.5 million to follow in the next two years. Personal income in the United States would drop by more than $150 billion in the first year. The cost to local, state and federal governments could top $156 billion over three years in lost taxes and unemployment and health care benefits. And, due to supplier bankruptcies, domestic automobile production would most likely fall to zero, even by international producers.

The United States is in an economic crisis. The entire U.S. automobile industry has been devastated and it's not just the domestic manufacturers that have been affected, as many have asserted.

The issues facing GM, Chrysler and Ford aren't because of just poor market reading (yeah, they didn't read the market well and produced gas guzzling SUVs for way too long) there are other factors at work here and those factors include everything that Mr. Clarke mentions and all the info mentioned By W. Carroll Smith (Smith is the owner of Monument Chevrolet in Pasadena, a past chairman of the Houston Automobile Dealers Association and a director of the National Automobile Dealers Association).

We have to decide now not tomorrow how we can help the auto industry, Hang'em all isn't a solution to these problems, we need to bridge this gap for them and take the opportunity to get them on a better foundation. We can't afford to have the ENTIRE US AUTO INDUSTRY FAIL.

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Blaming the union and its membership (um, I mean WORKERS here) is absolutely ridiculous.

Emptywheel has an excellent post up right now on this that deserves a closer look:

What the AP Left Out about the UAWBy: emptywheel Saturday November 15, 2008 1:42 pm

21diggs digg it

The AP has an article reporting that Ron Gettelfinger, head of the UAW, says the union will not make any more concessions to keep the Big Three in business. I guess the editor cut a big chunk--because the article obviously falls short of explaining why the UAW is taking this stand. Here's what the AP left in:

''The focus has to be on the economy as a whole as opposed to a UAW contract,'' Gettelfinger told reporters on a conference call, noting the labor costs now make up 8 percent to 10 percent of the cost of a vehicle.

''We have made dramatic, dramatic changes and the UAW was applauded for that,'' he said.

Instead, Gettelfinger blamed the problems the auto industry is suffering from on things beyond its control -- the housing slump, the credit crunch that has made financing a vehicle tough and the 1.2 million jobs that have been lost in the past year.
''We're here not because of what the auto industry has done,'' he said. ''We're here because of what has happened to the economy.''

And here's what the AP didn't report (I'm sure it was just an oversight, really).

In its contract last year, the UAW made painful concessions, adopting a two-tier wage structure, such that new employees make just $12 to $15 an hour. The move is projected to bring the American manufacturers in line with their Japanese rivals' non-union labor costs in the near future.

In addition, the union has taken responsibility for providing retiree healthcare, thereby eliminating one of the last remaining competitive disadvantages for the American manufacturers' unionized workforce as compared to their Japanese rivals.

With these agreements, the UAW has managed to save jobs, while still providing the superior labor force that leads most segments (big PDF, see page 10-11) in terms of the most efficient plants measured in hours per vehicle.

The UAW's workers have made deep concessions to ensure American-owned auto industry remains competitive with its foreign competitors. Now that the American-owned manufacturers have eliminated some of the structural disadvantages that gave foreign competitors a market advantage, it would be a terrible waste for its country not to do what's necessary to sustain American manufacturing though this tough financial period.

There. Now it tells a more complete story.

I actually discussed the Media's anti-union bias yesterday after watching Andrea Mitchell and Tom Brokaw shilling for the right wing on Meet the Press. Here's what I had to say yesterday:

I don't normally watch the Sunday talk shows, they just end up being so damn insulting to my intelligence. But for some odd reason I started watching it this morning and no, I wasn't disappointed, it completely insulted my intelligence and that of everyone else who happened to have the misfortune of listening.

Andrea Mitchell decided on a whim to bring up the Employee Free Choice Act, but of course, she used the Right Wing Talking Points, only to be re-enforced in those wingnut talk points.

Mitchell: ...The labor unions will be asked to make some kind of concessions, and what the uaw leaders said in an unusual press conference only yesterday was we’ve made enough concessions. So, as you point out there is the clash, the ability to organize, card check is the short term for it.

Brokaw: Without a secret ballot

Mitchell: without a secret ballot, is a BIG concession to labor. and that is gonna be one of the the early fights in this congress. And Barack Obama is going to have to make a choice on all these things as to whether he can find ways around it. And can answer the economists question as to why Toyota is successful, which is producing American jobs it’s just that their not union jobs.

Okay, I can answer that for you Andrea and let me put it into a way that your little mind can understand:

Toyota competes with GM and Ford for labor, assembly line work and precision assembly workers. Because they compete in the same market as GM and Ford and Chrysler, they have to pay the same wages. However, their benefits are not as good as those of GM, Ford and Chrysler. In fact, Toyota doesn’t provide a pension, health care to retirees and a number of other incentives that the unions which you hate have secured for their membership over YEARS and YEARS of work. But if you want to toss that out the window and ask why doesn't GM just declare Bankruptcy and gut all of their retirees pensions, health care and agreements with their employees, then Andrea, you also need to ask yourself what happens to all of those people? What happens to the pensioner who has no income or health care?

Toyota and Honda do not play on equal footing with GM and Chrysler and Andrea and Brokaw should know that. See, I think they do, they just don't really care. It's not like the economy is hurting them or that NBC is just going to turn off their spigot.

And Tom, let me also explain something else to you, something that you obviously don’t understand.

The Employee Free Choice Act makes it possible for EMPLOYEES to CHOOSE an election or CHOOSE to sign their card and leave it to that. Right now, it’s up to the BOSS and NOT the EMPLOYEE. And there is no SECRECY in today’s standards because the Boss gets to know who the employees are that have signed their cards and want a union.

But what you and Andrea also ignored as a concept is that organizing a union isn’t nearly as important as having a way to get employers to the table to negotiate. The Employee Free Choice Act provides for stiff penalties for employers who ignore the bargaining rights of their employees. I think this is what really is the heart in this fight. It's not that employees can organize, it's that the employers who screw with the results face actual penalties. There are penalties now, but it takes forever and the results of the penalties take YEARS to be realized if ever.

Despite what the rightwing says or lies about in terms of workers and unions, it is still the policy of the United States of America to ENCOURAGE UNIONIZATION:

National Labor Relations Act

The denial by some employers of the right of employees to organize and the refusal by some employers to accept the procedure of collective bargaining lead to strikes and other forms of industrial strife or unrest, which have the intent or the necessary effect of burdening or obstructing commerce by (a) impairing the efficiency, safety, or operation of the instrumentalities of commerce; (b) occurring in the current of commerce; (c) materially affecting, restraining, or controlling the flow of raw materials or manufactured or processed goods from or into the channels of commerce, or the prices of such materials or goods in commerce; or (d) causing diminution of employment and wages in such volume as substantially to impair or disrupt the market for goods flowing from or into the channels of commerce.

The inequality of bargaining power between employees who do not possess full freedom of association or actual liberty of contract and employers who are organized in the corporate or other forms of ownership association substantially burdens and affects the flow of commerce, and tends to aggravate recurrent business depressions, by depressing wage rates and the purchasing power of wage earners in industry and by preventing the stabilization of competitive wage rates and working conditions within and between industries.

Experience has proved that protection by law of the right of employees to organize and bargain collectively safeguards commerce from injury, impairment, or interruption, and promotes the flow of commerce by removing certain recognized sources of industrial strife and unrest, by encouraging practices fundamental to the friendly adjustment of industrial disputes arising out of differences as to wages, hours, or other working conditions, and by restoring equality of bargaining power between employers and employees.

Experience has further demonstrated that certain practices by some labor organizations, their officers, and members have the intent or the necessary effect of burdening or obstructing commerce by preventing the free flow of goods in such commerce through strikes and other forms of industrial unrest or through concerted activities which impair the interest of the public in the free flow of such commerce. The elimination of such practices is a necessary condition to the assurance of the rights herein guaranteed.

It is declared to be the policy of the United States to eliminate the causes of certain substantial obstructions to the free flow of commerce and to mitigate and eliminate these obstructions when they have occurred by encouraging the practice and procedure of collective bargaining and by protecting the exercise by workers of full freedom of association, self-organization, and designation of representatives of their own choosing, for the purpose of negotiating the terms and conditions of their employment or other mutual aid or protection.

So, Andrea and Tom, please understand that not only are you two shills for the anti-union anti-worker establishment fronted by the likes of Hannity, Limbaugh and McCain, but you two also don't seem to know your asses from a hole in the ground.

Employee Free Choice is Good For The Economy BECAUSE it is good for workers, unless of course you don't think workers are part of the economy or deserve to be represented by a union, a union of their own choosing.

Why does the Media hate workers so much? And worse, why are union production crews and writers continuing to spill out this garabage when in the end, they know it's garbage? If you're producing CBS, NBC, ABC or any other cable or network news and YOU are a union member, can you just think a minute before you write for a teleprompter anything that's anti-union and anti-worker garbage? Your brothers and sisters of the UAW would appreciate it.

Hell, I'd appreciate it.

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First off, here's the Post article to which Dean Baker refers and now, here's what Dean had to say today:

By Dean Baker

We all know how hard it is to get by on tens of millions of dollars a year. That is why the Washington Post was near hysterical in its support of the Wall Street bailout earlier this month. They argued that if we didn't give $700 billion to the banks right away that all hell would break loose.

Those who wanted to put conditions that ensured that the money didn't go into the pockets of shareholders or top executives, or even that the bailout was done the right way through direct injections of capital (as it eventually was) were denounced as reactionary Neanderthals. So, the bailout went through and the Wall Street executives are now getting tens of millions in compensation, courtesy of average taxpayers.

Now the occasion comes to bailout the auto industry and the Post goes ballistic the other way.

After all, the average autoworker makes $56,650 a year. That's almost as much as Robert Rubin makes in a day. Who do these autoworkers think they are?

There are serious issues that should be asked about any bailout of Detroit, but it is a bit obscene to see a paper that in both its editorial and news pages was an active supporter of handing tens of billions of dollars to rich Wall Street bankers suddenly turn around and get hysterical about the idea of helping workers making $57,000 a year. And remember, none of these autoworkers are responsible for wrecking the economy.

The class bias at the Post is so thick that most people should know to treat this one as a leftover from the comics section. But it is still pretty disgusting to see people who make six figure salaries and who anxiously promote policies to help people who make seven and eight figure salaries, get outraged over a policy designed to help people earning $57,000 a year.

Personally, gotta agree with Mr. Baker, and it was really these two paragraphs that really made the case:

Well, we can think of several objections. First, there is the question of whether the U.S. government should be picking winners and losers in a business such as this. It's one thing to bail out the financial sector, whose product -- credit -- is essentially fungible and on which all other businesses depend. Automobiles, however, are not interchangeable, and Congress can't substitute its specific technological and aesthetic preferences for those of the market. What if we lend Detroit $25 billion and still nobody buys its cars?


Second, this bailout taxes the less well-off to protect the relatively privileged. The average individual General Motors production worker, whose job would be saved by the bailout, makes $56,650 per year, according to the Center for Automotive Research, and that doesn't count better-paid, white-collar types. Meanwhile, half of all households-- which typically include more than one earner -- make less than $50,000 per year. Where's the justice in that?

Think about it for just one minute.

Okay, so then let's try again, the Post is ACTUALLY saying here that it's okay to bailout credit and insurance companies whose executives' greed brought down those same companies and destroyed the economy, but it's not okay to LOAN money to the Auto industry because their workers, union workers, make more than $50k on AVERAGE. that's not the median salary, that's the average. Apparently, to the Post, it's still okay to reward Investors over helping WORKERS. And yeah, that's really what this comes down to in the end. The Post is really suggesting that "fungible" industries like finance are essential, but jobs that pay well are simply not needed.

Nice job Post Editorial Board. Nice job.

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From CNN:

Honda began production of its new FCX Clarity fuel cell car Monday. The Japanese automaker will produce about 200 of them over the next three years. Honda would not say how many will make it to the U.S., but those that do will be leased only in Southern California.

Not so long ago (about 2 weeks ago), there was much hand ringing and anti-GM talk (which always translates into anti-UAW talk) about how Honda and Toyota are so far ahead of US automakers in terms of hydrogen fuel cell cars, well, that's why I found this piece interesting, again, from CNN:

General Motors already has a test fleet of about 100 fuel cell-powered Chevrolet Equinox SUVs in the hands of "ordinary consumers" in California, New York and Washington D.C.

So, GM beat Honda to the punch and has more cars already in the hands of consumers BEFORE the first Honda Hydrogen fuel cell rolls off the assembly line.

So, let me just say, way to go GM, nice to see you ahead of the anti-union Honda corp!

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For the past 12 days, Canadian autoworkers have blocked the GM headquarters in Oshawa, Ontario. A Canadian court ruled that the blockade needed to end because it was disrupting GM's work. Interesting enough, those execs were actually working from home. Nice, huh? United Press International noted what Oshawa faces:

The union claims 2,600 jobs in the city will be lost by the closure and accuses the company of bargaining in bad faith recently when workers agreed to pay freezes. GM Canada said it was unaware of Detroit's decision to close the plants.

Did you see that last line? Let me repeat it:

GM Canada said it was unaware of Detroit's decision to close the plants.

Sweet, they didn't even bother to tell their Office!!

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From AP (and no, still not a fan of AP for lots of previously stated reasons)

The Labor Department reported Thursday that the number of people filing new claims for unemployment benefits last week increased by 25,000 from the week before. The unemployment rate in May jumped to 5.5 percent, up from 5 percent in April. It was the biggest one-month gain in 22 years.

"The American people are waiting to see if Congress is going to help them," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said.

But the White House already has threatened to veto the bill, and Senate Democrats have said they won't try and force their Republican colleagues to consider the House legislation.

Okay, so Reid isn't going to waste several weeks battling over a bill that will never be considered (meaning that Republicans will block it by voting to continue debate, i.e., cloture), so Reid, has decided that he wants to make sure that unemployment benefits are extended, and what better way than to attach it to a bill Republicans won't defeat:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he will try to bring up the House bill, but he won't force the issue if Senate Republicans object. "We're not wasting weeks" on it, he said. Instead, Reid said, Democrats might attach the jobless benefits extension to the Iraq war spending bill, a move also opposed by the White House.

Nice, Reid, nice, I applaud your resolve to help American workers.

Of course, the article goes on to listen to the whining Republicans who seem to think it's okay to fund war, but not help out Americans like those in Van Wert who've been locked at by Kongsberg Automotive.

And just to be even more clear, how much are we talking in weekly benefits for these workers? Depends on what state you live in, for instance, if you are one of the Janesville GM workers who will lose your job due to the closure of the facility, you're looking at a weekly benefit of: $278.89 while the Moraine Ohio worker would get $299.55. But if you're one of those mortgage industry folks working in Mississippi, you can expect to receive $178.67.

Now for everyone thinking wow, that's free money, think of it this way, at minimum wage of $5.25 an hour and 40 hours a week, these same people would earn $210 a week. On the other hand, they are likely losing a job that paid $500 to $1000 a week with benefits and now, they're getting almost nothing with no benefits.

So, explain to me why it's okay to screw workers? I'm sure there's some great explanation about Market forces and how raising the minimum wage destroys the economy, but I have to wonder how many of these people talking about market forces have any idea what it's like trying to get by on $178.67 a week with no benefits. I'm guessing, there's no clue on their part.

You can check out the Bureau of Labor Statistics info on the Washington Post.

If you're in Ohio this weekend, head out to Van Wert

United Steelworkers of America Local 1-524 is organizing the rally set to kick off at noon at Fountain Park, located at Main and Jefferson.

Judy Grubb, union vice president, said the rally is a chance to boost morale for the workers at the Kongsberg Automotive plant who have been locked out since April 2. The company locked out more than 300 employees who had voted against ratifying the existing labor contract because the company sought to slash wages

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My dad told me this weekend that some of his parts suppliers and buyers are shutting down their operations in Mexico and moving back to the States and into Canada.

Okay, I’ll bite, “why Dad?”

“Because of bribes. The suppliers and buyers have told me that they’re tired of trying to get things done when you have to bribe everyone to get it done. And if you don’t bribe all the right people, the workers don’t show up to produce anything at all.”

My dad works in the steel industry and supplies the kind of equipment used in major manufacturing and construction. One of his supplier is planning a move to Canada soon and another into South Carolina if they get the land they want. So, when I read about the GM closure, I wasn’t too surprised to see a Mexican plant listed in a CNN report

The plants to be closed include two U.S. facilities - Moraine, Ohio and Janesville, Wis. - along with plants in Oshawa, Ontario and Toluca, Mexico.

The Moraine Ohio plant makes SUVs:

The Moraine plant employs about 2,500 workers and produces the GMC Envoy, Chevrolet Trailblazer, Saab 9-7X and Isuzu Ascender.

The plant has been cut from 4100 employees in 2006 to only 2500 now and those employees are now left to find new jobs or move out of the Dayton area.

The plants at Moraine and Janesville are the most vulnerable, according to some industry analysts.

Greg Gardner, an analyst with the Oliver Wyman Group, said both plants are a distance from parts suppliers. Plants in Texas and Mexico can easily satisfy demand for big SUVs, while GM may stop building mid-size SUVs in a few years, Gardner said.

IUE-CWA local 798 represents workers in the Moraine plant and had this to say to GM:

The workers at Moraine assembly have a long history of progressive contracts that have led to this plant being named the most productive in the country. Through unprecedented work rule flexibility and an unmatched commitment to quality, the workers at Truck and Bus have consistently delivered a profitable product.

We understand that outside forces, particularly high fuel and health care costs, are negatively impacting the auto industry. But to break the covenant with these workers is unconscionable. GM should recognize the loyalty and skill of the Moraine workers with a new product placement. GM could reward the community's long-time support by working to rebuild the plant's future, not abandoning an already hard-struck area. I hope that GM is not out of fresh ideas and new products. They owe Moraine workers and the community.

snip

IUE-CWA will work as hard as possible and reach out to all potential allies to try to save this plant. If GM still wants to make an excellent product at a profit in the United States, we can do it in Moraine. On a parallel path, however, we will fight equally as hard to ensure that our members and retirees get all they deserve and all they have earned after years of working for GM."

After having been laid off since March and only having returned to work a few weeks ago, this latest announcement from GM really does just say screw you to their workers. I wonder if Oshawa, Janesville and Toluca are just as pissed by this news and feeling just as screwed. If I were a betting girl, I’d bet the answer is yes.

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I know she's the spokesperson, but OMG, I'm so sick of seeing Renee Roger's name in all of these freaking articles. From BizJournal:

"There is no timetable for a presentation to the union membership at this time," company spokeswoman Renee Rogers said.

She was referring to what last week she called speculation that negotiations included closing Tonawanda and Detroit forge plants. She said that "at this point, all of what you have been reading is rumor and speculation. There has been nothing presented to membership so we are not going to comment on any of that stuff that at this point is just speculation."

So, Renee wants to make sure that everyone knows that the previous reports were wrong and they're no closer to an agreement. Yippee, isn't that great? But wait, there's more, the business article broke down some numbers for us...

But little else was being reported as the future of the company's two Buffalo-area facilities and about 600 hourly and salaried jobs could hang on the outcome.

- snip -

The Tonawanda plant employs about 400 hourly workers. A machining facility in Cheektowaga, which has 110 hourly employees, has not been mentioned as a target for closure, but because it services the Tonawanda plant, its future would be uncertain if the forge plant closed.

I don't know about you, but I so needed to be reminded what's at stake here in terms of numbers. Actually, wait, I didn't!!

And, Renee, it's not just Freep reporting on this, other news outlets are as well...

Worker Ken Krzycki said a local union official told picketers some details of the possible settlement. It would include negotiating the closure of American Axle's Detroit and Tonawanda, N.Y., forge operations. The possible settlement would also include wage cuts for production workers to $17 an hour from about $28.

Local 235 President Adrian King confirmed the numbers and said the union was evaluating the proposal.

Again, bad proposal. Doesn't matter if it's coming out of BizJournal, Freep or Washington Post, a local agreement is just like breaking up the union. When strikers worry about their individual jobs, it pits worker against worker at plants from Tonawanda to Three Rivers. And this also means way more work at the local level because Local agreements mean that each individual plant must hold the company accountable, instead of getting the help from the national (or international) on issues like Pay, classification and many other issues.

And what makes this important is that in local agreements, many don't vote on the contracts. Look at UAW local 1005 in Parma Ohio

...and at the end, they mention that the UAW Parma local REJECTED their contract:

Workers in Parma rejected a new local contract earlier this month. UAW Local 1005 President Tito Boneta, in a letter to his members, said voter turnout was less than 50 percent for that rejection, so the union's leadership is putting the tentative pact up for a new vote Wednesday.

And at the Re-Vote, they barely approved their contract with a TOTAL VOTE FOR: 550 and AGAINST: 537. That means that 51% approved it. And I wish I could figure out how many showed up for this vote, or rather, how much more than 50% of the membership for this vote.

But wait, don't worry, The Toledo Blade has more, this time they make a note about the Delta Township plant, out on strike since April 17th...

GM spokesman Dan Flores said Friday the automaker is pleased the agreement was ratified and hopes to reach other local agreements.

A local at a plant in Delta Township near Lansing went on strike April 17.

Locals at a Warren transmission factory, a Grand Rapids metal fabricating plant, a metal parts stamping factory in Mansfield, Ohio, and a factory in Kansas City, Kan., all have threatened walkouts.

Local plants negotiate their own operating agreements.

And as for Kansas City's plant, well, the Washington Post (actually it's from AP) has the scoop and it means, STRIKE...

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- Members of a United Auto Workers union local went on strike Monday at General Motors' Fairfax facility _ hitting the plant that makes GM's popular Malibu sedan.

During talks over the weekend, UAW Local 31 set a Monday morning strike deadline because union negotiators believed the two sides remained far from an agreement. The Fairfax plant employs more than 2,500 UAW members.

The plant makes the Chevrolet Malibu, a medium-sized sedan that was named "Car of the Year" at this year's North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

For GM and the UAW, it still feels like death from a million papercuts. From Renee's mouth to everyone out there, all of these local agreements for American Axle (if they are a part of the agreement even if Renee says there's no agreement, ugh, my head hurts), we're still talking a death by a million paper cuts. And I think it's cuts to AAM, GM and yep, the UAW.

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UPDATE 4/29/08

Well, while trolling around the tubes I found this little diddy about Mansfield's operations threatening a strike against GM

UAW Local 549 in Mansfield had threatened to strike this week if it did not have a new local contract. Local contracts deal with work rules and shift preferences while national contracts set wages and health care benefits.

...and at the end, they mention that the UAW Parma local REJECTED their contract:

Workers in Parma rejected a new local contract earlier this month. UAW Local 1005 President Tito Boneta, in a letter to his members, said voter turnout was less than 50 percent for that rejection, so the union's leadership is putting the tentative pact up for a new vote Wednesday.

Original story:
From UAW local 1005

The Latest News...

To All UAW Local 1005 Members


RATIFICATION MEETINGS
FOR LOCAL AGREEMENT
At the Local Union Hall
5615 Chevrolet Blvd.

FRIDAY, APRIL 18, 2008
6:30 A.M. - 3RD SHIFT
12:00 NOON - 2ND SHIFT
3:00 P.M. - 1ST SHIFT

VOTING FOR LOCAL AGREEMENT
WILL BE ON
FRIDAY, APRIL 18, 2008
FROM 6:00 A.M. TO 8:00 P.M.
(14 continuous hours)
Tito Boneta
TITO BONETA PRESIDENT
LOCAL 1005, UAW Dan Smith
DAN SMITH, SHOP CHAIRMAN
LOCAL 1005, UAW



2007 Local Agreement Highlights

A Tentative Local Agreement was reached on April 8, 2008 at 8:00 P.M. by your Shop Committee, Health and Safety Representatives and our National and Regional Union Representatives, Mark Kelly and John Mohan.

Some of the highlights of the New 2007 Local Agreement are as follows:

All non skilled members will be paid equally the top rate “technician rate.”

Full utilization agreement in the Local Agreement for the Skilled Trades.

No combination of Skilled Trades classifications!

No infringements on #182 agreements!

Seniority Agreement split into two groups:
One section is specifically for the Technician classifications.
One section specifically for Skilled Trades classifications.

Five new team agreements.

Enhanced language pertaining to: Layoff and Recall procedure, Seniority Agreement, Team Preference, Shift Preference, Paragraph 71, Local Memorandum of Understandings, Language on Independence and Vacation weeks and Shutdown period, Model Change or Complex Rearrangement, Temporary layoffs, and Transfers.

I still lean toward the opinion that local agreements weaken the barganing position of the union, but I'm still celebrating the contract. Hopefully, it's a good one.

And, on a side note, the hall that's pictured on the local's site is where my cousin's wedding reception was held, ages ago. It's kind of cool to see it on the site.

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Now, it's not the headline that is interesting to me, it's the loss of production right now.

With American Axle's strike affecting more than 30 GM plants in at least 3 countries and countless other manufacturing jobs elsewhere (think about the nearly 2% rise in unemployment for Fort Wayne), well, I think you get the picture.

From the MSNBC article:

“We obviously want to win, and we’d like to be No. 1 in sales at the end of the year,” he said. “But really our focus right now is on profitable, sustainable growth across the world.”

GM said it posted record sales in three of its four regions, but a 10 percent drop in North America pulled down the overall numbers. Sales were up 8 percent outside of North America, the Detroit automaker said.

A record 64 percent of GM’s sales in the latest quarter came from outside the United States, with the company reporting nearly 20 percent growth in the Latin America, Africa and Middle East region, 6 percent growth for Asia Pacific operations and 3 percent growth in Europe.

GM sold roughly 2.27 million vehicles worldwide in the first quarter of 2007.

I like the profitable sustainable growth quote, but I'm not sure that GM can sustain such a thing if their most popular cars and trucks are simply not being manufactured as is increasingly becoming the case now. So, when is it going to be the right time for GM to put PUBLIC pressure on Dick Dauch so that he starts negotiating in Good Faith, once and for all?

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Well, looks like GM may finally enter the Fray on American Axle and Dick Dauch’s resolve not to negotiate, from CBS channel 3 News in Michigan:

(NEWSCHANNEL 3) - It looks like striking American Axle workers will stay on those picket lines a little longer.

UAW President Ron Gettelfinger says the company didn't do much negotiating with the union over the weekend.

He says he's not sure when they'll actually reach an agreement.

I think they might have gotten this information from the AP or perhaps the Detroit News. There’s also the Ft Wayne Paper…

Gettelfinger told reporters before speaking to a Detroit-area Democratic Party dinner that American Axle isn't negotiating much.

>snip<

"I would hope we could resolve Axle, but we cannot negotiate an agreement with ourselves," he said before a speech to Livingston County Democrats. "It seems like it's all give on our side."

>snip<

Gettelfinger said in his speech that American Axle Chairman and CEO Richard Dauch made $258 million from 1997 through 2007 but wants workers to work for nothing.
"They use the word competitive until they wear it out, but are they competitive with their own salaries?" he asked.

What is interesting in all of this is that GM still isn’t putting public pressure on Dauch to bargain in good faith, of course, I do hope they are putting the screws to him behind closed doors, but that’s probably a pipe dream . With more than 30 GM factories affected by the strike, I have to wonder when they will. I suppose Fort Wayne Indiana is also thinking about it.

The unemployment rate for the Fort Wayne metropolitan area shot up to 6.4 percent in March, 1.5 percentage points higher than the 4.9 percent rate from March 2007, a state unemployment report showed Friday.

>snip<

The strike at American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. was cited as one of the factors. The strike, which began in late February, has caused several shutdowns and layoffs in the auto manufacturing industry.

“Unfortunately, the effects of the American Axle strike are being felt here and have had an impact on our unemployment numbers,” Teresa Voors, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, said in the report.

American Axle is a key supplier to General Motors Corp., which has a truck assembly plant in southwest Allen County. Production at the plant was shut down between Feb. 29 and April 7 because of a lack of parts, affecting 2,500 hourly workers. Currently, the Allen County plant is back to normal production on a temporary basis.

With the American Axle strike now affecting employment rates in other states, over 30 GM plants, and the workers at American Axle as well, perhaps it’s finally time for the candidates to address this issue and take a stab at understanding what it really means to HAVE to WALK A PICKET LINE and how important this strike is for US workers. Of course, it's also time for GM to get its head out of the sand and publicly address Dauch and his cronies on this. Of course, it's been time for the candidates and GM to answer this call. Wonder when they finally will.

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At least that's what the Detroit Free Press is reporting, some progress:

Enough progress has been made for the UAW to call off a rally slated for today in Hart Plaza, which was viewed as an encouraging sign that the strike by 3,650 workers at four American Axle plants would end soon.

"We are ready to go back to work," said Anthony Jones, a 51-year-old single father and an American Axle production worker for 13 years. "But at least we want it to be fair."

Fair would be nice, I'll keep my fingers crossed, but until then, I'm with Lisa

Lisa Akra of Plymouth Township, who left a job at Rock Financial to become a machinist at American Axle, said she feels frustrated hearing word that a deal could be reached soon and then hearing that it might take more time.

"It's desperate mode now for most people," she said, noting that the strike is in its eighth week. Strikers get $200 a week from a UAW fund. "We didn't expect to be out this long."

Too many are in desperate mode. Some onf Dick, bargain in good faith for once!!

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Workers Walk Off Job at Lansing GM Assembly Plant
By Sharon Terlep
The Detroit News

Thursday 17 April 2008

Lansing - United Auto Workers walked off the job at General Motors Corp.'s Delta Township plant when a 10 a.m. deadline passed with no deal on a local contract.

The walkout started at about 10:15 a.m. with dozens of vehicles streaming out of plant gates. Some workers picketed the plant with signs as passing motorists signaled support.

UAW officials have not specified the local contract issues in dispute. In addition to the overarching UAW contract reached last fall with Detroit's Big Three automakers, most UAW locals are still negotiating plant-level deals.

Doug Rademacher, president of UAW Local 602, which represents workers at the Lansing plant, said talks have broken off and that he didn't know when they will resume.

He dismissed speculation that the strike is part of a UAW strategy to draw GM into the lengthy labor dispute with partsmaker American Axle & Manufacturing Inc. The UAW walked off the job at American Axle plans Feb. 26.

Rademacher said workers at the Delta plant have been working under a contract put in place in 1999 when GM built the factory. The contract, he said, was intended to give GM flexibility to get the factory running, but was never supposed to be a long-term labor agreement. The UAW planned to get a plant-level contract in place for Delta after last fall's national negotiations, he said.

This workforce deserves respect," he said. "We changed our culture to work with the company. We need a local agreement."

The Delta plant is critical for GM because it builds the automaker's popular crossovers, the GMC Acadia, Saturn Outlook and Buick Enclave.

The overall article is interesting in that it mentions the American Axle strike, but doesn't really address why that's important here. There's simply only a mention.

So, let's take a look at it. What GM cars have been affected by the 52 day American Axle strike. So far, we're looking at:

• GMC Acadia,
• Saturn Outlook
• Buick Enclave
• Chevy Malibu
• Chevy Cobalt
• Pontiac G5
• Chevy Silverado
• GMC Sierra
• Buick Lucerne
• Cadillac DTS


And these are only the models named. Most are listed as "GM light trucks", "Cadillac" vehicles as well as "SUV". Pretty generic names that really are more likely on the lines of Escalade, Vibe, Cadillac, Saturn VUE and many others.

So, what exactly does this all mean to American Axle. Well, it means the loss of GM work.

The five week-old strike at American Axle is finally starting to wear on GM, and the General has decided to move a small but crucial parts contract over to rival supplier Dana to help get its truck plants moving again. The 30,000-unit prop shaft contract for light pickups is considered a small deal, but the fact that GM is beginning to move on shows that the strike, which began on February 26, is beginning to take its toll on the giant automaker. The move is going to anger the striking workers, but it will also likely help get American Axle management back at the bargaining table.

It did bring Dick Dauch and his son Dick Dauch, back to the table in early April, but it’s now day 52 of the strike and more plants are being idled as GM runs out of parts for some of their best selling brands.

But what about the workers in Delta Township who now have no local contract in place for their plant? Well, it looks as if it's a waiting game. I suppose it is also a waiting game for even more workers:

A UAW local at a GM transmission plant in Warren, Mich., has a strike deadline set for Friday morning. And a union local at a GM stamping plant near Grand Rapids, Mich., issued a warning to the auto maker that it may strike if progress isn't made on its local agreement.

I wonder if the steelworkers in Van Wert are doing any better in their negotiations from their lock out than American Axle workers are doing in their strike. Somehow, the greed of these corporate goons makes me think, it's just not the case.

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I just found a report, 8 hours old, that the GM plant in Lordstown is still working despite the previous reports that the plant would run out of parts sometime Tuesday, today. From the ABC 33 newsroom:

The official line from General Motors is it remains "business as usual" for the Lordstown complex..despite a lingering strike by autoworkers with American Axel in Detroit..which enters its 8th week tomorrow...

While GM spokesman Dan Flores admits the walkout is having an impact on GM's production, he stops short of suggesting the struggling automaker will step-in to get the strike resolved, telling First News "fundamentally, this is a labor dispute between American Axel and the UAW."

Meantime, local union leaders are trying to keep the rumors and speculation of a plant shutdown from getting out of control. UAW Local 1112 President Jim Graham says that unless management tells his members to stay home, "we're working."

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This is JUST A RUMOR:

...this morning's word on the street is that Lordstown only has enough brake parts to keep the plant open to next week. I tried to see if there was a newspaper or broadcast site online to verify but so far nothing.

If I get a confirmation, I'll update this piece. But I'm wondering, if this is true, will GM finally step in and do something?

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