Congress would like to keep the car companies viable and independent and is spending a lot of time and money toward those goals. As General Motors (NYSE: GM) and Chrysler reach the point where they need to have plans to show they can manage their businesses with government loans, the UAW is starting to give them a hard time. Someone is going to have to break the log jam.
According to Bloomberg, "The United Auto Workers union is objecting to proposals from General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC to modify a retiree health-care fund as required by the U.S."
Are Congress and the Administration going to let the UAW kill the restructuring of the car companies? Almost certainly not. So, the UAW is about to get a call. And, the call could come from the president, which would put huge pressure on the union, especially if The White House releases the fact that the call was made.
The government can turn the UAW into the spoiler that plans to wreck the U.S. car industry. The union that turned down the president's request to get on board. Or, it can play ball.
It will play ball.
Douglas A. McIntyre is the editor of 24/7 Wall St.











Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-14-2009 @ 7:57AM
Vince Marchisotto said...
UAW, UNITED AUTO WRECKERS!!!!!!!! LET THEM EAT SHIT!!!!!!!! NO JOB WILL DO WONDERS FOR THEIR RETIREMENT!!!!!
2-14-2009 @ 8:32AM
dave said...
you eat shit /vince
2-14-2009 @ 10:24AM
ramos777747 said...
UAW want to keep their jobs at tax payer expense. We need to keep jobs but uaw workers need to sacrifice not just the tax payer.
2-14-2009 @ 10:37AM
Barry Greenberg said...
Someone please stop the union welfare program of 2009, we will be paying for it forever. Stymulus my butt
2-14-2009 @ 10:40AM
Terry Rottier said...
UAW health benefits have already been drastically cut. We used to be able to go to the doctor and pay a 10 dollar co-pay for an office call. Office calls are no longer covered we pay the whole thing. Many UAW members are no longer gettin physicals or going to the doctor on a regular basis. Now they only go for a catastrophic illness. Many perscription drugs are no longer covered. What you also do not hear is that at 62 we must go on medicare so the company is no longer responsible for retires health care at that time. Also at 62 we must sign up for Social Security and our pensions are cut by at least what we recieve from SS, which takes at least half of the pension burden off the company. Pension benefits were earned over 30+ years of service. Just like SS the company was supposed to fund it each year and didn't. They followed the governments lead just as they did not fund SS. This shouldn't be new money. It's supposed to be money invested over the years to pay out today. New employees start at 14 dollars an hour with severely cut benefits. How much do you expect the UAW to suffer. You people need to get the facts before ripping the UAW. We're not the Teamsters or other radical unions.
2-14-2009 @ 11:47AM
K Evans said...
The UAW has destroyed the the big (3). They ae a bunch of pork laden slovenly pigs sucking up all they can get. The big (3) should do what Regan did with the air traffic controllers union which is fire them all and get new workers. People that really want to work. The unions will eventually implode which will be a great day. No one will cry for them when they are gone. Nothing last forever. They will be gone.
2-14-2009 @ 12:16PM
babyraymond8 said...
I am a proud UAW member. I do not make 70 dollars an hour, or even half of that, as Fox News(The GOP channel) would have you believe. I do not have gold plated benefits. I pay 65 to 85 dollars every time my family or I walk into a doctors office. I dont know anything about derivitives and only a little about sub prime mortgages. I do know that the Wall Street Wiz kids are the ones who got us into this mess. Not me bring my lunch pale to work everyday trying my best to make a world class product.
2-14-2009 @ 12:57PM
Terry Rottier said...
I can't believe how ignorant people like K Evans, or Barry, Ramos and Vince are they believe anything the Media says and won't take the time to find out the truth.
2-15-2009 @ 7:50PM
flytynfool said...
having worked for gm for 30 yrs. i know how the uaw operates. they,at one time did do some very good work to help their members but over time they just more unreasonable with their demands and the company gave them 98% of what they asked for because the cars were still selling as the price kept getting higher. the uaw didnt seem to realize that they were pricing themselves (their members) out of ajob once the foreign car companies built their evil car plants where cheaper labor was, it was only amatter of time. that time is now here and the uaw is still unable to see the problem.. a couple of years from now they can sit in their union halls with nothing else to do and rember how they showed gm who wae boss. so sorry,to bad but dumb is dumb.
2-14-2009 @ 7:01PM
bpodusa said...
Now the UAW needs to live like the rest of us. They are going to have to work when they show up and yes you will have to pay more for health care. Join the club! Why should our taxes support your benefits?
2-14-2009 @ 8:06PM
kd said...
Wake up, people. While some blame the UAW workers for earning a living wage with decent benefits, the really *big* bucks are being carted off by the bank CEO's, the politicos, and Wall Street wankers.
Before condemning all autoworkers as lazy and ignorant, please, walk a mile in their workboots. I dare you. The physical toll of their jobs is astounding. Their middle class wages and benefits are hard-fought. Don't wish theirs gone, unite and fight for the same for yourselves and your families.
God bless all workers.
from the heart and from the Heartland,
kd
2-14-2009 @ 10:10PM
Iggy Spina said...
Wake up UAW you want your medical fund covered by GM for $20 billion plus
dollars for the next 80 years. The corporation is trying to borrow 13.4 billion from the government just to try and possibly become viable now not next year and certainly not 80 years from now. Is there anyone in the UAW with the sense
they were at least born with. The UAW has been on one big party for the last 40 years or more and can't recognize the party is over. Their isn't any blood left in the stone how hard is it to understand that. You sucked up all the blood with your guaranteed wage and your programs with members reporting everyday to a place where they can sit around watch tv,
play cards and get a paycheck for doing absolutely nothing. What a waste of humanity this is not what our fore fathers
did to build America. How do you contribute to the country by demanding your members be paid for sitting around doing absolutely nothing and demanding they get paid for it. Why havn't you ever thought about your fellowman who ends up paying for your obnoxius outlook and
raping demands of your employers. It's
almost over but I guess the UAW wants
to make sure it's over for them and their
entire membership. A few so called "Top
UAW Leaders" are about to spell out the
demise of the great UAW. Good luck my
God for give you.
2-14-2009 @ 10:50PM
DragonBuda10 said...
I Think When you have worked as long as my husbsnd did 30 YEARS and went out on a promise that his insurance was for life. InThe early 2000's Possibly 2004 or 5 even there was a big long Strke with UAW 807 in Burlington,Iowa. They wanted retired workers and spouses to pay for there own Insurances and I believe that was overturned by the United States Appeals Court and now the company is having to pay that back to the workers and or spouses. Someone with knowledge could go and look this up.The company is Case New Holland and it could of been just Case or Casebine company then. Any way my husband is retired and does not even get the right to vote, how fair is that he kept his end of the bargain until retirement so I think they should.
2-14-2009 @ 11:21PM
glerchen said...
Here come all the assholes that think that the union is to blame. Keep believing the corporate lies like the sheep that you are. If union workers got higher wages and benefits it also follows that they paid more taxes. Those that don't believe that ALL retirees, and ALL Americans deserve quality health care are the ignorant scum that keep the US #39 in healthcare in the civilized world. Also if it's the unions that are wrecking the auto industry in this country, how come GM is begging for bailouts in Canada, the UK, and every other nation in which they do business? They don't have to pay healthcare costs in those countries, since there is national health CARE, not bullshit insurance, in those places. The mess that we're in is squarely the fault of the MBA's and the corporate liars that have spoon fed all of us the fairy tale of the"American Dream" for at least four generations. It's time to separate illusion from reality.
2-15-2009 @ 11:02AM
Kevin IBEW 558 said...
Why no comments from those of you that speak out against unoins on the C.E.O's of the big three automakers arriving via private jets in Washington. They only changed transportation when reprimanded. Surely you stand alone folks that are against unions haven't got your heads in the sand. Do you really think this is an isolated incident? It should be the high and mighty big bussiness people that have been slinging money around like it actually belongs to them that should have to answer for the failures. Not taking away from the union members that built America with quality craftsmanship. Sure, there are bad apples at every end of the spectrum. e.g. WALL STREET!!! But to just blame unions for the automakers demise is absolutely absurd. Come on people, look for the the real truth behind our financial woes. Get your hands off your fat wallets and go to work, instead of hiring illegals with temp.visas to do our work and take away from OUR children. God Bless Union Members
2-16-2009 @ 7:29PM
dpaperplane1 said...
Hey K Evans, You're obvioiusly one of the loser, highschool dropouts who was turned down by GM for failing your piss test, or your psychological test. Sounds like sour grapes to me, now that you're stuck making $12.00/hr. Keep hitting the bong or crack pipe buddy because you obviously have no idea what you are talking about.