| Topic: |
Politics > Politics-Republicans |
| User: |
"SMITH29" |
| Date: |
02 Feb 2008 05:02:27 PM |
| Object: |
How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
Auto pact: the good, the bad and the ugly
The wages and working conditions of union autoworkers have always set
standards for all manufacturing. These in turn have put upward pressure
on wages and benefits for all workers. But in today’s political and
economic climate, major contract negotiations in the manufacturing
sector are hell. Thirty years of corporate/right-wing attack on labor
law and workers’ rights have taken an enormous toll. Capitalist
globalization, with its frenzied export of capital and jobs, has greatly
weakened union leverage. In 1979 General Motors employed over 400,000
autoworkers in the U.S.; today that number is less than 80,000 and
shrinking. US autoworkers productivity is higher here than any where
else in the world. Labor cost is about 10% of the cost of a vehicle.
About 25% of the auto workers in the US are in unions. Thirty years ago
labor was about 25% of the cost and 90% of the assembly workers were in
the union. Add in the environment of corporate greed, fraud, flimflam
and corruption evidenced on Wall Street in the current mortgage and
financial crisis, and you have essential context for evaluating the
GM/United Auto Workers settlement.
The good
When over 73,000 UAW workers walked out last month in the first national
strike against General Motors in over 30 years, they showed courage,
militancy and spirit. Within minutes, spontaneous solidarity erupted
across a broad section of labor and the working class. The Teamsters
stopped moving parts, and that led to quickly closing plants in Canada
and Mexico. Caravans of supporters, other unions and just folks showed
up on picket lines bearing refreshments and support. The AFL-CIO, Change
to Win and major unions responded with pledges of support. This was not
just trade union solidarity. Everyone in labor, and many beyond, knew
that the GM workers were on the front line for us all, and were ready to
back them up.
The mostly bad
The GM contract is a setback for autoworkers and for the entire U.S.
working class. Its worst feature is a two-tier employment system that
will mean new hires will get about half the wages of senior workers, and
worse benefits. With huge cash buyouts of current workers and the
expected retirement of about a third of current workers in the next five
years, the second tier could become the main tier by the end of the
contract. This is a real sharp setback for younger workers who will soon
be the majority. What kids will want to follow their parents into auto
for half the wages and fewer benefits?
The disunity and the unfairness of it all has great potential to weaken
the union even further, especially on the shop floor. Further, union
auto jobs have been an important path out of poverty for African
American, Latino and women workers in particular. A two-tier system will
greatly undermine this kind of opportunity.
The health care part of the agreement also has great dangers. It shifts
responsibility off of GM and onto the union. This sets the workers up
for crisis. Recession, stock market crashes and rising costs can leave
the workers with greatly increased costs or totally uninsured. Not to
mention the problems of the union being a “player” on Wall Street – talk
about conflicts of interest! Letting this giant international
corporation renege on its health care responsibilities will certainly
lead both union and nonunion companies along the same path.
These kinds of concessions from the union will make it hard to organize
new members.
The UAW leadership has underestimated the union’s strength and its
members’ readiness for a fight. At the same time it has overestimated
GM’s real vulnerabilities. The U.S. auto market is still essential to
GM. Unfortunately, this agreement follows a long established pattern of
assuming that it is better to “go along to get along.” For the last 25
years, concession contracts have claimed to provide job security. But as
soon as the job “guarantee” is signed, GM and the other auto companies
start whittling away for the next contract. Keeping promises to workers
is not part of their creed. As UAW President Ron Gettlefinger said, the
workers can’t give enough and the company can’t take enough.
The race to the bottom never stops, so autoworkers need to get off that
bus. Keeping GM “competitive” is just yada-yada for “keep GM profits up
and let the workers bear the costs.” Stopping this GM drive requires the
power of the membership. That has to be prepared and mobilized. It
requires reaching out to all of labor and the working class, not
pursuing a go-it-alone strategy.
It should be clear to all that the failed strategy and tactics of
struggle in the auto industry of the last 30 years will not work today.
New strategy and tactics have to be based on the very new conditions of
a globalized auto industry. They also have to be based on the reality
that so much of the U.S. auto industry is unorganized. The power of a
union is its members and its numbers. And increasingly, that power is in
global labor alliances that can match global giants like GM. Labor’s
power is not measured only by the wisdom and determination of its
leaders, but real leadership wisdom and determination is required to win
in this new world.
A good idea
By all accounts it was GM’s resistance to the union’s demand that it
invest in U.S. plants to guarantee jobs that forced the strike. Trying
to force GM to commit to and expand its domestic operations opens an
important front of struggle. GM’s capital comes from the hard work of
generations of autoworkers. The workers very much need to challenge GM’s
“right” to invest where it pleases with no responsibility to the people
and communities who made all that capital. Unfortunately, the contract
gives GM a loophole, saying “market-related volume decline” will guide
plant closings and U.S. investment. Hopefully the contract will keep
jobs and investments here, but GM should not be allowed to make those
decisions alone.
The ugly
Wall Street’s clamor for autoworkers’ blood was truly ugly. It went the
gamut from praising GM for finally (sic) getting tough with the union to
the mad rant by MSNBC’s Jim Cramer for GM to “break the union.” After
the tentative agreement was announced, Wall Street started yammering
that the concessions weren’t enough. The ugly, naked hatred of these
finance capital pundits is scary to behold. Gone is the pretense of
wanting class partnership. Gone is any pretense of fairness or justice.
The struggle continues
This fight isn’t over by a long shot. Ford and Chrysler contracts are
still pending and could result in more picket lines. Labor and all
progressive movements have to continue to build support for this fight.
Even at GM, where it seems certain that the contract will be ratified,
the fight will continue.
But ultimately, those of us who understand the broader working class
nature of this fight have to redouble our political efforts on issues
central to these negotiations. The 2006 election victories against the
right-wing Republicans, the energy of the autoworkers in their strike
and the determination of labor and progressives to shift power even more
in the 2008 elections – these are exciting indications that what
autoworkers have lost at the bargaining table can be won in the
political arena.
Every candidate for Congress and the presidency needs to be pushed to
take a stand on single-payer national health care, on passing the
Employee Free Choice Act (there is leverage in having Mercedes, Toyota,
BMW, and Honda workers in the UAW) and on industrial policy that
mandates re-investment in the manufacturing base of our economy. The
autoworkers’ fight is our fight! They have to win so we can win.
Scott Marshall (scott@rednet.org) is chair of the Communist Party USA’s
labor commission.
.
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| User: "Tom Gardner" |
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| Title: Re: How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
02 Feb 2008 09:31:51 PM |
|
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"SMITH29" <smith29@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:SPqdnWQ0Nv0faznanZ2dnUVZ_uPinZ2d@comcast.com...
Auto pact: the good, the bad and the ugly
The wages and working conditions of union autoworkers have always set
standards for all manufacturing. These in turn have put upward pressure on
wages and benefits for all workers. But in today’s political and economic
climate, major contract negotiations in the manufacturing sector are hell.
Thirty years of corporate/right-wing attack on labor law and workers’ rights
have taken an enormous toll. Capitalist
<snip>
Soon, there will be one union autoworker in each plant, the person that manages
the robot that repairs the robots that repair the robots than make the cars. He
will make great wages and have great benefits until he is replaced with
automation...but the union will have won!
.
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| User: "Boy Howdy" |
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| Title: Re: How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
03 Feb 2008 03:16:12 PM |
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"Tom Gardner" <tom(spamless)@ohiobrush.com> wrote in message
news:vzapj.6760$nK5.3559@nlpi069.nbdc.sbc.com...
|
| "SMITH29" <smith29@comcast.net> wrote in message
| news:SPqdnWQ0Nv0faznanZ2dnUVZ_uPinZ2d@comcast.com...
| >
| > Auto pact: the good, the bad and the ugly
| >
| > The wages and working conditions of union autoworkers have always set
| > standards for all manufacturing. These in turn have put upward pressure
on
| > wages and benefits for all workers. But in today's political and
economic
| > climate, major contract negotiations in the manufacturing sector are
hell.
| > Thirty years of corporate/right-wing attack on labor law and workers'
rights
| > have taken an enormous toll. Capitalist
| <snip>
|
| Soon, there will be one union autoworker in each plant, the person that
manages
| the robot that repairs the robots that repair the robots than make the
cars. He
| will make great wages and have great benefits until he is replaced with
| automation...but the union will have won!
|
I think I saw that on an old "Twilight Zone" episode.
.
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| User: "Soupy Sales" |
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| Title: Re: How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
03 Feb 2008 03:21:06 PM |
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Boy Howdy wrote:
"Tom Gardner" <tom(spamless)@ohiobrush.com> wrote in message
news:vzapj.6760$nK5.3559@nlpi069.nbdc.sbc.com...
|
| "SMITH29" <smith29@comcast.net> wrote in message
| news:SPqdnWQ0Nv0faznanZ2dnUVZ_uPinZ2d@comcast.com...
| >
| > Auto pact: the good, the bad and the ugly
| >
| > The wages and working conditions of union autoworkers have always set
| > standards for all manufacturing. These in turn have put upward pressure
on
| > wages and benefits for all workers. But in today's political and
economic
| > climate, major contract negotiations in the manufacturing sector are
hell.
| > Thirty years of corporate/right-wing attack on labor law and workers'
rights
| > have taken an enormous toll. Capitalist
| <snip>
|
| Soon, there will be one union autoworker in each plant, the person that
manages
| the robot that repairs the robots that repair the robots than make the
cars. He
| will make great wages and have great benefits until he is replaced with
| automation...but the union will have won!
|
I think I saw that on an old "Twilight Zone" episode.
Peobable spammy sam alias. PLONK
This message automatically generated.
.
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| User: "Yuma" |
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| Title: Re: How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
03 Feb 2008 04:00:00 PM |
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On Sun, 03 Feb 2008 22:21:06 +0100, Soupy Sales
<blacktooth@whitefang.net> mumbled:
Boy Howdy wrote:
"Tom Gardner" <tom(spamless)@ohiobrush.com> wrote in message
news:vzapj.6760$nK5.3559@nlpi069.nbdc.sbc.com...
|
| "SMITH29" <smith29@comcast.net> wrote in message
| news:SPqdnWQ0Nv0faznanZ2dnUVZ_uPinZ2d@comcast.com...
| >
| > Auto pact: the good, the bad and the ugly
| >
| > The wages and working conditions of union autoworkers have always set
| > standards for all manufacturing. These in turn have put upward pressure
on
| > wages and benefits for all workers. But in today's political and
economic
| > climate, major contract negotiations in the manufacturing sector are
hell.
| > Thirty years of corporate/right-wing attack on labor law and workers'
rights
| > have taken an enormous toll. Capitalist
| <snip>
|
| Soon, there will be one union autoworker in each plant, the person that
manages
| the robot that repairs the robots that repair the robots than make the
cars. He
| will make great wages and have great benefits until he is replaced with
| automation...but the union will have won!
|
I think I saw that on an old "Twilight Zone" episode.
Peobable spammy sam alias. PLONK
This message automatically generated.
Martjin is getting a little paranoid now...
.
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| User: "" |
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| Title: Re: How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
03 Feb 2008 12:48:02 AM |
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On Sat, 02 Feb 2008 15:02:27 -0800, SMITH29
<smith29@comcast.net> wrote:
The wages and working conditions of union autoworkers have always set
standards for all manufacturing. These in turn have put upward pressure
on wages and benefits for all workers. But in today’s political and
economic climate, major contract negotiations in the manufacturing
sector are hell.
Well fucking duh, SmithLoon
The corporations controled the legislature run by
Republicans, the justice department, the labor
department, and all other departments who geared
themselves to siding with business.
.
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| User: "SMITH29" |
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| Title: Re: How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
03 Feb 2008 12:45:03 PM |
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wrote:
On Sat, 02 Feb 2008 15:02:27 -0800, SMITH29
<smith29@comcast.net> wrote:
The wages and working conditions of union autoworkers have always set
standards for all manufacturing. These in turn have put upward pressure
on wages and benefits for all workers. But in today’s political and
economic climate, major contract negotiations in the manufacturing
sector are hell.
Well fucking duh, SmithLoon
The corporations controled the legislature run by
Republicans, the justice department, the labor
department, and all other departments who geared
themselves to siding with business.
xxxx
And just where did you get those ideas?
29
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| User: "Soupy Sales" |
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| Title: Re: How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
03 Feb 2008 01:36:56 PM |
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SMITH29 wrote:
Nicklas@Click.com wrote:
On Sat, 02 Feb 2008 15:02:27 -0800, SMITH29
<smith29@comcast.net> wrote:
The wages and working conditions of union autoworkers have always set
standards for all manufacturing. These in turn have put upward
pressure on wages and benefits for all workers. But in today’s
political and economic climate, major contract negotiations in the
manufacturing sector are hell.
Well fucking duh, SmithLoon
The corporations controled the legislature run by
Republicans, the justice department, the labor
department, and all other departments who geared
themselves to siding with business.
xxxx
And just where did you get those ideas?
From you.
.
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| User: "Yuma" |
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| Title: Re: How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
03 Feb 2008 12:50:35 AM |
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On Sat, 02 Feb 2008 23:48:02 -0700, mumbled:
Well fucking duh
On 24 Apr 2001 17:43:01 GMT Gary Roselles <rosel...@idt.net> wrote (in
reply to an Op-Ed by African-American Rev. Jesse Lee Patterson): 'Say
"yes Massa", Uncle Tom.'
On 18 Feb 2007 14:05:28 -0700 Gary Roselles<C...@Knicklas.com> "Then
why was you mother stupid enough to ***** all them black guys?"
On 6 April 2006 10:23:19 -0800, Gary Roselles <C...@Knicklas.com>
wrote "Yeah, there's a real fucking credible authority----Hitchens a
***** socialist."
On 11 Mar 2001 5:49:44 -0800, Gary Roselles <rosel...@idt.net> wrote:
"The word ***** just describes a gay person"
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<rosel...@idt.net>wrote: "Bush's Uncle tom Cabinet is good first step
for GOP"
On Thu, 28 Dec 2000 19:27:54 GMT, Gary Roselles <rosel...@idt.net>
wrote:"You actually think that placing blackskinned, white thinking
people is going to gain anything with real minorities?"
On 30 Oct 2006 11:13:21 -0800, Gary Roselles <C...@Knicklas.com>
wrote: "brown niggers need to be taken out"
On 2 Jul 2005 10:43:03 -0800, Gary Roselles <C...@Knicklas.com>wrote:
"because of their rap speech"
On 23 Aug 2006 04:29:00 -0700, Gary Roselles <C...@KNICKLAS.COM>
wrote: "What the ***** would a dumb ***** like (distinguished
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On 18 Dec 2000 20:26:48 GMT Gary Roselles <rosel...@idt.net> wrote (of
Colin Powell): "It's apparant[sic] he's being an uncle tom to appease
voters."
On Fri, 16 Mar 2001 06:43:37 GMT Gary Roselles<rosel...@rapidnet.com>
wrote (of Michael Steele): "GOP Poised to Pick Uncle Tom in MD"
On 30 Jun 2005 8:51:19 -0800, Gary Roselles <C...@Knicklas.com>wrote:
"They talk in black english"
.
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| User: "dgs" |
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| Title: Re: How The Democrats See The Union Labor Auto Pact |
05 Feb 2008 10:47:42 AM |
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Spama wrote:
X-Complaints-To:
Fug off, you obsessive moron.
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