A time to be American - GM Trucks

[Varmint Hunter]

Promotions and accompanying higher salary usually go to those who produce not to those who cruise. The union has little input here.

Criminals in this country are entitled to legal counsel. There is no reason that an American worker shouldn't be allowed to have a knowledgeable representative to advise them, if needed.

Never been on strike so have not reply. Some unions are overbearing while many others are not.

I favor a unionized work environment - you apparently do not. I am fine with our differing opinion on this issue. I'd image we are in closer agreement on second amendment issues. :>)

As a union man, what would it take for you to get fired? You talk about the protection you get from the nasty supervisor that might be having a bad day. What protection does the company that you work for have? Lets say you have a bad day, once a week. How many weeks of one bad day a week does the company have to pay you for before they can get rid of you? Or lets say that you have an out put that is 40% greater than the guy that works next to you. Lets say he has been on the job for 6 month longer than you. Will you ever make more than he does? If not why bother doing more work than he does? Now run that attitude through however many people work for any given union organized company and tell me how that can possibly be good for the company.

The union does nothing but protect mediocrity. There is no way you or any one else can sugar coat it any other way. I assume that you are the guy that performs better than the guy next to you and not visa verse. How can you put up with it? You are being held back by the union that you think is protecting you. The only ones in your situation that benefit are the workers that are happy to be less than they can be, and the mafia union bosses that extort money out of you and the company you work for. Call it protection money.

Have you lived through a strike? Did you add up the money you lost during the strike? Did you make it back after the strike with the improved working conditions you got as a result of the strike? More than likely not. Everyone involved lost except the union leaders. Didn't cost them a nickle. In fact they get fatter every time they send the poor workers out to strike. Off the back of the worker that thinks he is being protected by the union. Kind of funny how that works, they take your money and you thank them for doing it. Then they donate it to politicians that disagree with you on probably most every moral, economic, and patriotic value that you have. Yet you still thank them for what they do for you.


Steve

 

[joecool]

when they shut down the plants in the midwest and moved them out of the us to canada and mexico, they said "it's a global market, we don't just sell in the us anymore; it's called progress and globalization."

now after years of failing to fix the union issue, it's a us issue again. What happened to the "it's globalization chant?". Move the 10's of thousands of jobs back to the us, re-open the flint michigan plants, re-negotiate all the union bloat. Then i'll get behind some $'s to help them out.

Aj

+1000

 

[MachV]

We are WAY past the American vrs forien BS

I'm a big GM fan but dont BS me, what the heck does GM and American have in common??
My 88½ton was Canadian, my 92½ton is Mexican and probably my 03 Tahoe. The Regal has 170K, the ½ton extended cab 330K and the Tahoe is just over 110K, my impulsive buying didnt get them into this condition so why the heck should I help get them out.
Let the BIG 3 sink or swim but make them do it themselves!! Cut the big boys salaries=they aint earning it anyway!! Break the UAW= They had thier chance to do the right thing and didnt!!

 

[dogdinger]

Here is the best argument I know to give in regard to the union/non union issue. Last year both Toyota and GM sold 9.3 million vehicles. GM lost 27 billion dollars and Toyota made 19 billion dollars in profit. How could this be so you ask? The difference is the UAW.

There was a time in this country when we needed trade unions. Unsafe work environments, 80 hr work weeks, child labor, unfair good ole' boy contracts......not anymore. With OSHA looking up your *** every time time you break wind, the the endless government regulations we have to abide by, there is no need of them. I do not want a penny of my tax money going to any bailout of any industry period, but most especially, an industry being held hostage by trade unions.
You union guys go ahead and fire away.....I got my big boy pants on and rolled up to the knees. AJ

 

[RockyMtnMT]

I can't argue weather or not the big boys are getting paid too much. I suspect that they get paid too much. It's an unholy alliance with the union. We'll let the union do what they want as long as we can pay our selves as much as we want type of thing. Then we'll ride this horse till it collapses.

Just for argument sake, lets say the big boys were working for nothing. What difference would it make in the current situation? Really very little. It's really easy to dog pile on the top executives and say that they are the problem, when the problem is much bigger.

I guarantee that if they dumped the union, started performance based pay, and got rid of every employee that did not want to be paid this way. There would be people from all over the country willing to buy the houses of those who don't want to work in the new system and take their positions.

Then the good ol' US auto industry would put out high quality for money spent vehicles that would out compete every other auto maker in the world. We are capable of the best.

Steve

PS, Get the Government out of the way as well. This is the other side of the equation.

 

[Boss Hoss]

+1000

Joe---It will never happen---we are in a Global Economy now and the fact of the matter is any BOOB can assemble cars and trucks. The labor required is just a commodity plain and simple and it can and will be done without Union Labor PERIOD if the industry wants to make any ROI!!

The days of Detroit being the King are Dead and Buried. We are a consumer nation now. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that that with the United States biggest exports being raw materials where we are going!!!

Everyone do the due diligence and the writing is on the wall no matter what the politicians say! Unfortunately it is just a fact now..

 

[NONYA]

None of the fullsize GM trucks are made here,CANADA AND MEXICO make them,if you want to buy an american made truck buy a toyotagun)

 

[new shooter]

here is the best argument i know to give in regard to the union/non union issue. Last year both toyota and gm sold 9.3 million vehicles. Gm lost 27 billion dollars and toyota made 19 billion dollars in profit. How could this be so you ask? The difference is the uaw.

There was a time in this country when we needed trade unions. Unsafe work environments, 80 hr work weeks, child labor, unfair good ole' boy contracts......not anymore. With osha looking up your *** every time time you break wind, the the endless government regulations we have to abide by, there is no need of them. I do not want a penny of my tax money going to any bailout of any industry period, but most especially, an industry being held hostage by trade unions.
You union guys go ahead and fire away.....i got my big boy pants on and rolled up to the knees. Aj

you are dead on. +1

 

[3toes]

wow, some of you morons really don't have a clue. you still include ford in this bailout. not all unions are the same, any of you mommas boys want to go to the canada border and drive piling in january. or maybe worse yet redeck a bridge in green bay in february.

 

[geargrinder]

wow, some of you morons really don't have a clue. you still include ford in this bailout. not all unions are the same, any of you mommas boys want to go to the canada border and drive piling in january. or maybe worse yet redeck a bridge in green bay in february.

I guess I'm a moron. Most of what you typed didn't make sense. Could you explain what you are talking about. I wouldn't mind if it was warmer here. Which union should I join to make it warm where I work?

Ford IS included in the bailout. Just like all of the states are included in the Spendulus package.

Ford, like many states, asked for help not string laden loans.

 

[Boss Hoss]

wow, some of you morons really don't have a clue. you still include ford in this bailout. not all unions are the same, any of you mommas boys want to go to the canada border and drive piling in january. or maybe worse yet redeck a bridge in green bay in february.

Sorry but I watched the story about the UAW Union heads stealing money by mischarging time that they did not work. Some even spent time buying beer while on the clock---they are gone now BUT this is the mind set and one reason I avoid at all costs union built vehcles. Let them eat cat food!

Good Bye UAW!!

 

[Crane]

"Unsafe work environments, 80 hr work weeks, child labor, unfair good ole' boy contracts......not anymore." Where do you think all of these things came from? Unions. Let's continue the list: sick leave, vacation, retirement, holiday pay, night differential, hazard pay, overtime, the list go's on and on. These are the things that union and non-union workers both take for granted. Just like our gun ownership rights would immediately be eroded if groups like the NRA were done away with, worker's rights would revert over a short time back to the way it was before unions began protecting the American worker.

I love it when I hear people say they think the company will treat them fairly or give them a raise "because it's the right thing to do" or "the company will take care of me." I have seen enough discrimination, sexual harassment, unjust discipline, pay disparity and good ole' boy contracts to reinforce my belief that unions are still necessary. The government has done a poor job protecting the rights of working families as evidenced by the inability of the NLRB or the FLRA to process hardly any cases the last 6 years from having their budgets slashed in half and board positions not filled. Let's talk about the coal mine disasters in recent years that took the lives of many miners after the companies had been cited numerous times for safety violations by OSHA. Bet the widows and fatherless kids could tell everyone a thing or two about government watchdog safety.

The auto corporations have become anti-union argument, but ask a police officer, fireman, nurse, miner or any number of other jobs if they think unions are necessary. If the government protects the worker then why do federal employee's find it necessary to have unions? To protect them from the same unfair labor practices that occur in the private sector.

Let me finish this by saying one of the problems with the big three has a lot to with the ten's of thousands of retiree's the company has to support for the life of the retired worker. That goes a long way toward profitability. Yeah, I'm pro union.

 

[Boss Hoss]

I have friends that are pilots, nurses and several LEO's and to the man/women all do not like them-sorry but the time of union labor is Kaput here in the US. Global Economy is here and just because people do not like it that does not mean it will be going away.

 

[Crane]

Things I've learned about the union question:

(1) What part of the country your from

(2) The beliefs that were instilled in you from youth

(3) If you've ever suffered any injustice relating to your job