I couldn't resist adding this "Ad".................
It's hard to read, this is what the caption on the bottom says........
You probably thought it was smart to buy a foreign import of superior quality, with better mileage and resale value. Maybe you even thought that years of market share loss might prod us into rethinking our process and redesigning our products with better quality in mind. But you forgot one thing; We spend a shitload of money on lobbyist. So now you’re out $25 billion, plus the cost of your Subaru. Maybe nest time you’ll buy American like a real man. Either way, we’re cool.
We're the Big Three. We don't need to compete.
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14 comments:
Of course the UAW won't allow it. They care not about the health of the company and the executives constantly knuckle under to them. With such a toxic mix, it isn't any wonder why they are failing.
Would even a non-union workforce in the USA wear uniforms to work and discuss only the job at lunch? At some point, the cultural differences as well as the economic ones are going to have to be addressed in the globalization process. I'm not defending greedy workers who demand outrageous wages and benefits for doing shoddy or little work. At the same time, is it fair to compare paying a few dollars a day to people in unindustrialized areas to the wages of American workers? What does it cost a day to live in South America vs. the USA? When most citizens here talk about jobs, they're talking about something that can support a family in the United States, not a few pesos that allow people to live in squalor elsewhere. Most importantly, how are people in the USA supposed to buy these products when their jobs have gone overseas? I say that we destroy the greedy unions at the same time that we destroy the greedy suits that allow one person to "earn" millions and millions of dollars. What does the head of that assembly plant make in comparison to his United States' counterparts? When American executives accept pay similar to their counterparts in Mexico, or Siberia, or Butthole, Nowheresville, then our workers should be paid the same. ENOUGH ALREADY with the double standard between workers' and management's salaries and benefits.
You know, the more I think about it, the more this IS the answer to the Big 3's (and all other corporations') economic woes: move the companies to the countries where they manufacture their products. Ford can move to Brazil. There they can make all the vehicles they want at whatever wage they want to pay. And sell them to Brazilians. If they want to export them to the United States, then they can be subject to all the tariffs, taxes and fees that apply. Meanwhile, Ford's CEO and president and all the top executives can enjoy their new lives in Camacari, Brazil. Do they even have indoor plumbing there? Do you think Brazil will go to war to protect Ford's business interests in foreign lands? Will Brazil's military intervene if Ford is threatened elsewhere, hmmm? Yeah, it sure looks great down there in Brazil. See ya later, Ford Motor Company. Btw, don't come knocking on our door anymore with your problems - go see who or whatever is running Brazil these days . . .
I would think the UAW would be against this because their union workers would no longer have as many jobs. I think the hot shot executives would still garner a decent wage if the vehicles sell.
Let's remember why unions came to be... because greedy companies were taking advantage of workers.
Yes, we need to make sure if something is manufactured in another country where wages are not comparable to U.S. living wages, there should be a tariff or some level of equivalency applied.
I hate to bring this up again but in a small way what Milwaukee is doing to purchase Police Officers uniforms from CHINA instead of Badger Uniform here in Wisconsin, is a small part of the whole American thing. Cheaper in another country and no jobs in the states!
The incoming government needs to look at the free trade policy again and make sure it is equitable and favorable to the U.S. We survived $4.00 a gallon gas, we can pay slightly more for goods produced here. It won't be fun, but then again, we won't be funding a potential future adversary's military. Our business industry needs to clean its act up too so that fluff (high CEO pay, etc.) is cut from the budget.
Exactly my point. Bad management coupled with inflexible union equals failure. If the executives took a 20% pay cut, what do you think the odds of UAW authorizing the same? BTW, I doubt if either would do it.
In 2006 unions represented only 12 percent of the workforce. Reference 12% of workforce.
12% pretty small amount, but the impression they are so powerful is driven by the auto industry. It is a sad state of affairs when corporate greed has to be the driving factor in moving industry out of Racine and the United States.
In the same turn, union members in the auto industry are paid something like 90% of their wages when laid off...well who wants to work when you can collect that kind of money for doing nothing! Perks like this drive up the cost of products.
It is a hard choice when it comes to “Buy American”. I am sure there are many union people who shop Wal-Mart (as an example) where they buy many of their wares from China, India, Mexico and the like. And why not, we need to “stretch” our dollars as far as we can.
To me, arguing unions is like arguing politics and religion...no winners
You can't have two entities running a company. Now we'll have three, The executives, the Union, and the government....BOHICA
AA, my opinion is that the cuts absolutely have to take place at the management/CEO end first. If given the choice of no work or pay cuts, unions have traditionally bent and taken less, especially after the Air Traffic Controllers incident under Reagan.
The Ad posted reminds me of the old Lily Tomlin skit from Laugh-In, she is a telephone operator and is taking a complaint call. She tells the caller, "We don't care, we don't have to, we're the phone company...."
I love Laugh In and have a couple of the DVD collections they released (including a swordfighting/gun scene that was done years before the more famous version in Raiders of the Lost Ark).
Something was troubling me about this, and I am finally starting to have some thoughts coalesce here...warning, thought still in progress!
So, we bailed out Wall Street to the tune of a couple of trillion. Some lip service was given to reigning in CEO compensation although not much was done in reality since they are allowed to keep their current contracts. However, there are tens of thousands of white collar employees and many of them make well in excess of six figures and have pretty good benefits. No one has said boo about them needing to make sacrifices for the good of the company to save them!
As soon as we get to the auto industry, blue collar workers are the hook for every problem the company has. The double standard in the rhetoric between the white collar bankers and blue collar auto workers is shocking and has been perpetuated by our so called liberal media!
I hope our leaders are justly embarassed about how poorly the financial industry bailout has been handled. The need to go back and reexamine that bailout, including pay for bankers and traders, or this whole thing really does look like a union busting exercise.
The entire bailout scenario is too vast and complex for me to absorb. I don't know who is to blame for what. If Freddie and Fannie effed us up, OK let's deal with that. So why aren't the banks lending? We gave them money but they aren't lending it out. Why don't the Big 3 go to the banks that we lent money to and ask them for it? What a freaking mess.
Auto industry bailout plan dies in the Senate
Collapse comes after bipartisan talks break down over union wage cuts
Reading the article on MSNBC I could not find anything related to CEO’s (and the like) taking a reduction in their wages, benefits and perks.
I think right now the unions have gotten out of hand asking for unimaginable wages and bonus...BUT they are the reason we have 40/hr work weeks, no child labor, health insurance, good working conditions. I remember my dad striking for retirement benefits, all gathered around a burn barrel and my mom taking him some lunch. To bad.
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