bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

this part was interesting...

so they're *****ing about gm making a big profit when the uaw workers see a NICE chunk of change out of it, which they're now decreasing by striking. smooth move.

Sulu

It seems that your hatred of the union is blinding you.

Can you not see the gift of donuts for the gesture it is? After all, it is the gesture that counts, not the gift itself, from autoworkers who are working to their colleagues who are not. Canadian air traffic controllers ordered pizza for their American colleagues during the American government shutdown over Christmas last year. Was that a cynical gesture?

And what other food items are more ideally packaged for delivery than donuts or pizza?

Yes, GM may have a profit-sharing program but a such a program is a one-time, once-a-year thing. I have participated in such programs and they are usually full of arcane rules that lessen the amount non-management workers can make or even reduce an employee's share done to nothing. I rather have an increase in pay or benefits.

GM has been profitable for a few years now, which is quite a change from a decade ago, when it was on its deathbed. Back at that time, the union and its workers sacrificed a lot to save the company and save their jobs, and now the union is just asking to be given back some of that, instead of a token profit-sharing payout.

In other news, GM's Oshawa workers now face layoffs because the American strike means a shortage of parts and components so that Oshawa cannot assemble vehicles. With no vehicles being assembled, there will be no deliveries to dealers and sales may be affected. The strike affects both sides -- GM and the unionized workers.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

lol. i don't hate unions, they've done some good in the past.

donuts and pizza aren't going to make gm or the faa change its position. they're pointless gestures except for the feel good 'solidarity'.

maybe so but it said the AVERAGE check was $11K - that's a HUGE bonus.

i bet if gm said fine, have more guaranteed stuff and less or no profit sharing that it wouldn't fly because no way could gm guarantee as much as the profit sharing has been recently because in the next downturn the company will have screwed itself. but uaw doesn't think long term or have any business sense whatsoever. just the usual "management" is "always screwing us" attitude. it's never that simple.

boo hoo... so why should oshawa workers provide donuts when that strike is going to kill their jobs!

mmarshall

Agreed. It is difficult NOT to have sympathy for UAW and UNIFOR workers today. What they have been through, at the hands of Ford and GM, not to mention many of the traditional customers of these companies, has been nothing short of outrageous. Even some conservative groups that traditionally tend to side with corporations are supportive of the strike. (I won't post the details here, because the moderators would probably consider it too political)

You bet they did.

mmarshall

Consumer interest in GM is falling off as a result of the strike.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/edgarst.../#10a974701ec9

The Teamsters and Steelworkers are now adding support. They are honoring the UAW picket lines and are refusing to deliver supples to GM, further cutting down GM's ability to operate.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/polit...abor-movement/



Mary Barra had better start getting her head out of the sand....she is facing a crisis that is rapidly going from bad to worse.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

That article shows zero correlation between the strike and interest in GM. It does say interest fell off after the initial Corvette hype (go figure) and that lowering interest in gm seems to be offset by greater interest in other brands like hyundai and jeep.

mmarshall

The Teamsters and Steelworkers are now honoring the strike, cutting off supplies to GM. I added the reference to the post, above.

Of course people are looking at other brands during the strike. That goes without saying.

.........which reminds me (Thanks) . I still have to check out the latest ES350 with 55-series tires. Wasn't at all impressed with the 45s.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

If it goes on a while, the strike will not end well for the uaw or gm, hurting both. It’s self-defeating. Back when GM, Ford, and Chrysler were really the ‘big 3’ and accounting for almost all US vehicle sales, a UAW strike brought the entire industry to a stop and the auto maker’s management pretty much had no choice but to respond. But now if GM disappeared, it wouldn’t matter.

mmarshall

In the past, you would have ben correct.....that would have be generally been the case, but I disagree this time. GM, and Ford to a lesser extent, is facing a unique set of circumstances that has never existed before. They have alienated not only the unions, but non-union employees, suppliers, an angry or indifferent public, local/state governments, national governments, and even Heads of State. In a sense, GM has defeated itself. Definitely not a position I would want to be in.

I honestly don't want to see GM fold. I myself am a fan of most of their products, and the way they drive and feel. What they simply need is better management, and more attention to not only their employees but also their traditional customers.....the ones that kept them in business for decades. This profit-first-at-any cost / bottom-line approach is what got them into the trouble they are in now, and only common sense will get them out of it.

Toys4RJill

GM Is not going to fold. They still have the largest market share in the US.

You mean kills the big sedans? That are not selling well.

mmarshall

What they simply need is better management, and more attention to not only their employees but also their traditional customers.....the ones that kept them in business for decades.

Far more than that. That's only one issue.

Oh, and just a friendly heads-up: when you do a quote, double-quotes don't work. You have to be careful how you set the markers and brackets up........I fixed it for you here.

Toys4RJill

I think GM leadership has done really well. They are making money now and they have for the first time ever, really tried to prepare for the future but making difficult decisions today. They are preparing for the next economic downturn which is coming.

The only thing I do not agree with, was the closure of their plants. They could of allocated product to these locations.

As for the sedan cancellation, it was a smart move.

But back to the UAW, this is only going to hurt them in the long haul. GM will be closing up more plants in the future. But at the end of the day, does it really matter to me? Nah, I will never buy a GM car again...so strike on boys

mmarshall

Up until the last year or so. Then, everything became unglued, which led them to today's mess.

And where is that money going? Each day the strike goes on, they lose $100 million...with no end currently in sight.


There are numerous reasons for the strike, but, yes, that is the main one.

Look where it got them. That was what shut down the plants in the first place, and (ultimately) led to the strike.

The more they close, the more strikes they will face. Enough is enough.

BTW, UNIFOR may (?) be the next strike they face.

Never say never when it comes to car-shopping. I earned that a long time ago.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

Uaw picked on gm but if gm fails, uaw is still nowhere with ford, fca

mmarshall

The way the contract-negotiations typically work, whatever the "target" company is for the negotiations (in this case, GM), that's what the labor-contract usually ends up being for all three corporations. That's the way it's been throughout most of the UAW's history, except for unusual cases like the GM/Chrysler bailouts in 2008/2009, where the UAW put up some of its own cash (and made unique concessions) to save GM and Chrysler, and, of course, they didn't have to so do with Ford because Ford did not file for bankruptcy. Usually, though, when the previous contracts expire, whatever the UAW negotiates with the target company becomes the norm for the next contract across the board.

BTW, almost two thirds (64%) of the public approves of unions now, and is supportive of the strike, a big increase from just a few years ago. That, alone, is a sign that the recent actions of the auto companies have played a big role in that public opinion.

https://qz.com/work/1709846/gm-strik...ons-runs-high/