Posted on 06/01/2009 3:22:27 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
When United Auto Workers (UAW) union chief Ron Gettelfinger announced the end of GM's two-day strike in the early hours of September 26, 2007, it was the beginning of the end for the world's largest car manufacturer.
The agreement to end the first US nationwide automotive strike in 31 years, which saw General Motors' then 73,000-strong US workforce walk out, was the final death knell in the company's 101-year history.
The strike had occurred not over the future of those employees however, but rather of the fate of GM's 460,000 retired workers whose continuing eligibility for healthcare benefits had placed a $50bn (£30bn) noose around GM's neck.
The deal to end the strike saw GM management swap those liabilities in favour of the creation of an off-balance sheet healthcare trust, worth $20bn.
Although the agreement ended the short-lived strike, it placed an additional one-off burden on GM's already ailing balance sheet, forcing the company into a situation from which it could never recover.
The events of the 20 months that have followed – culminating in today's Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing – have all stemmed from that decision, a decision which was necessary because of years of died-in-the-wool union practices in a domestic industry being fast usurped by overseas competitors.
If GM's founder, Billy Durant, had lived to see this day, he would not have been a happy man. Durant, who originally made his fortune making horse-drawn vehicles in the late 1800s, formed General Motors in 1908 having been appointed as general manager of Buick in 1904.
In quick succession he merged the now defunct Oldsmobile, Pontiac and Cadillac marques into the GM family, and started the company with a fervent belief – no unions.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
It really is government motors.
Obama apparently is going to make the announcement about GM’s bankruptcy today. Not the CEO, not the chairman of the board but Obama himself.
GM was dead long ago. The thing now is whether they can focus on building cars people want to buy and my bet is that they won’t and Obama Motors will fail like Obama will fail as president.
Since we now own an auto company will it be considered “patriotic” to boycott all the other non-government owned companies?
I think it would be patriotic not to boycott the non-government companies. GM will be a drain on the taxpayers for years to come. The only way GM survives is if the Obama administration passes laws that require us to buy its cars.
That is a possibility.
Watch for new attempts by the UAW to unionize the Japanese plants in the US.
Well he is a dictator now for sure ,Congress just sits by with their head up their asses,I can imagine if George Bush was saying today he is going to be in Charge of GM ,the first question would not be How Long the Government would be running the show there ,the question would be where the Hell does King George think he has the Authority in the Constitution to do such a thing with Tax Payer Money?
Watch those Japanese plants close and move back to Japan.
Wow, I hadn't heard about this. The article also contains the best description I've seen of the 2007 looting of GM by the UAW. It's a sad day in American not only because of Obama and the UAW's syndicalism, but also because of our utterly failed press.
No. The federal tyrants will simply put a punitive tax on any auto that is not owned by them.
Look for pop culture to start talking about the only true car “born in America” and condemning the greed of all those other private companies.
Maybe Tina Fey, the idiot actress with no talent, can do some spot ads for the new GM.
The leftist MSM should be celebrating the victory in their war against American wealth. Sadly, envy is the only one of the 7 deadly sins that is no fun at all.
GM Management points to the Engineers, and says they will not design cars people want to buy....
The Engineers point to the Union, and say they refuse to work hard enough to build the cars they design....
The Union points to Management, and says they get paid too much, while the Union gets paid too little....
Management points to the Engineers.........
Paid for outstanding balances? According to bankruptcy laws, they can go back 90 days and seize payments made to suppliers.....
GM's management decided to continue selling cars which consumed a lot of fuel even as gas prices continued to climb. While I don't think they should dump large vehicles because clearly people do use them, they should not have made those the foundation for profit for the entire economy. When gas goes back to $4 a gallon or more, any company that makes most of its money selling vehicles like these will take a hit once again. They could have also tried to find a way to make larger vehicles use less gas.
Then there's the quality issues. The UAW simply refuses to build quality vehicles. They've been doing this for decades. Many customers simply said "screw you" and bought foreign makes instead.
If what happened in my family is any example, the GM just needs someone to nail the coffin shut. My entire family was all GM until I got tired of being on a first name basis with my mechanic and bought my first Honda. When my mom tells me that she is happy she found a mechanic close by who can fix her GM vehicle, I tell her... you see the problem with that?
You are absolutely correct!
Sounds good but with what they are doing to the bond holders, what is stopping them from screwing the suppliers? Maybe they will pay them 10 cents on the dollar.
I wonder if the thug-in-chief will figure out a way to intimidate consumers into buying a Government Motors product instead of a Ford?
Do ya think all the Liberal types will suddenly stop buying their Japanese cars just to be “patriotic”? Fat chance.
The UAW simply refuses to build quality vehicles.
Also, SUVs and trucks are what sustained the American auto industry for a long time (since the early 90s). Why? Because the Big Three lose $$ on nearly every car they sell. Again, that is thanks to UAW labor costs.
Yes, because it is not the American Government any more. We cannot reward bad behavior, nor collaborate with a conqueror.
About $20 billion in our tax money has already been wasted on GM. At least $50 billion more will be given to GM to waste this year. This is a welfare program for the UAW, allowing the Socialist Obama and his Socialists in Congress to buy votes, using our tax money (and the ballooning national debt). GM has made junk for decades, and will have even less incentive to make decent products now that it has unlimited federal money to waste. There is no need for them to compete or worry about profits, so GM will be even more inclined to ignore consumer demands.
Who is his right mind would buy a GM car or truck?
Yes, because it is not the American Government any more. We cannot reward bad behavior, nor collaborate with a conqueror.
Sorry..I need coffee. Jumped over some of that and somehow though you said "Boycott the government owned company".
I'll shut up till I wake up. I'm just too disgusted to think clearly.
GM's operating arrangements and business structure developed over the course of several decades because it was put in place by a three-part group that all benefitted in one way or another: the UAW got lucrative contracts, management got well-paid positions with little responsibility to deliver profits, and elected officials got the votes of all parties in exchange for government contracts to produce fleets of mediocre civilian vehicles and more military vehicles than the Pentagon could even use.
General Motors has been a government-run industry for years. Today's bankruptcy and pending reorganization just make it official.
UAW mission accomplished!
“it is not the American Government any more. “
You must have read the Pravda article the other day.
“it is not the American Government any more. “
Yes! Because the NWO, which is running the show, wants us in streetcars that don’t existt.
The union thugs have taken their hand out of GM’s pocket and put it in ours!
I tried not to, but it was like driving by a bad accident. You don't want to look but you have to.
NWO?
Get ready for the “Mother of all Incentives” to buy Government Motors cars. You will pay for GM cars whether you buy one or not.
New World Order
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.