Beginning of the End -- For The United Auto Workers???

[rob777]

Thanks to Dr. Hodges for sending me this video. If, in fact, this report is accurate in stating that the United Auto Workers has blocked similar plants from being built in the United States than I think it would be hard to argue against the proposition that unions like the UAW have done more than their share to destroy the industrial base of the United States.

UAW membership peaked in the 1970s at about 1.5 million members. UAW membership today is just under 600,000 -- and dropping.

As we ancient Romans like to say: "Res Ipsa Loquitur” (“The fact speaks for itself").

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This link is for a 3-minute video put together by the Detroit News about Ford's most efficient plant, which is in Brazil. The report ends by noting that Ford would like to build such a facility in the United States, but the UAW won't allow it.

http://info.detnews.com/video/index.cfm?id=1189

[rob777]

This is from a private e-mail I recieved. So much for the notion that the "evil" corporations are "shipping our jobs overseas".

[Brilliant]

Sounds like the beginning of the end was in 1970. This is the end of the end.

[clamper1797]

The unions greed is what took them down ...

[Free Vulcan]

bookmark

[marron]

If you are going to build a heavy industrial facility, you are going to build it where they want you.

You aren’t going to build it where they do everything they can to make operating it impossible. Life is too short.

[untrained skeptic]

As long as the Big Three are tied to the unions, they will continue to falter and will fall behind foreign companies, even those that assemble their cars in the United States.

The Unions work to maintain control and to prevent Ford from reducing head count through increasing efficiency. However, the auto companies must continuously work to increase efficiency in order to remain competitive.

All things being equal, I'd rather buy and American made car from an American company. However, I'm not going to more for a less reliable product just to protect Union jobs and subsidize the standard of living of others at my expense.

The most recent car I purchased is assembled in the US, but it isn't made by one of the big three, because they simply were not competitive in price and reliability.

[geo40xyz]

Yep, today I decide I will NEVER buy another Ford/UAW vehicle.... Poor quality all around, today cost me $540 to get an inspection sticker & lub.... SUM

[atomicpossum]

UAW membership today is just under 600,000 -- and dropping.

And many of those members get paid without doing any work.

[RobRoy]

For anybody that read IACOCCA, this is not new news.

[Jacquerie]

I last visited southeastern Michigan and the Flint area about 10 years ago. What a dump.

Slightly off topic, but can anyone name a prosperous city or state that is staffed top to bottom by democrats?

[nyconse]

The union is a victim of it's own success. It succeeded in feather bedding and having onerous rules, which were fine when it was only the big three. They did not believe things would change, (sounds like the government). To stubborn to change. Would rather get 100% of nothing, than compromise.

[DUMBGRUNT]

Great question!
Chicago has done OK, but the crooks and fools on the county board and the foolish crook of a Gov are doing their best to pull it down.

[org.whodat]

I cannot not remember the number of times I have read that “beginning of the end line”, actually it will not be long until all auto's are made overseas and with a little assembly here. Already happened to farm tractor production.

[nascarnation]

a good percentage of UAW aren’t auto workers anymore

they have organized a lot of state and muny workers (non competitive jobs)

so the actual numbers of AUTO workers is even less than the numbers shown

[nascarnation]

actually a LOT of cars & trucks will be manufactured here in NON-UNION plants

[nascarnation]

the sad part is if they could cordon off the state from Flint east & south, the rest would be OK
unfortunately there would be no one to pay taxes to support the bad part

[GulfBreeze]

That last line is a killer all right.

[org.whodat]

actually a LOT of cars & trucks will be manufactured here in NON-UNION plants

No they will be assembled here as they are today from foreign made parts.

[yankeedame]

...Would rather get 100% of nothing, than compromise.

B/c their nests are nicely feathered, thank you.

[rob777]

"actually a LOT of cars & trucks will be manufactured here in NON-UNION plants"


I think that you are right. Highly automated state of the art efficient plants require reliable power sources. The revolution in Digital Power and the convergence on electrical power that has begun will make the U.S. an attractive place for the next generation state of the art automated plants if we can just get past the problems with environmentalists and unions.