Posted on 12/11/2005 11:18:40 AM PST by Brilliant
KOKOMO, Ind. (AP) -- At least a thousand people rallied in central Indiana against steep wage cuts proposed by auto parts manufacturer Delphi Corp., which has filed for bankruptcy protection.
Workers say the proposed cuts -- from $27 an hour to between $10 and $12.50 -- are unfair, especially as Delphi has given bonuses to managers and other executives. United Auto Workers officials have said a strike against Delphi appears increasingly likely.
"To the Delphi workers here and everyone else, there are 380,000 union workers in the state of Indiana who will march in this battle with you," said Indiana AFL-CIO President Ken Zeller. "You are not alone."
Workers carried signs that read, "Delphi cooks the books/Workers get BURNED."
Delphi spokesman Lindsey Williams declined comment.
One in three jobs in Kokomo is tied to manufacturing, and the Howard County community is poised to take a heavy blow as its two big employers -- Delphi and DaimlerChrysler -- eye layoffs or pay cuts.
Delphi has been operating under bankruptcy protection since October and is seeking to cut hourly workers' wages by more than 60 percent.
Based in Troy, Mich., Delphi has about 6,000 employees in Indiana, most of whom work at the company's Electronics & Safety Division headquartered in Kokomo.
The company was founded in 1999 as a spin-off from General Motors. With 185,000 workers worldwide, Delphi is the nation's largest auto supplier.
Brilliant!
The reality is, they can take the wage cuts or kiss the jobs away forever.
Yeah, it's always smarter to lose your job and the company that provided it, rather than take a cut in pay and allow the company to regain its financial footing.
Government economics 101.
These clods and lazy management have priced themselves out of the market.
Ok. So I'm assuming the price of a bankrupt company with "...185,000 workers worldwide..." can easily be bought by these employees who would then be free to raise wages as they see fit.
Is cutting from $27 to $0 more fair?
To be fair to these people, those are some pretty drastic cuts. I don't see how they can support their families or continue to pay for their houses or their cars at that level.
Come on, how many of you could survive a 60% pay cut? If they're looking to take people straight out of high school, okay. If they're expecting longer hours and and fewer employees (with overtime), that's something a few can deal with. But this is pretty freakin' drastic. I don't see how Delphi could survive here with those sorts of wages. Looks like it may be off to India.
Management gets the union it deserves.
Then they should quit and go get a different job instead of taking the company down.
$27/hr??? For assembly line labor???
Dream, on, crybabies, the party is over.
The benefits probably cost another $27 an hour. No wonder the company is bankrupt.
Either way, you lose you house - what's the difference?
More likely China.. GM has already chosen that option.
Since their labor obviously is worth $27/HR + bennies, they should have no trouble at all competing for like employment in the market.
Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Is cutting from $27 to $0 more fair?
Dunno...but a cut from $27 to $10, now THAT's a cut.
The mistake was in letting these wages get out of line in the first place. It was not sustainable, but the guys who took these jobs did not know better, and now they've got this.
Heh...yeah. You've accurately pointed out what ultimately happens when something is "artificially compensated" at a much higher rate. It eventually plummets when the rug is pulled out.
What do I have to do to force everyone to agree with all my posts? Threaten to not eat supper?
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